The Canadian Mental Health Association — Cariboo Chilcotin Branch has entered the Aviva Community Fund Competition this year and needs the public’s help to win up to $150,000 for its new community kitchen, “Cooking for Change.”
The Aviva Community Fund is a competition that is creating positive change in communities across Canada. The most popular ideas, as chosen by Canadians, will have a chance at sharing in the $1 million Aviva Community Fund. Darlene Doskoch, manager of Jubilee Place, says CMHA-CCB has applied for $150,000 towards a Jubilee Place community kitchen and without the public’s vote, it may not make it through the first round of competition.
Jubilee Place is a 33-unit transitional housing facility that specifically houses people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
CMHA-CCB’s idea for the Aviva Community Fund is to refurbish an old restaurant, located at Jubilee Place, into a fully functional kitchen.
The kitchen would become a social enterprise, a catering company and community kitchen that would operate with the help of Jubilee staff, Jubilee tenants and other community partnerships such as the local high schools and restaurants.
Doskoch says the kitchen has been an idea of CMHA-CCB since the opening of Jubilee Place in February 2010. This social enterprise will provide tenants with an opportunity to improve the quality of their lives, learn basic work-related skills and provide meals to low-income members of our community.
“Furthermore, it would give them a challenge, a sense of belonging and skills for a job,” she says. “With support towards the kitchen development from staff, tenants and community it has already begun to work towards getting things in place to make its vision come true.”
CMHA-CCB has been able to find $62,000 dollars and has hired Russell Foods to develop blueprints for the kitchen. CMHA-CCB’s goal, if it receives Aviva funding, is to renovate the kitchen and purchase the equipment needed so it can open and operate the tenant-run business.
“CMHA-CCB would like to take this opportunity to thank the citizens of Williams Lake for the incredible amount of support received since opening Jubilee Place in March 2010,” Doskoch says.
For more information, contact Doskoch at 778-412-7273. Voting for round one ends on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at noon, Eastern Time.
Log in and vote on the Aviva webpage at http://www.avivacommunityfund.org/ideas/acf11402.