Celebrating the SVP Community on National Philanthropy Day

November 15 is National Philanthropy Day, and we’re taking a moment to reflect on the incredible contributions of our SVP Vancouver community: Partners and Lead Partners, SVP Vancouver staff, Investee and Alumni organizations, and volunteers from across our network who are dedicated to helping B.C. kids thrive.

Across B.C., children are facing mounting barriers to their health, education, and overall well-being: from poverty (1 in 7 children are growing up in it) to unpreparedness for school (1 in 3 children show up to grade 1 unprepared to learn), too many kids are growing up with obstacles that limit their ability to thrive.

We don’t serve children and youth directly; rather, we aim to support the amazing nonprofit organizations that make a profound difference in kids’ lives. At SVP Vancouver we find, fund, strengthen, and scale high-impact nonprofit organizations. We offer support beyond the dollar with our hands-on capacity-building programming, to resource nonprofit leaders and organizations so they can better tackle issues facing children and youth, over the long term.

Here’s a look at some of the ways in which our philanthropic community helped make this work happen over the past year. 

Leveraging Incredible Talent and Thought Leadership within Our Networks

We’re continually inspired by how SVP Vancouver Partners provide their time, talent, and expertise to contribute to our Investees’ capacity-building.

Meghan Neufeld, Executive Director with BabyGoRound, recently worked with SVP Partner Wayman Crosby. “Having SVP Partner Wayman Crosby as a thought partner has played a crucial role in helping BabyGoRound navigate the complexities of the commercial real estate market, ensuring informed decision-making at each step. His expertise provided a different lens to the process and made us feel confident in our decision in securing a second location in Cloverdale. This space will enable us to enhance our services and create a better experience for the families we support as we continue to scale,” she says.

In addition to Partner time and talent, nonprofits have access to consultants with sector expertise, like our Strategy and Social Impact Coast, Karen Gelb, and with the New School of Fundraising. These resources, which help Investee and Alumni organizations develop strategies, better articulate their impact, and build their fundraising capacity, are offered to nonprofits at no cost and made possible by SVP Vancouver Partner donations.

Monique Belanger with A:lmélháwtxw, Stó:lō Service Agency’s Early Education Centre describes her experience with Karen: “My coaching sessions with Karen have been pivotal, not only in making strides with my work with Dual Credit, but in building my confidence with advocating for the sector, for myself, and the children. She has guided me in using tools to track my work, gather data, and make network connections in the community. Additionally, I’ve been able to enter into conversations with prospective network relationships prepared, gathering relevant information supporting my work. Each session is productive and I leave each meeting ready to tackle the next task (and often with homework…).”

Building Connections and Collaboration within the Community

We work with amazing nonprofits who are undertaking impactful work across the Greater Vancouver area and beyond. At SVP Vancouver, our ties can help build bridges between organizations – organizations who have shown a willingness to collaborate and a dedication to innovation within the sector, in the service of helping kids thrive. 

One example of collaboration in the community is between LDS, Learn, Develop. Succeed. and New Westminster Family Place (NWFP), who connected at an SVP Vancouver event and realized that LDS could provide services that would be valuable at NWFP.  Program leaders from each organization worked together to bring LDS to NWFP and will provide early learning differences screening and intervention initiatives in the near future.

Read more about this inspiring collaboration and more connections within our community that SVP helped come about.

Benefitting from the Dedication of Volunteers across our Network

SVP Vancouver would not be what it is without our dedicated volunteers.  Our Board, who support us with our strategic direction and impact. Our Lead Partners, who work closely with Investee organizations, providing them with expertise, encouragement, and networking opportunities. Our Partners, who volunteer to support specific capacity-building projects for Investees. Our Opportunities Committee, who diligently review prospective candidates in the Investee pipeline and determine the best fit for the organization.

It goes without saying that the SVP Vancouver community would not be what it is without the generous contributions of time, talent, treasures and ties that our network brings to the table, and we’re so grateful and appreciative of this generosity. We’re so proud of what we’ve achieved with your help, and we look forward to what’s to come.

Thank you, and happy National Philanthropy Day!