Left to right, Rob Rongve, David Schell, and Kathy McNinch at North Battleford city council's meeting. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Update report

North Battleford council hears from Sask. Winter Games Legacy Fund Committee

Jun 15, 2023 | 10:42 AM

The Saskatchewan Winter Games – North Battleford – Legacy Fund Committee gave an update to North Battleford’s city council at this week’s meeting.

The Legacy Fund was created with the surplus from the 2018 Winter Games held in the area.

The fund was established with Battlefords and District Community Foundation. A percentage of the endowed fund is granted each year to eligible community sport and recreation clubs and organizations.

Rob Rongve and David Schell, the Games committee co-chairs, and Kathy McNinch, executive director of Battlefords and District Community Foundation, provided their report to council.

“We wanted to give you an update from when the fund started,” Rongve said. “We’ve paid all our bills. The original cheque was deposited to the Community Foundation.”

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The endowment fund began with $224,192 in 2019. The market value of the fund as of March 31, 2023, is $233,289.

“We grant in the spring and fall each year, and we invite community groups in the Battlefords to apply for funding,” Rongve said.

If any community or sporting groups are looking for support, they can submit a request.

“We’re not getting a lot of applications,” Rongve said. “And I’m assuming everybody needs money, so they are probably just not aware of the situation.”

Schell said the grants are received by McNinch, who then sends them to a committee, comprised of mainly members of the original Saskatchewan Winter Games Committee from the Battlefords event.

“Typically, if there are enough grants, we have a meeting and decide how much is going to be handed out,” he said.

McNinch confirmed there are two grant cycles per year, May 15 and Nov. 15, so a variety of sports can be covered throughout the year.

A number of groups have been funded through the program already, such as Battlefords Minor Baseball, Twin Rivers Curling Club, and the Battlefords Water Doves Synchronized Swim Club.

So far, a total of about $40,000 has been transferred to various sporting groups and youth organizations since 2019.

Rongve pointed out that the Legacy Fund agreement states that the funds will be released as a capital contribution, once the fundraising for the arena project officially starts.

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow