Charitable donations to Canada’s community foundations, including those in B.C., are rebounding, Community Foundations of Canada (CFC) announced this morning.
“When people have more confidence in the economy, they feel they are able to share their financial resources again,” CFC president and CEO Monica Patten said. “I think now there’s a new buoyancy and people are feeling comfortable and confident.”
CFC, which funds charities across Canada, noted that its collective assets have finally reached $3 billion – the number it was poised to hit in 2008 before the recession struck.
Last year, the country’s community foundations received $259 million in new gifts, up from $194 million the previous year.
But while Patten called the turnaround “significant,” she noted that it’s only just beginning.
“It was toward the end of last year, and as we enter into 2011, that we’ve seen the turnaround,” she said.
Patten noted that the recession resulted in some community foundations shutting down or folding into others.
But with jobs stabilizing and charitable giving on the rebound, she said
charities across Canada are poised to benefit.
“When community foundations rebound, as we are [doing], that means we have more money to put out into communities,” she said. “So it kind of works its way through the system.”
A breakdown of the giving for B.C.’s community foundations was not available by press deadline.