Mural Competition Deadline Extension

A Note from United Way CKL’s Projects and Communications Coordinator:

“We’re excited to announce that we’re extending the deadline for the Edwin Binney’s Community Garden Mural Competition! We know that CKL, Haliburton, and Peterborough have some incredibly talented youth, and we want to make sure we’re reaching as many of them as we can. We have $1,000 up for grabs– not to mention the incredible networking and portfolio building opportunities that come along with the competition. What are you waiting for?!”

How do you enter? It’s more easy than you think! Click the picture below to go to the Mural Page of our website for full details. To sum up, all you need to enter is:

1) Your Design

2) A 1-page Artist Statement for your design

3) A 1-page Letter of Intent describing your background and hopes for the future

4) At least 2 photos of other work you have completed in the past

Are you ready to submit? Click here to enter the competition!

By cklunitedway|2019-03-29T10:22:10-04:00March 29th, 2019|News|0 Comments

United Way CKL Newsletters

United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes is excited to show you our most recent newsletters. If you have any questions or comments relating to the content of these newsletters, please contact our Projects and Communications Coordinator, Elly Millington. Happy Reading!

Spring 2019 Newsletter:

spring newletter 2019

Winter 2019 Newsletter:

2019 Winter Newsletter – E-Copy

Fall 2018 Newsletter:

2018 Fall Newsletter

Summer 2018 Newsletter:

2018 Campaign Newsletter

Spring 2018 Newsletter:

2018 Spring Newsletter

By cklunitedway|2019-03-26T15:27:59-04:00March 26th, 2019|News|0 Comments

Community Care Health and Care Network announced as the 2018/2019 Mona Hall Legacy Fund Recipient

United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes (UWCKL) has announced Community Care Health and Care Network as the recipient of a $5,000 grant from the Telecare Mona Hall Fund to create a teleconference caregiver support program based on a successful pilot project.

Penny Barton Dyke, Executive Director for UWCKL said, “The funds will be dedicated to setting up a communication support system to assist families who are caring for a relative or friend. Community agencies and partners have seen significant increases in the number of families taking on the role of informal care providers for a family member in their home and the prediction is this role will increase with our aging population.”

“Teleconferencing will increase access to support and education for caregivers who may not be able to leave the home due to caregiving duties, transportation barriers or time constraints,” says Joan Skelton, Director Community Support Services. A pilot project with caregivers using the teleconference outreach was very positively received.

“With this generous grant from the Telecare Mona Hall Fund, individuals can now participate in the Caregiver Connection Teleconference Series to provide a meaningful supportive opportunity that will contribute to social inclusion and build social connections with others in the community who are going through a similar situation, all from the comfort of their own home,” explains Ms. Skelton.

When Lifeline Telecare closed its doors, funds were transferred to UWCKL to administer through a committee process and to help local groups initiate innovative programs in response to emerging or identified community priorities over a five-year period. The funds have been overseen by a committee of volunteers with expertise. Four agencies have received funding since the launch of the grant fund in 2016: Kawartha Sexual Assault addressed dating violence prevention for youth; Ontario Early Years created the Queen Victoria Public School Summer Outreach Program; Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kawartha Lakes-Haliburton created an in-School Mentoring Resource initiative and marketing for mentors and last year, The John Howard Society started a Caring Dads Program to increase skills for fathers needing special supports.

“Over the years, we have been given the privilege of small legacy gifts which have allowed us to invest in people in real time. When donors give to UWCKL they do so with purpose and with the knowledge that funds go to high priority needs which are monitored with the help of citizen review panel teams ensuring transparency and accountability,” adds Ms. Barton Dyke. Next year will be the final year for the Mona Hall Fund.

For further information on Caregiver Connections, please contact:

Joan Skelton, Director Community Support Services

Community Care Health and Care Network

T: 705-324-7323 ext. 232 E. jskelton@ccckl.ca

By cklunitedway|2019-03-26T15:35:17-04:00March 14th, 2019|News|0 Comments

Edwin Binney’s Legacy at Crayola

Edwin Binney was an American entrepreneur and inventor who created the first dustless white chalk, and was the co-founder of Binney and Smith: the company now known as Crayola. He was born on November 24^th, 1866 in Shrub Oak, New York, and passed away on December 17^th, 1934. Edwin Binney left behind an extraordinary legacy for environmentally friendly business initiatives.

The History of Crayola

Noticing a need for safe and affordable wax crayons, Binney & Smith made the first box of 8 Crayola crayons in 1903. “The trade name Crayola was coined by Mrs. Edwin Binney, a school teacher, who joined the French word ‘craie’, meaning stick of chalk and ‘ola’ from the word ‘oleaginous’, meaning oily.” (Crayola.com)

Edwin Binney was known for his love of the outdoors, which was reflected in the names of some early crayon colours. He was also

known for his interest in helping those in need. Crayola works hard to continue Edwin Binney’s legacy by minimizing their environmental footprint and striving to achieve environmental goals, and enriching the neighborhoods, schools and lives of families in the communities in which they operate.

Community Gardens

In 2011 in Easton, Pennsylvania, Crayola built a community garden called Edwin’s Garden, which has over 18 different 100 square foot garden beds. The garden is tended by Crayola employees and each year produces about 1 ton of produce for those in need in the Lehigh Valley region.

In 2019, a team of local businesses and non-profit agencies in Lindsay Ontario are working together to create another community garden called Edwin Binney’s Community Garden. Read all about it here.

Solar Panels

In 2011, the Crayola solar farm was completed in Easton and has 30,000 solar panels which produce 3mg WATS of electricity or the equivalent of producing 2 billion crayons with the power of the sun: that’s enough crayons to go around the world 4 times. These solar panels help reduce Crayola’s greenhouse gases by 3,800 tons per year which is equivalent to removing 650 cars from the road each year. (youtube.com)

Crayola sets an excellent example for other companies when it comes to giving back to communities. Crayola continually goes out of their way to give back, and the communities in which they operate are grateful.

By: Co-op student Leah Cooper

Sources

“Can you tell me the birth dates of the founders Edwin Binney and C. Harold Smith?” Crayola.ca. 22 Feb. 2019 <http://www.crayola.ca/faq/your-history/can-you-tell-me-the-birth-dates-of-the-founders-edwin-binney-and-c-harold-smith/>.

Olanoff, Lynn. “Crayola garden harvest benefits Easton Area Community Center.” Lehighvalleylive.com. 20 July 2012. Lehighvalleylive.com. 22 Feb. 2019 <https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/easton/index.ssf/2012/07/crayola_garden_harvest_benefit.html>

“Who invented the crayon?” Crayola.com. 22 Feb. 2019 <https://www.crayola.com/faq/your-history/who-invented-the-crayon/>.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5Unyl005fQ

By cklunitedway|2019-03-26T15:36:29-04:00March 4th, 2019|News|0 Comments

Veggies for Vets

United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes is coming into the final legs of its year-long Veggies for Vets project: a Community Garden and social inclusion initiative which aims to increase the availability of fresh produce and physical activity for seniors, while also offering social media and technology workshops to aid in social connections. This project is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s New Horizon for Seniors Program which provides grants for projects that make a difference in the lives of seniors and in their communities. The United Way’s holistic approach of combining physical and social wellbeing activities both lowers nutritional risk for seniors, and increases social participation which has its own multitude of benefits. (Statistics Canada: Physical and Mental Health)

“Overall, we are very proud of the impact our project has created,” said Project Manager, Elly Millington. “We have seen huge growth in attendance at our technology workshops, and the garden outreach has been spectacular. Our original goal was to connect with a few Legions in our area so that we may create mutually beneficial relationships: providing them with garden beds to offer physical activity to those who tend the gardens, while simultaneously offering technology workshops to improve social inclusion among participants. We were successful in not only connecting with four Legions in our area, but we also partnered with Food Banks, Food Centres, Community Kitchens, and community agencies to expand our reach and continue the project when funding ends. What we’ve found is that people are very receptive to working on food security in their neighbourhoods, and more and more people are wanting to spend time outdoors growing their own food.”

Along with growing their own food, an increasing number of seniors are participating in social media: most see it as a way to connect with their friends, family members, and younger generations. Many of the seniors taking classes want to learn, but simply do not know where to begin. That’s where Workshop Facilitator Josh Webster steps in:

“A lot of the seniors taking our classes don’t know what they don’t know,” said Workshop Facilitator, Josh Webster. “So, we start at the beginning. We are able to walk them through the basics of something simple like taking a photo from their cellphone and putting it onto their laptop to then sort into files or post online. These skills allow them to better participate in the growing world of social media and technology, hopefully lessening the risk of becoming a social recluse, especially for those living in rural areas.”

Through the Veggies for Vets project, United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes was able to partner with Community Care who have a vast reach to people who are interested in learning more about the technology they use in their everyday lives. Technology workshops will continue to run every Wednesday until March 13th, 2019 at the Lindsay Legion from 1-3pm, and will cover a wide array of topics from learning to copy and paste, to online security and staying safe when using online banking or social media. Anyone interested in more information or signing up for workshops should contact Elly Millington, Projects and Communications Coordinator at the United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes: 705-878-5081.

January-February Tech Workshop Series

Research

The World Health Organization defines good health as “not merely an absence of illness or infirmity, but a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing” (Statistics Canada, Seniors and Health)
34% of Canadians aged 65 and up are at nutritional risk, meaning they have gained or lost more than 10 pounds in the past six months, and skip meals regularly. (Statistics Canada, One-third at Risk)
Living alone, infrequent social participation and low social support all remain significantly associated with nutritional risk when demographic factors and mental and physical well-being are taken into account. (Statistics Canada, Socio-economic and Social Circumstances)
Gardening is the second most popular physical activity in Canada, attracting 72% of Canadian adults; physical activity reduces the risk of premature death, heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, adult-onset diabetes, osteoporosis, stroke, depression and cancer. (FoodShare.net, Community Gardening 101)

By cklunitedway|2019-02-11T14:11:48-04:00February 4th, 2019|Senior program|0 Comments

United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes Curling FunSpiel Registration

The United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes Curling Funspiel will take place on March 9th, 2019. Registration for teams is now open! Contact our Community Investment Coordinator for more information!

Ready to sign up? Fill out the United Way FUN Bonspiel Registration Form

By cklunitedway|2019-02-21T12:13:11-04:00December 14th, 2018|Funding Application, United Way Bursaries|0 Comments

Workplace Support

How does your workplace support United Way CKL?

Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington (PVNC) Catholic District School Board is proud to support United Way CKL fundraising at St. John Paul II, St. Dominic, St. Mary and St. Luke Catholic elementary schools and St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School. Our staff organize special fundraisers at the schools and give generously through payroll deductions. Our Director of Education Michael Nasello also raffles himself off each year as an incentive for United Way fundraising, giving a lucky PVNC employee a day off while he does their job for the day.

Why do you support the United Way CKL?

As a learning organization committed to the key principles of Catholic Social Teaching and to moving our faith into action, we are proud to support four United Way campaigns in our jurisdiction including United Way CKL. We know that some of our students and their families rely on the many services supported by the United Way. Our educators and support staff care deeply about the wellbeing of our students, both in school and out, so many find it a source of pride to contribute to the United Way.

What would you say to inspire other workplaces to support United Way CKL?

At PVNC, the annual United Way campaign is an opportunity to reflect on the challenges in our communities that can be barriers to student success and well-being. The campaign provides an opportunity for staff to make a meaningful contribution. As an organization, the campaign offers a great opportunity for team-building as school communities and staff at the Board office rally together for a common cause.

By cklunitedway|2019-01-20T12:05:16-04:00November 16th, 2018|CKL - United Way, Fundraisers, Support, Workplace|0 Comments

30th Annual Crayola Sale Cheque Presentation

2018 Crayola Cheque Presentation

On Friday, November 2nd 2018, a group of United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes Staff, Board members and volunteers met at the Crayola Canada factory to be presented with a cheque from the 30th Annual Crayola Sale. The sale is held every year at the Lindsay Exhibition Fairgrounds (LEX) and attracts shoppers from all over the province; some shoppers even travel from the United States. The sale creates both local and global impacts as several attendees return each year to purchase Crayola products for mission trips to Mexico, Cuba and even Zimbabwe! Other attendees purchase goods for Holiday presents, or as supplies for classrooms.

Last year, the team at Crayola Canada set a goal of raising $40,000 to reach a total of $1,000,000 donated to the United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes over 29 years. This goal was exceeded in 2017, and the success was continued this year with another $42,620.80 raised. United Way will use these funds to continue implementing their vision statement of crafting human care agendas within and across our communities, building coalitions around these agendas and increasing investments in these agendas by expanding and diversifying resource development. The staff, board members and volunteers at United Way work tirelessly to ensure that these investments have recognizable impacts, and extend their thanks to Crayola for leading the way for other businesses to invest in our community.

2018 thank you sign, cake, certificate and balloons.

Crayola Canada believes that every person in the community deserves an opportunity for a quality and colourful life: “We are very fortunate that the annual Crayola Sale can assist children, youth, and adults in the City of Kawartha Lakes. The sale started simply as a yard sale with a few Crayola products added in. It was the beginning of a long-term relationship and, thanks to the efforts of countless volunteers from Crayola, the UWCKL, and the community, it has grown to its current form.”

Penny Barton Dyke, Executive Director of the United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes shares her gratitude: “30 years! Leadership, dedication and commitment by the Crayola Canada company and its employees has meant thousands of children, families and individuals have been able to access critical programs that help them in real time. Our campaign this year is about inspiring others to give and develop workplace campaigns. Crayola and its team of employees are leaders in the truest fashion. Their legacy has been and will now continue to be about their commitment to our families and this community. Now with its latest gift of land use, Crayola is once again leading the way by embarking on a new way of investing in people: a true community champion.”

United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes is grateful for their partnership with the Crayola Canada team and have recently launched an exciting development in this partnership. In 2019, Crayola Canada, Fleming College and United Way CKL will partner to develop 30,000 sq. ft. of unused land on the lot adjacent to the Crayola building into their largest Community Garden. Some of the funds raised at the 30th Annual Crayola Sale will go towards this Community Garden project, which will have the capacity to provide fresh produce to hundreds of people in the City of Kawartha Lakes.

2018 Crayola Staff Thank You

By cklunitedway|2019-01-20T12:06:08-04:00November 2nd, 2018|Campaign, Community Gardens, Crayola Sale|0 Comments

Crayola Canada—United Way CKL Community Garden Ground Breaking

United Way for the City of Kawartha Lakes is embarking on a very exciting new Community Garden project in partnership with Crayola Canada, Fleming College Frost Campus, and Bob Mark New Holland. We have entered into a land use agreement to turn the 30,000 sq. ft. of unused land at Crayola Canada into our largest ever Community Garden! This garden will enhance the availability of fresh produce for programs such as the Good Food Box, collective kitchens, Meals on Wheels, cooking classes, food banks, and food cupboards. Fleming College will provide expertise, while also offering students unique learning opportunities through school projects and volunteering. Bob Mark New Holland will provide equipment and expertise as they volunteered to do our first ground breaking in October of 2018.

The community garden will be a closed space, fenced in and locked, with access limited to staff and volunteers from United Way and Fleming College, as well as agencies involved in the programming.
Community gardens yield more than food, they also provide many teaching opportunities and draw people together to help strengthen our neighbourhoods.

See below for some pictures of our first ground breaking, on Monday October 15th, 2018.