PRESS RELEASE: Family Engagement Grants Offer Opportunity for Inclusion & Community-Building Across Ontario

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  

TORONTO, ON, January 5, 2024 — Committed to facilitating positive change, Community Living Ontario (CLO) launched its first-ever family engagement grant initiative to promote meaningful engagement and help provide families with loved ones who live with intellectual disability an opportunity to network and build good lives.   

Aimed at supporting and encouraging engagement activities, grants of up to $10,000 were offered as an instrument to create inclusive environments and bolster inclusivity across Ontario.  

“Recognizing the essential role families play in driving positive change for individuals with intellectual disabilities, Community Living Ontario continues to create and support opportunities for connection,” explains Payal Khazanchi, Director of Inclusion Initiatives at CLO. “We are dedicated to empowering self-advocates, family groups, and networks who promote inclusivity and equity.”

A committee of experts rigorously reviewed all grant applications. Ultimately, fifteen submissions from across the province were approved. Funds have now been dispersed to recipients who will be supported so they may create engaging and impactful experiences for families. Indeed, all recipients will have the opportunity to connect with our Project Liaison Officer, who will provide expertise and valuable resources to help maximize the success of each project. 

“We’re thrilled to receive this grant,” says Donna Vanderkloet from Parents for Inclusion, a new network of parents in the Quinte Region. “These funds from CLO will help us bring like-minded families together to learn more and support each other to dream bigger.”

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Community Living Ontario is a nonprofit organization with 117 local associations dedicated to helping people who have an intellectual disability and their families advocate for meaningful inclusion in their lives and communities. Learn more at communitylivingontario.ca.  

To learn more about CLO’s family engagement work, contact Payal Khazanchi, Director of Inclusion Initiatives, at pkhazanchi@communitylivingontario.ca.