One of its most urgent tasks was figuring out how to get money into the hands of community members to help them pay for basic necessities. To quickly and effectively achieve this, Lu’ma turned to Vancity and Vancity Community Investment Bank’s (VCIB) COVID Assistance Prepaid Visa® Gift Card Program which helps organizations provide emergency relief funds to clients, community members, and employees.

“Community members were calling us who were being forced to choose between food, personal safety equipment, utilities, and housing,” said Lu’ma’s Director of Housing Operations, Kevin Eaton, who went on to explain that loss of employment and added expenses brought on by physical distancing have had severe financial impacts on an already marginalized community.

“Most businesses are not accepting cash at this time, and many of our community members don’t have credit or debit cards,” he added. “Prepaid cards have become an essential way to help individuals address their most urgent needs, whether that’s paying for food or cleaning supplies, or the added costs of safe transportation.”

In addition to the prepaid cards, Lu’ma has found other ways to adapt their services, offering curbside food delivery and safe, clean spaces for homeless people to self-isolate, rental support for those living in the organization’s affordable housing facilities, and perhaps most significantly, a vital connection to culture and to one another through Talking Circles led by elders on Zoom.

“As Indigenous Peoples, it is within our teachings and DNA to care, support, and provide for each other as we would of in our original community structures,” said Eaton. “Lu’ma will continue to do all it can to ensure it is providing its people with essentials such as food, shelter, culture, and ongoing support.”

To learn more about VCIB’s COVID Assistance Prepaid Visa Gift Card Program, contact James at JDawe@vcib.ca.  Through the program, fees will be lowered for eligible organizations that can demonstrate how the cards will be used to provide emergency relief to their communities.

*Visa Int./Vancity Community Investment Bank, Licensed User.

Monday, April 20, 2020: Traditional Territories of multiple Indigenous Nations, including the Haudenosaunee and the Treaty Territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit/Toronto, ON – Vancity Community Investment Bank (VCIB), a subsidiary of Vancouver City Savings Credit Union (Vancity), today introduced a Unity Guaranteed Investment Certificate (Unity GIC) offering a 1-year investment at 3.00%. The new Unity GIC provides clients with a stable, fixed-rate investment vehicle that delivers both financial and community benefit. 

As Canada’s first and only values-driven bank, VCIB is committed to driving positive social and environmental change within the communities in which it operates. Investments raised through VCIB’s Unity GIC will provide vital loans or financial relief to businesses and non-profits affected by COVID-19 to help them stay financially resilient at a time when they need it most.       

“Our mission has always been to use the tools of finance to drive immediate and lasting social and environmental change in communities across Canada. This mission has never been more important than it is right now, when businesses and community organizations are having to make difficult choices to keep their doors open,” said Jay-Ann Gilfoy, Chief Executive Officer at VCIB. “By investing in VCIB’s new Unity GIC, clients can earn steady returns while at the same time building resilience in communities and businesses affected by COVID-19.”   

A Schedule 1 Chartered bank, as well as a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), VCIB will offer its Unity GIC for a non-redeemable 12-month term at a 3.00% interest rate. This interest rate represents a significant commitment from VCIB to both its clients and the communities it serves. In comparison, the bank’s one-year fixed-term Impact GIC currently offers an industry-competitive interest rate of 1.85% annually.  

VCIB’s Unity GIC builds off a similar model – the Unity Term Deposit – launched on March 23, 2020 by Crestline VCIB’s parent company. This week, Vancity’s Unity Term Deposit reached its goal of raising $200 million from the credit union’s members in British Columbia. Given this success, VCIB is now looking to continue this momentum on a national scale by positively impacting vulnerable communities and businesses across Canada.         

The Unity GIC is only available to Canadian organizations, including businesses, non-profits and charities; it is not available to individual investors. While VCIB’s other GIC products have a minimum investment threshold of $50,000, the Unity GIC will be available at a minimum of $25,000 to allow more organizations to participate. The maximum investment cap is set at $250,000. To find out more about VCIB’s new purpose-driven Unity GIC, please visit: www.vcib.ca/unity-gic.  

About Vancity Community Investment Bank (VCIB) 

VCIB is an Ontario-based schedule 1 federally chartered bank. As Canada’s first values-driven bank, VCIB partners exclusively with organizations that drive social, economic, and environmental change. The bank is committed to connecting these visionary enterprises with financial solutions that allow them to create, grow, and foster change. VCIB’s primary focus is lending for social purpose real estate (affordable housing, co-op housing, co-working spaces, green and heritage buildings), as well as meeting the needs of non-profit organizations, foundations, and social enterprises. For more information, visit vcib.ca, tweet us at @BankVancity and connect with us at Facebook.com/BankVancity.  

About Vancity 

Vancity is a values-based financial co-operative serving the needs of its more than 534,000 member-owners and their communities, with offices and 59 branches located in Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Victoria, Squamish and Alert Bay, within the unceded territories of the Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw people. With $27.4 billion in assets plus assets under administration, Vancity is Canada’s largest community credit union. Vancity uses its assets to help improve the financial well-being of its members while at the same time helping to develop healthy communities that are socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.  

Media Contact:  

mediarelations@vcib.ca 

416.262.5176 

In Toronto, VCIB and Toronto Foundation have joined forces to launch the Better Toronto Coalition and Fund. The bank has also partnered with Ottawa Community Foundation to fund the COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund, and with the Hamilton Community Foundation to fund the Pandemic Response Fund. In total, VCIB has provided $100,000 to-date to seed and grow these funds designed to provide immediate support to community organizations delivering essential services like food, shelter and healthcare to vulnerable populations.

The unique approach targets grassroots non-profits that are both operating on the frontlines of COVID-19 and feeling its economic consequences as key funding sources dwindle with programming and fundraising events cancelled or postponed.

“Grassroots non-profits often operate on tight margins,” said VCIB CEO Jay-Ann Gilfoy. “Our goal as a community-first bank is to get frontline organizations the resources they need so they can focus on meeting the urgent needs of vulnerable populations.”

“The economic fallout will have an impact on charities in every sector that we serve,” said Hamilton Community Foundation President & CEO Terry Cooke. “Our message to the community is that we are here to help for the long term.”

Funding will be offered as unrestricted, flexible grants that enable charities and non-profits to maintain or expand services to those affected by quarantine, closures, shortages, access to services, loss of income, or other economic impacts.

“We’re convening concerned Torontonians so that we can learn together about the unequal impacts of COVID-19,” said Toronto Foundation President & CEO Sharon Avery. “We’re committed to acting quickly on those learnings to fund the small but mighty non-profits that are in the trenches supporting the city’s most vulnerable.”

“Priorities are changing by the hour, and these funds are designed to respond to the most pressing needs,” said VCIB VP of Impact Banking Jake Stacey. “Our mission has always been to use the tools of finance to create positive change for groups who need it most, and partnerships with community foundations will allow us to help vulnerable sectors lacking other assistance.”

“While we cannot control this new reality, we can come together to respond,” said Ottawa Community Foundation President & CEO Marco Pagani. “Thank you to Vancity Community Investment Bank for joining us to help fund our community response.”

In addition to the philanthropic community, VCIB is working to mobilize other organizations to participate in these initiatives.

This news release was originally published on the CNW wire found here.

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About Vancity Community Investment Bank (VCIB) 
VCIB is an Ontario-based schedule 1 national chartered bank. As Canada’s first values-driven bank, VCIB partners exclusively with organizations that drive social, economic, and environmental change. The bank is committed to connecting these visionary enterprises with the financial solutions they require, enabling them to grow, prosper and foster change. VCIB’s first focus is on lending for social purpose real estate (affordable housing, co-op housing, co-working spaces, green and heritage buildings), as well as meeting the deposit needs of not-for-profit organizations, foundations, and social enterprises. For more information, visit vcib.ca, tweet us at @BankVancity and connect with us at Facebook.com/BankVancity.

About Vancity  
Vancity is a values-based financial co-operative serving the needs of its more than 534,000 member-owners and their communities, with offices and 59 branches located in Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Victoria, Squamish and Alert Bay, within the unceded territories of the Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw people. With $27.4 billion in assets plus assets under administration, Vancity is Canada’s largest community credit union. Vancity uses its assets to help improve the financial well-being of its members while at the same time helping to develop healthy communities that are socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.

About Toronto Foundation
Established in 1981, Toronto Foundation is one of 191 Community Foundations in Canada. We pool philanthropic dollars and facilitate charitable donations for maximum community impact. Our individual, family and organizational Funds number more than 500 and we administer more than $400 million in assets. Through strategic granting, thought leadership and convening, we engage in city building, mobilizing people and resources to increase the quality of life in Toronto. Visit www.torontofoundation.ca/.

To learn more about or donate to the Better Toronto Coalition and Fund, visit: torontofoundation.ca/better-toronto-coalition/

About the Ottawa Community Foundation
Established in 1987, the OCF is a charitable organization created by and for the people of Ottawa. Working directly with its community of donors, partners and stakeholders, the OCF is committed to acting as a catalyst for positive, systemic and sustainable change in Ottawa and beyond. Priding itself on enabling generous citizens to enhance the quality of life in their community while achieving their own charitable objectives, the OCF has provided over $137M in grants to the community since its inception. Visit http://www.ocf-fco.ca.

To learn more about or donate to the COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund, visit: www.ocf-fco.ca/covid19/

About Hamilton Community Foundation
Hamilton Community Foundation has been working to drive positive change in Hamilton since 1954. We do this by helping people give in a way that has meaning to them and impact in the community, providing grants and financing to charitable organizations and initiatives and bringing people together to address priority issues that affect Hamiltonians. Visit www.hamiltoncommunityfoundation.ca.

To learn more about or donate to the Pandemic Response Fund, visit:
www.hamiltoncommunityfoundation.ca/covid19/

For further information: For more information on VCIB’s partnerships with Toronto Foundation, Ottawa Community Foundation and Hamilton Community Foundation, please contact mediarelations@vcib.ca

Many of you may have read Vancity Community Investment Bank CEO @Jay-Ann Gilfoy’s recent post on how at the bank we continue to work with our clients, community members, and other organizations during these uncertain times. Our mission has always been to use the tools of finance to create positive social, environmental, and cultural change, and this remains true now more than ever.

I’d like to extend a heartfelt thank you to my team, who has been working tirelessly to help our clients facing COVID-19 related financial challenges. Our clients are change-makers in their sectors and require creative solutions to continue their values-based work, and it has made me immensely proud to see my team in action over the past weeks, delivering amidst great uncertainty – and doing it all remotely while practicing social distancing.

If your team is also working in overdrive or facing new and stressful challenges due to remote work, I thought I’d share some tactics VCIB has put into place to help keep motivated, to support our clients, and most importantly, to stay mentally healthy:

Virtual Coffee Talks

Like a touch base at the water cooler or café, we have encouraged our team members to set up a daily “virtual coffee talk” with another team member, including those they may not know particularly well. 100% social, these are personal check-ins with an emphasis on non-work talk. With virtual conversations focusing primarily around work, we think it’s also important to ensure people prioritize staying socially connected. Sharing some time and conversation with a colleague is a simple, grounding act that acts as a welcome moment of reprieve.

Happy Hour – From Afar

To minimize potential cabin fever, VCIB is hosting a virtual Happy Hour every Friday for the next few weeks. Our team members are invited to bring a snack, a drink, and even a pet for some virtual team fun and bonding (at a distance).

At VCIB, our client base is exclusively made up of organizations driving social, environmental and economic change. These are non-profits and social enterprises who do challenging work even in the best of times. We have always said that what makes us different than a traditional financial institution is our ability to design creative solutions for our clients’ needs, and we will continue to do so during this time.

Community is at the heart of our name and our mission, and we’re proud to share that we’ve partnered with the Toronto Foundation to launch the Better Toronto Coalition. This initiative will connect concerned residents with non-profit leaders and help deliver rapid-response support to organizations delivering essential services to our city’s most vulnerable.

We know that not all Torontonians will be equally affected by this crisis, and this coalition will bring us together to help our neighbours and friends whose lives have been turned upside down by loss of income, lack of access to services and mental health challenges.

Here’s how to get involved:

If you’re a donor, community partner, or concerned Torontonian, join the Better Toronto Coalition on weekly webinars where we’ll hear from non-profit leaders about what they’re seeing and feeling in response to COVID-19. We’ll talk about where donations are most needed and what other kinds of supports are valuable.

For those looking for a central place to give, Toronto Foundation has established the Better Toronto Coalition Fund where you can pool your donation to support organizations on the front lines. All funding will be 100% unrestricted. By supporting a coordinated effort, we ensure that no one is left behind.

To learn more about how you or your organization can support or contribute to the coalition, please visit: https://torontofoundation.ca/better-toronto-coalition.

With all that said, you do not have to contribute to the fund to be part of the coalition. Anyone can participate in the webinars to meet and hear from the organizations keeping our communities afloat. We also encourage you to give directly to any number of vital organizations on the ground. The Toronto Foundation is keeping a great list of organizations on their website for you to consider.

What’s next

At VCIB we believe that financial institutions can and must play a key role in enabling and shaping ambitious solutions — this applies to the climate crisis, the affordability crisis, issues of economic injustice, and to this pandemic. In addition to the philanthropic community, we also hope to see other financial institutions participate in this coalition and fund and we are working to engage other banks, credit unions and insurance companies to be part of scaling this work.

It is easy to feel isolated right now – both figuratively and literally – and that can be deeply unsettling. One thing research tell us is that one of the best ways to stay resilient in the face of challenges is to reach out, to act, and to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. And this is what continues to motivate me and my team.

What we’re doing here today is the kind of work that will sustain us as individuals and organizations. The COVID-19 crisis will stabilize and pass, but the work that we do to create more inclusive, affordable and sustainable communities will remain and will be as critical as ever.

I’m looking forward to being part of this coalition and continuing to foster these impactful partnerships as we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.

Jay-Ann Gilfoy

Chief Executive Officer

Vancity Community Investment Bank

As a values-based financial institution, we know that our clients are change-makers who focus on making our communities a better place. The work they do and the investments they make are not just business as usual. For people to do that work, especially in times of uncertainty, we know they need a unique type of service and support.

Our team is here to continue to have forward-looking conversations and help manage the challenges many of these organizations face during this time of great uncertainty. We are in this journey together for the long term, both when times are good, and when they’re more challenging.

For our clients who are facing financial challenges related to COVID-19, or if we can be of some other support in any way, please let us know and contact your Account Manager directly.

We are currently following the latest advice from our provincial and federal health agencies regarding social distancing, and have our team working remotely, to ensure we can protect the health and well being of our employees, and to continue our operations without interruption.

Across the bank, we are restricting business travel, requiring self-isolation for employees travelling from

impacted countries, encouraging virtual meetings, and re-evaluating our guidelines around events. We will continue to evolve this approach based on the advice of public health officials.

I know we’re all feeling the discomfort that comes from the rapid pace of change these past few weeks have seen. However, the measures and market positions we’ve taken as a bank position us well to manage through the current market, and leave us well-prepared to continue building the sustainable tomorrow we all believe in.

Amidst a rapidly evolving environment, the one thing that hasn’t changed is our dedication to the success of those organizations making our communities a better place to live.

Sincerely,

Jay-Ann Gilfoy

Chief Executive Officer

Vancity Community Investment Bank