Winners of the 2025 Tbaytel for Good Community Fund

Schreiber Public School

Let's Grow Together - $10,000

The 20 K-8 students at Schreiber Public School, with staff support, are leading the "Let's Grow Together" initiative. This project aims to enhance access to fresh produce for their Northern Ontario community by operating a garden tower greenhouse at the school. The long-term vision is to establish a commercial greenhouse that will supply fruits, vegetables, herbs, and plants to the wider North Shore communities. This ambitious project seeks to bridge the education and grocery sectors.

Wabshkaa Animkii Benesii (The WAB After-School Program)

Nourishing our Spirits: Supporting the WAB After-School Meal Program - $10,000

From September 22 to December 12, 2025, the Wabshkaa Animkii Benesii (WAB) After-School Program will provide hot, home-cooked, and culturally meaningful meals three times a week for approximately 25 Indigenous children and youth. A local Indigenous cook will prepare meals rooted in nutrition and tradition. Additionally, three cultural knowledge keepers will share teachings about traditional foods, seasonal harvesting, and the sacredness of food during meal times, creating a circle of learning that connects children to their identity and strengthens community ties. This program immediately provides full bellies and happy hearts, while also fostering cultural pride, intergenerational connection, and healing from colonial trauma related to food loss.

St. Andrew's Dew Drop Inn

Hygiene Bags - $3,287.50

St. Andrew's Dew Drop Inn will use this funding to assemble 2,000 essential hygiene bags for individuals in Thunder Bay who cannot afford them. This includes 1,000 feminine hygiene bags (containing 4 pads and 2 tampons) and 1,000 general hygiene bags (with a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, and conditioner). This initiative is expected to meet the needs of the community for the remainder of 2025.

Fort Frances Community Garden

Fort Frances Community Garden - $2,238

The Fort Frances Community Garden offers a vital green space, enabling residents to cultivate their own produce and access healthy, lower-cost food. The Garden Committee has been actively working to update its aging infrastructure. This funding will directly support the Fort Frances Community Garden by providing essential materials and labor to complete the North Garden fencing, enhancing the garden's security and functionality for the community.

Camp Quality

Camp Quality - $2,238

Childhood illness places significant financial burdens on families. In recognition of this, Camp Quality provides its camp and family programming 100% free of charge, made possible through the generosity of community partners like the Tbaytel for Good Community Fund.

This grant will directly cover the admission of one child to camp. This comprehensive support includes food, program materials and fees, accommodations, medical supplies, camp clothing, memorabilia, and travel, as well as the costs associated with recruiting and training dedicated volunteers, providing a crucial and memorable experience for a child facing illness.

Community Clothing Assistance

The Undercover Project - $2,238

The Undercover Project by Community Clothing Assistance focuses on the safe, efficient, and comfortable distribution of socks and underwear to families in need. Due to increased demand for specific sizes, the organization has needed to purchase these essential items. This funding will provide crucial resources to promote the program and expand its reach to assist more families in the community, ensuring access to vital clothing for those who need it most.