Cranbrook Community Forest Society Legacy Fund Established and Permanently Invested

Cranbrook, BC (August 29, 2023) – The Community Foundation of the Kootenay Rockies (CFKR) and the Cranbrook Community Forest Society (CCFS) are thrilled to officially announce that the Cranbrook Community Forest Society Legacy Fund has been established and is permanently endowed!

The initial fundraising goal of $20,000 was met and exceeded, with over $30,000 permanently invested to establish this new endowment fund. The fund will support the Cranbrook Community Forest Society with an annual operating grant, in perpetuity.

“The CCFS Board is excited to establish this new and lasting revenue stream for our organization, with the first grant available in 2024,” said Joseph Cross, CCFS Board Chair.

Cross added, “The annual grant from this fund will support our on-going work to maintain and enhance the Cranbrook Community Forest, which is such an important recreational, educational, and environmental resource in our community.”

According to Lynnette Wray, CFKR Executive Director, “We know that so many people love to walk, bike, hike, and run in the Cranbrook Community Forest. We sincerely appreciate each of the donors who contributed to this fund, showing their heartfelt support for this priceless natural oasis in our community.”

In the spring of 2022, CFKR and CCFS launched a joint fundraising campaign to establish the Cranbrook Community Forest Society Legacy Fund. The fundraising kicked off with an initial donation of $500 from Jean-Ann Debreceni, who is a long-time user of the Community Forest, along with her husband, Joe. Jean-Ann truly believes in the long-term benefits of endowment funds, having played a key role in establishing several other CFKR funds, including the StellerVista Credit Union Fund, the Cranbrook Community Theatre Legacy Fund, and the Cranbrook Past and Present Teachers’ Legacy Fund.

Corporate donors included StellerVista Credit Union, High Country Sports, Max’s Place, Rella Paolini Rogers, and RideTheory. Contributions from non-profits included several from the Cranbrook Community Forest Society, from events such as the 2022 Cranbrook Gravel Grind event, as well as from the Big Foot Running Club. Over forty individuals made donations of all sizes to the fund, including a major gift from a family that lives elsewhere but loves to visit the Cranbrook Community Forest.

The Community Foundation of the Kootenay Rockies and the Cranbrook Community Forest Society invite community members to continue to grow this fund in the coming months and years. CFKR welcomes tax-receiptable charitable donations to the Cranbrook Community Forest Society Legacy Fund via the following means, all of which have zero processing fees:

  • Online credit card donations via a safe and secure link: https://give.vancouverfoundation.ca/s/give?ID=a0eAh000000Zvw6IAC
  • E-transfer to [email protected] (including “Community Forest” in the notes, as well as the donor’s contact information)
  • Cheque: made out to “CFKR”, noting “Community Forest” in the memo, mailed to CFKR at Box 242, Cranbrook, BC, V1C 4H8 or delivered to the CFKR office in the Ground Floor Coworking Space at 131 7th Ave. S., Cranbrook
  • Cash: delivered to the CFKR office in the Ground Floor Coworking Space at 131 7th Ave. S.