St. Andrew's Anglican Church has presented three grants totalling $5,000 to community organizations.
The financial support – announced on July 14 at a community barbecue on the lawn of the church – was from the Georgina Bassett Honorary Community Grant, which was presented for the second year in memory of an Anglican minister who passed away in 2014.
The Hay River Soup Kitchen received a $3,000 grant, while the Treehouse Drop-In Centre and the new Hay River Archery Club each were presented with $1,000.
NNSL file photo
"We thought they were all very community oriented," said Rev. Francis Delaplain. "We also acknowledged and recognized the extra work that the Soup Kitchen has had to do this year with the highrise fire. So we thought that this was a wonderful opportunity to support them."
The Treehouse serves children and families, he noted. "Which is just very important to us."
As for the Hay River Archery Club, Delaplain said it will teach young people skills, engagement and socialization.
"We just thought that they were impactful to the town of Hay River," he said of all three grant recipients.
St. Andrew's Anglican Church received six applications for the grants.
Bassett was the driving force of St. Andrew's thrift store, which was renamed Georgina's Place after her passing.
She was also the first person of Slavey heritage to be ordained an Anglican priest.
Delaplain said St. Andrew's would like to make an annual presentation of the Georgina Bassett Honorary Community Grant.
"It's something that we certainly want to continue to do for a while," said the minister.
The first Georgina Bassett Honorary Community Grant was awarded last year to the Karuna Group, which supports cancer survivors. That organization received $5,000.