Grantmaking

Durham Community Foundation offers a broad grantmaking program to create a healthy and vibrant place for all to live. To date, Durham Community Foundation has granted over $5.5 Million to 350+ local charities.

Durham Community Foundation Community Fund(s) Grantstream

Funding is made possible by the permanent endowment funds established by many families throughout our region who love our community.

Selection

All grant applications are reviewed by an independent committee of professionals who live and work in the Region of Durham.

All submitted materials become the property of Durham Community Foundation.

Final decision on all grants rest with the Board of Directors.  Access to its decisions is restricted.

The grant stream application closed on July 5th, 2023.

Todd McNabb Memorial Scholarship

Todd McNabb was a coach in the minor hockey community in Ajax and Pickering for over ten years. Honoring his passion and desire for youth to embrace an extracurricular activity like hockey to build character and create friendships for a lifetime, the Todd McNabb Memorial Scholarship was established in 2014.

Available to a student graduating from a high school in Ajax or Pickering and entering their first year of a post-secondary education program, this $1,000 scholarship requires: participation in minor hockey for a minimum of 3 seasons; strong academic achievement; engagement in extracurricular activities; and active involvement in the community.

Selection

Applications are now open.

Submission deadline is March 31, 2023.

Download the application:

2023 Todd McNabb Memorial Scholarship Application (DOCX)Download
2023 Todd McNabb Memorial Scholarship Application (PDF)Download

To find out more about Todd McNabb please visit toddmcnabbscholarship.ca

Todd McNabb Memorial Scholarship Recipients

2021 Award Winners:

Dylan Brown, Cailynn Denoon, Samantha Kerr, James Key, Nolan Klinkhammer, Kassey Rosendaal, and James Sinclair

Note: Given continued growth in the value of the fund, a $1,000 donation was also made to “Their Opportunity” in June 2016 to further support youth hockey programs in Ajax/Pickering.

The Augustin Family Scholarship for Dreamers

Open to Black, Indigenous and racialized students in Grade 12 attending a Durham Region high school who will begin post-secondary studies in Fall 2023.

As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

Marianne Williamson

The Augustin Family Scholarship for Dreamers was created in 2022 by two sisters, Stacey-Ann Augustin and Ginelle Augustin-Lesmond, who graduated from the Durham Catholic District School Board. In recognition of their academic excellence and contributions as young leaders, both women received community support through scholarships to pursue post-secondary studies, an act of generosity they hope to continue and inspire in others. The Augustin Family Scholarship celebrates the excellence, leadership and unlimited potential of Black, Indigenous and racialized youth in Durham Region. In partnership with the Durham Community Foundation, the sisters are committed to building a resilient and caring community where young people are celebrated as leaders and go for their dreams.

The Augustin Family Scholarship for Dreamers supports Grade 12 students attending a Durham Region high school who self-identify as Black, Indigenous, and/or Persons of Colour (BIPOC) and will attend full-time post-secondary studies in Fall 2023. Two individual awards of $1,000 each will be granted by the Augustin family in partnership with the Durham Community Foundation. One award will be granted to a graduating student from the Durham Catholic District School Board and the second will be granted to a graduating student from the Durham District School Board.

This scholarship supports the development of BIPOC youth leaders who are willing to dream big. Their leadership can be quiet or loud and demonstrated through actions that impact their families/friends, schools, and/or community. The awards will celebrate the excellence, leadership and unlimited potential of Black, Indigenous and racialized youth in Durham Region.

Selection

Applications are now open.

Submission deadline is April 30, 2023.

Apply online:

2023 Augustin Family Scholarship for Dreamers Application Form (Google Form)

Mildred and Jeremiah Coughlan Scholarship

Open to students in Grade 12 attending a high school in either Ajax or Pickering

who will begin post-secondary studies in Fall 2023.

The Mildred and Jeremiah Coughlan Scholarship was first established in 1997, by local businessman Jerry Coughlan in memory of his parents Mildred and Jeremiah Coughlan.

In 1958 Coughlan Homes founder, Jerry Coughlan, received a small loan from his mother to launch a real estate development company. He aptly named it Coughlan Homes. Jerry built his first home in East York. He focused on moving east as the GTA rapidly expanded, and he recognized great potential. Jerry began developing in Scarborough, then added Pickering, and soon after, Ajax.

From the beginning of his career, Jerry established a reputation for building a quality product and fostering a corporate culture that focused on customer service and a keen attention to detail.

Honouring the legacy of their Father, the children of Jerry established The Mildred and Jeremiah Coughlan Scholarship endowment fund at Durham Community Foundation in 2017. 

This $3,000 scholarship supports a student graduating from a high school in either Ajax or Pickering and entering their first year of a post-secondary education program. Priority will be given to students who require financial assistance to pursue their education goals and considers strong academic achievement, engagement in extra-curricular activities and active involvement in the community.

Selection

Applications are now open

Submission deadline is April 30, 2023.

Download the application:

2023 - Mildred and Jeremiah Coughlan Scholarship ApplicationDownload

Responsive Grants

Occasional funding opportunities do come up – often through our umbrella organization, Community Foundations of Canada. 

When we partner with Community Foundations of Canada, the funding criteria has already been established and we either administer the program locally or in collaboration with Toronto Foundation.

The Community Services Recovery Fund made possible by the Government of Canada and Community Foundations of Canada is now closed.

Community Services Recovery Fund

We are pleased to announce the Community Services Recovery Fund will be open for applications on January 6, 2023. 

The Community Services Recovery Fund (CSRF) is a $400 million investment from the Government of Canada to support charities and non-profits as they focus on how to adapt their organizations for pandemic recovery. Durham Community Foundation and United Way of Durham Region are working in collaboration with Community Foundations of Canada, United Way Centraide Canada, and the Canadian Red Cross to distribute funding. 

This fund supports Community Service Organizations, including non-profit organizations, Indigenous Governing Bodies, and Registered Charities located across Canada. 

We encourage you to read the eligibility criteria and learn about the program on the Community Services Recovery Fund website.

How to Apply Webinar

Join the CSRF team on January 12, 2023 at 2:00 pm EST for a walk through of the program and its guidelines. This session will give you insight on the Community Services Recovery Fund, its eligibility criteria, timelines and next steps. They will also go through filling out an application.

Register for the online how to apply webinar here.

For additional questions please contact: Recovery@communityfoundations.ca

The deadline for applications is February 21, 2023. 

Fund for Gender Equality

In 2019, CFC became one of the founding partners of the Equality Fund, a groundbreaking collaboration that will deliver new momentum for women’s movements in Canada and around the world.

As a founding partner, CFC joined a diversity of others including women’s funds, community foundations, Royal Bank of Canada, a gender-lens investing firm, venture capital, a network of the largest global foundations, and others, in an effort to scale global impact by working together.  In June of 2019, the Government of Canada announced its own contribution to the Equality Fund, which will further help in creating a sustainable and predictable source of funding for women’s organizations and movements advancing gender equality and the empowerment of all genders, including women, non-binary people and trans people. 

Find out more here

Investment Readiness Program

Funded by the Government of Canada, the Investment Readiness Program (IRP)  supports social purpose organizations as they contribute to solving pressing social, cultural and environmental challenges across Canada.

Its goal is to help social purpose organizations build their capacity to participate in Canada’s growing social finance market and prepare for the Government of Canada’s broader investment in social finance via the Social Finance Fund. 

Find out more here

Join Us!

We appreciate all you do for our community and encourage you to join our e-blast list for all notifications related to our Foundation.

Bursaries and Scholarships

Bursaries and Scholarships Application Deadline
The Augustin Family Scholarship for DreamersApril 30, 2022
Mildred and Jeremiah Coughlan ScholarshipApril 30, 2022
Todd McNabb Memorial ScholarshipMarch 31, 2022
Evelyn Burden Music BursaryOctober 15, 2022

Evelyn Burden Music Bursary

The Evelyn Burden Music Bursary is awarded to elementary students in grades 3 through 7 at the time of application, and currently residing in Durham Region. The bursary is for the purpose of providing private piano lessons for students who demonstrate musical interest.

Financial need will be a consideration. The bursary for piano lessons is awarded annually to applicants for a one-year period. Previous years’ recipients must re-apply annually for consideration of renewal.

Selection

The grant stream opens in September.

Find us

Charity Reg. #: 898797931RR0001
2-157 Harwood Avenue North
Box 250
Ajax, Ontario
L1Z 0B6

Join our mailing list

linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram