City dishes out grants to local non-profit groups

The largest sum — $36,000 — was awarded to Contactivity, the seniors' community centre that operates out of Westmount Park Church. These funds will help uphold the standard of services the centre has been building over the past 36 years. “Our membership has been going up, and so has our need for volunteers,” said Contactivity director Mary Stark. “We offer many services and activities, like door-to-door check-ups for those who want us to come by daily, game nights, and arts-and-crafts. The money will go towards accomplishing our mission to offer activities to our seniors.”

However, Contactivity cannot rely just on the City for financial support. They also receive support from Centraide, the Régie de la santé et des services sociaux and individual donations.

Not all non-profit groups ended up receiving such a large amount. The Westmount Youth Orchestra (WYO) received $2,500 — but that amount is misleading. According to Sylvie Mercier, the orchestra’s president, the WYO gets plenty of help from the City and relies on donations as their primary source of income. “For many years the City has been giving us this subvention to help us operate,” said Mercier. “But what is more, the City lets us use Victoria Hall for rehearsals, which saves us so much on renting costs, and we are extremely grateful for it.”

The orchestra has been extremely busy since their inaugural year in 1997. Two years ago they embarked on their first European tour, visiting Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic. And before Christmas they held a high-profile fundraiser that brought in $175,000.

Next year, the orchestra is planning on touring yet again, this time around Quebec and Ontario. “It costs a lot to keep an orchestra alive," said Mercier. "We have to rent certain instruments, move around, and have a paid staff. All this adds up. Our annual budget is between $60,000 and $70,000, with around 100 musicians. That $2,500 may not be much, but it accumulates — and that’s how we earn money.”

Other City grant recipients include the Westmount YMCA, Repercussion Theatre, the Atwater Library, Montreal Children’s Library, the Open Door Mission, the Visual Arts Centre and Centre Greene.