2017 marks the 10th anniversary of the Surrey Homelessness and Housing Society (SHHS). Over the past ten years the Society has provided over $3.5 million in funding to Surrey organizations that assist people experiencing homelessness. The Society has supported 55 projects with more than 50 partners assisting over 500 individuals, including children, who were homelessness or at imminent risk of homelessness.

Since 2007 alone, the Van Tel/Safeway Legacy Fund has granted more than $1.5 million back to the community. But that is just dollars. The magnitude of the real gift is much larger, as it lives on in the lives of every person touched by the hundreds of organizations that received funding, and in all the future grants to come, built on the 60-year history of these credit unions and the goodwill of thousands of their members.

A fair world. Social justice. Thoughtful participation. These ideals inspire the generous giving of Bill Bargeman and Nancy Hawkins, retired teachers and union leaders who established a Donor Advised Fund through Vancity Community Foundation in 2014.

Open each winter season, Aunt Leah’s lots sell high-quality Christmas trees and accessories, including stands, wreaths, swags and greenery, across Metro Vancouver. The lots are run by a combination of employees and volunteers and also provides training and employment opportunities to at-risk youth.

When Margaret Mitchell passed away on International Women’s Day in 2017 at the age of 92, she left a legacy of advocating for the rights of women and greater economic and social justice for all.