PRESIDENT’S REPORT
“When I had first received the news that I had been given such an opportunity to help my family, I can admit I cried. It was very overwhelming knowing that a lot of the stress which had been placed on me and my mother relating to paying rent or getting food on the table had been relieved. As the video was playing on the screen, I felt frozen in the chair and overwhelmed with emotion. I had to sit down for a while and be thankful of the opportunity I was given. It made me so happy knowing I wasn't the only person who was or had experienced this feeling this year, as many students get this opportunity every year. And it's all thanks to generous donors like you that I was given the opportunity to return home to my mother with some positive news that we wouldn't have to stress over rent this month. It made my entire year and for that all I can say is thank you.”
Lots of news to report but first the important stuff.”
Thank you …
… to the Guidance Counsellors, Principals and Vice-Principals, for your incredible efforts in selecting the award recipients, the follow-up work to ensure that the students open their bank account and that they send us the information we need to set up their monthly transfers;
… to our RBC “angels”. They handle difficult cases, e.g. missing or inadequate documents, difficulty in accessing branches. Without them, many students would be unable to receive their awards;
… to our monthly donors. There are 32 of you today. You have placed your trust in the Help Our Students (HOST) Program by sending us a donation each month – ranging from $10 to $400 – many of you for many years now. I can’t thank you enough. Each month, you help hard-working students living in difficult financial circumstances;
… to our major donors. Nineteen donors have donated $20,000 or more since we started the HOST Program; four of them have given over $50,000! The support of major donors allows us to keep helping at least three students in every Ottawa high school;
… to every donor who has contributed to our growth since 2010. Every donation keeps building our ability to help students and families in need.
“As a young girl living alone, that extra boost of income really inspires me and gives me motivation to keep going. It’s hard sometimes living alone, sometimes I feel like an outsider being around people my own age since their lives can be so different from mine. I work and support myself through school every day, and this year is hopefully my last in high school. I have done my best this year to push through almost 10+ credits that I was missing to graduate. Every time I got that monthly income, it felt like I was being rewarded for all my sleepless nights, exhaustion, and frustration. I truly appreciate all the help I’ve received from this program!”
Fundraising
Our Fundraising Committee is actively pursuing potential new donors. While our renewal rate is very good - 82% last year - every charity needs new donors if it is to survive and grow. The Committee’s work is only as good as its leads. If you know an individual, an organization or a business that might be willing to listen to our plea, simply drop me an email with the contact information and let me know if you are able to make the initial introduction. We will follow up.
News …
Thanks to our great donors, we’ve had another good year. Here are some key numbers:
2022-23 2021-22
Donations $ 357,150 $ 275,603
Awards $323,000 to 216 students $216,650 to 212 students
@$150 / month @$110 / month
Balance of reserves at 30 June 2023
Administration $ 7,355 $ 1,980
Unrestricted 267,556 246,124
Restricted 15,861 18,462
The preliminary Balance Sheet and Statement of Revenues and Expenses are on our web site at this link. You should note that every Board member contributes to the Administration Reserve so that it can grow slowly over time to ensure that we are in a sound financial position to pay for short-term help if we ever need to.
The Board of Directors met in May and approved the following for the 2023-24 school year:
· Current-year recipients who are renewed by their school prior to June 30 will continue to receive their award in July and August. Poverty doesn’t take a break in the summer.
· Three $150 awards per schools (63), for a total of 189 awards.
· The Youth Services Bureau (OCDSB) and the External Achievement Center (OCSB) will be new participating programs. The President may approve up to two awards to each of these schools, for a total of 4 awards.
· In addition, the President may approve up to three awards, at his discretion.
We also anticipate up to 18 additional awards that are fully funded by donors such as MacEwen Petroleum who will be sponsoring five students in the Upper Canada area for the third year.
Plea
As I mentioned earlier, our renewal rate is very good. However, donors do drop off each year. If you donated previously but have not done so recently, please consider coming back. We are still able to say that 100% of your donation will go directly to help a student living in difficult financial circumstances to graduate high school.
My plea to you is to convert your one-time donation to a monthly one. If you convert a $100 donation to a $10-per-month donation, it gives us a bit more money and it will build a solid base to ensure stability and growth. It’s easy to do via our web site – click this link. You can cancel at any time. You’ll make things so much easier for us.
I hope you have a great, safe summer.
Richard Lussier
President
hostprogram@rogers.com
"The HOST Program Award has helped me get food and personal hygiene items. Before the award, I struggled with keeping my family fed throughout the week until my father got paid again. Now, the situation has gotten a lot better. We have a lot of food available for my family. We are no longer eating processed food. We are trying to eat more fresh food because we can afford it now. We also use the money for personal hygiene items like toilet paper, body wash, and shampoo. We have 2 adults and 4 children in the apartment who have benefited from the Award.”