Valley First Community Endowment

First West Foundation’s purpose is to help create resilient and empowered communities, and this starts with encouraging resilient and empowered youth. With a Valley First Community Endowment grant of $5,950 to the Go Girls!

They cooked it. Tried it. And liked it! Children in grades 4–7 across the North Okanagan have a new appreciation for food and healthy choices after taking part in the “Cook it. Try it. Like it! ” program which was offered locally for the first time in 2015 by the Food Action Society.

In a digital world where most people turn to technology and the web to connect, many seniors are left feeling disconnected.

1 in 5 children in BC grow up in poverty, and Penticton has one of the highest child poverty rates in the province.

We’re very excited to announce the 2015 grant distributions which totaled $113,029. In 2010, Valley First established a charitable endowment with the First West Foundation to generate ongoing community funding in the Valley First region.

Purposefully nestled in between Penticton Secondary School and ConnectEd, Hand in Hand Infant/Toddler Centre is a thriving partnership between Penticton & District Community Resources Society and School District #67.

What propels us to volunteer? Is it a desire to make a difference? An enthusiasm to help others?  A craving to exchange ideas and information?  It is all of these things and more.  While there are hundreds of reasons to volunteer, the benefits to those on both sides are infinite.

While food security worries are not top of mind for young children, too many kids have first hand experience of what it’s like to be hungry.

Many abused women and children live at or below the poverty level. The South Okanagan Women in Need Society (SOWINS) is aiming to change that with a special project in Penticton; thanks in part to a $5,000 Valley First Community Endowment Grant.

Good nutrition fuels both our bodies and our minds. This is what the Kelowna & District Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) firmly believes and is working to enhance among the youth they support in Kelowna through their Connected by 25 Supper Club.