United Way NWT has brought back its Emergency Response Fund for the first time since 2023 to help Whatì and Fort Providence.
The fund was used to provide emergency response and recovery funding across the territory during and after 2023’s wildfires.
On Thursday, the charity said the fund was returning to “provide rapid, flexible financial support to local organizations responding to emerging community needs on the ground.”
United Way takes in donations then moves the money to front-line non-profits helping people in affected communities.
The charity also sits in on some emergency management organization meetings, which it says allows it to identify gaps that could benefit from funding.
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In 2023, the fund distributed $3.3 million through more than 100 grants.
This month’s fundraising drive has been kicked off by two donations of $10,000 each from the Union of Northern Workers and the Public Service Alliance of Canada’s social justice fund.
You can donate via the United Way website. The charity says all money donated stays in the North.
“It was very successful in 2023,” United Way NWT board chair Ben Linaker said of the Emergency Response Fund.
“We’re quite quickly able to move flexible funding to areas where they’re needed and support folks on the ground,” he told Cabin Radio.
“With the current situation in Fort Providence and Whatì, knowing there could be repairs and cleaning that need to be undertaken once people get home, we thought it would be a good idea to start fundraising and start supporting our neighbours.”
