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$7.8 million secured for Cradle to Career strategy in support of local children

March 31, 2022

Windsor, ON – ProsperUs community leaders have reached a $7.8-million fundraising milestone in the ongoing effort to eliminate child poverty in the Windsor and Essex County region.

The ProsperUs collective launched the Investors Table in recent months, tasked with leveraging funding to support the upcoming rollout of solutions designed to eliminate the barriers to success that children face, also known as its Cradle to Career strategy.

The Investors Table is a group of community partners and philanthropists working alongside residents and service providers to create catalytic change, and they are looking to add more members to their ranks. This is the first time that a group of local funders has come together to tackle a community challenge, by implementing a collaborative, pooled investment approach.

“This is a call to action to our community, to philanthropists who want to be on the cutting edge of collective community impact, to join us in the fight to ensure that children in our community have every opportunity to succeed in school and in life,” says Liz O’Neil Meurehg, Co-Chair of the ProsperUs Investors Table.

“The ProsperUs Investors Table means funders can leverage their combined resources to solve tough community problems and help to elevate the voices of residents in achieving real, sustained impact”, says Tim Catherwood, ProsperUs Investors Table Co-Chair. “We’re committed to developing stronger ties with residents and service providers, and collaborating with other funders to align our efforts to drive change and share success.”

Investments will be initiated at $1.57 million per year over five years. Investors Table members generously contribute a minimum of $50 thousand per year over five years in support of the Cradle to Career (C2C) strategy. The C2C strategy has been developed by ProsperUs, a cross-section of 40+ community partners and residents, with the support of the Backbone Organization United Way/Centraide Windsor-Essex County.

Members of the Investors Table include:

  • Bill and Rochelle Tepperman
  • BMO Financial Group
  • Gordie Howe International Bridge Community Benefits Plan
  • Green Shield Canada
  • RBC
  • Richard and Donna Farrow
  • TD Bank Group
  • The O’Neil Foundation
  • United Way/Centraide Windsor-Essex County

As the Backbone Organization, United Way will take on the role of fiscal agent for the ProsperUs Collective and financial contributions for the Cradle to Career strategy are directed through the non-profit organization. United Way maintains oversight on the strategy’s impact through evaluation and continuous improvement, strategic and administrative support, and by working with the community to elevate the voices of residents in solution design.

BENEFITS

Investors subscribe to a shared success model and will have:

  1. Improved ability to invest resources where they will have optimal impact, reducing duplication and fragmentation of service delivery.
  2. Access to shared community-level data in real time to evaluate the effectiveness of community investments.
  3. Greater access to new expertise and capacity building opportunities through the ProsperUs network.
  4. Unique opportunities to leverage influence to broker relationships and unlock new funding for the Windsor-Essex County region.
  5. Over time, increased cost savings through a coordinated backbone-supported investment model.

Initial investments will focus on improving academic success in elementary-age children, by providing tutoring, mentoring, nutrition and mental wellness supports for children through out-of-school programs, and wrap-around supports for parents and families. Programs will be delivered in three priority neighbourhoods, including West Windsor, Downtown Windsor and Leamington. More information on the community solutions will be announced in the coming months.

“It’s going to take all of us working together, working differently, to help children have more access to opportunities and truly thrive,” says Jessica Sartori, ProsperUs Leadership Council Co-Chair.

“Young people are the future and we’re proud to support ProsperUs on the Cradle to Career strategy to drive more equitable outcomes for children in Windsor and Essex County,” says Jim Inglis, Regional Vice President, Windsor Essex Chatham, BMO Bank of Montreal. “As a Purpose driven organization, BMO is committed to creating meaningful change by supporting new solutions to address the issues facing our customers and their communities.”

“On behalf of the City of Windsor, I want to thank the community, partners and investors who are helping to support ProsperUs which will offer critical support to our children,” says Windsor Mayor, Drew Dilkens. “Every child can make an impact given the opportunity, and ProsperUS is one way for all kids to realize their potential.”

Media Contact:

Karen Brady
Manager, Marketing & Communications
United Way/Centraide Windsor-Essex County, ProsperUs Backbone Team
M: 519-564-8554  |  kbrady@weareunited.com

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