Working As One

Once the giving is done, who gets what's given?

We exist to improve the lives of those who call this community home—encircling them with the care they need. We do this by partnering with agencies, donors, corporations, and governments to identify the most pressing social issues and then developing a plan. This is to ensure that available resources bring about the biggest impact.

The Community Response Fund Stewardship Alliance

Together with the Calgary Foundation, Calgary Homeless Foundation, Alberta Blue Cross Foundation, Calgary Health Foundation, and The City of Calgary (including the Calgary Emergency Management Agency and Family & Community Support Services), we set up the Stewardship Alliance to oversee the coordination and efficient disbursement of donations from the COVID-19 Community Response Fund.

The Seven Brothers Circle

Requests for funding to support the Indigenous community were reviewed by the Seven Brothers Circle (is kitsii gome), a collective of 25 organizations and Indigenous Elders committed to meeting the needs of Indigenous people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • A group of leaders in traditional garb pose for a photo against a brown wall
  • Several volunteers pull donation carts on the concrete

A community-driven approach.

Traditionally, Indigenous communities have organized themselves around the principles of connection and reciprocity—the Seven Brothers Circle upheld these principles. As one of 25 organizations that make up the Seven Brothers Circle, United Way offered our space to help facilitate meetings between stakeholders. With guidance from Indigenous Elders and the Aboriginal Friendship Centre Calgary, seven key areas of need (circles) were identified, resulting in the creation of program-specific services to help Indigenous communities living within the Treaty 7 territory.

Seven Circles of Care

  • A collection of seven bubbles with text inside. The text reads Technology, Basic Needs, Services to the Community, Indigenous Healing, Cultural and Spiritual Support, Mental Health, and Income Supports

No good deed goes unnoticed

The Seven Brothers Circle program received the Northern Lights Award from the Government of Alberta for supporting Indigenous communities during a time of great need.

The difference was felt 

The Aboriginal Friendship Centre Calgary assembled an Indigenous COVID-19 Task Force with the goal of providing basic needs, cultural support, and mental health referral programs to urban Indigenous community members. United Way immediately offered financial support.

90,000

pounds of food was delivered to hungry households

  • 1,854

    emergency hampers

  • 1,559

    phone calls to provide vital services and information remotely 

  • 1,551

    non-food hampers and toiletries

  • 13,041

    brown bag lunches & food hampers

Distributed thanks to the Indigenous COVID-19 Task Force

  • A donation table at the Aboriginal Friendship Centre
  • A man in large mittens gives a thumbs up to the camera, while another man in jeans poses with his hands behind his back
  • Several people pose near donation tables under a warm light

Informing the Future

Building a better future meant building a new playbook

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