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Catholic Bishops say $30-million reconciliation fund on track to meet new deadline

Sep 28, 2023 | 1:09 PM

OTTAWA — Canadian Catholic leaders say they are almost halfway to their fundraising goals for a reconciliation fund formed after the church failed to meet its previous financial commitments.

The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops held its annual meeting in Toronto this week.

The organization says the Indigenous Reconciliation Fund has raised $11.5 million so far, nearly 40 per cent of its goal, and they expect to have raised $14 million in total by the end of the year.

The Canadian bishops made a commitment in 2021 to raise $30 million in up to five years to address harms caused by the Church’s role in operating residential schools.

They say they’re on track to meet that new deadline for the fund, which was registered as a charity last year and approved its first project proposal soon after.

The conference says projects that receive funds are determined locally in consultation with First Nations, Métis and Inuit Peoples

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 28, 2023.

The Canadian Press