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(Photo: Curtis Galbraith / EverythingGP)
By Abby Zieverink
Grande Prairie Regional Association of Volunteers

County granting GPRAVO $30K annually for three-year term

Sep 28, 2021 | 4:10 PM

The County of Grande Prairie approved the Grande Prairie Regional Association of Volunteer Organizations (GPRAVO) request for $30,000 annual funding, over a three-year term.

This means the association will be receiving $30,000 for 2022, 2023, as well as 2024.

Reeve Leanne Beaupre believes continuing to support the GPRVA with funding is crucial, especially in the County.

“A lot of our organizations that operate arenas and halls and other not-for-profit organizations are volunteers, and the County of Grande Prairie was really founded on the back of volunteers,” she said. “So, to be able to give continued support and funding to those organizations is really important to the County.”

GPRAVO Executive Director Carol-Anne Pasemko says this annual funding will help keep the association running, which will also help them to work with agencies across the region.

“That means we can continue with our sector support programming. The county is very, very good to our agency, and we try to reciprocate in turn by working with them and working with our agencies to provide a really good service for them.”

Pasemko says the COVID-19 pandemic has made it difficult for agencies across the board, suggesting this funding is imperative for their association to continue providing services to non-profits organizations in the region.

“There have been just cuts and cuts and cuts to the system and everyone understands that. It just makes it really hard to kind of navigate through, so to not be cut and kind of have that guaranteed funding… It’s a relief.”

In turn, Pasemko suggests they are wanting to find the best approach to work with and help agencies through the roadblocks caused throughout the pandemic.

“Funders and grants are set up as competitive. We’re looking at how we can make this so everyone can benefit and it’s not a competitive process.”

She explains that making it equitable may not necessarily be equal.

“But how do you make that equitable where everybody comes out ahead.”

Some of the long-term goals for GPRAVO include maintaining the sustainability of the association and agencies across the region.

“Look at where they shine and what kinds of things are needed in the communities that we can serve those niches for,” said Pasemko.

She says the volunteer association is also hoping to formalize processes they’ve been working on over the past few years.

“We can give them is that support to make sure that they have those really good policies, we can give them support to make sure their planning is in place, that they’re looking for resources that they’re able to access resources, that they’re going to need.”

by Abby Zieverink