As part of a cross-Canada campaign to in support of a newly announced relief fund and to celebrate their 15th anniversary, Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities will be illuminating 20 landmarks and buildings across the country in red and white, with Mac selected as one of the recipients for the colour boost.
The SaskTel tower will also be lit up in red and white, aiming to provide exposure for the Jumpstart program itself and the recently announced $8 million sport relief fund designed to “keep the lights on” for local Saskatchewan and national community sports organizations.
The fund came to fruition out of a need to support community sports and recreation during the COVID-19 pandemic and will offer two streams of support for organizations.
Programming support includes the hiring of coaches and program supervisors, meeting return to play guidelines along with facility and transportation cost increases.
Operational support will assist with operation and administration costs, including re-hiring staff, staff training, equipment expenses related to COVID-19, with grants up to $15,000 available.
Organizations must be qualified through the Canadian Revenue Agency, with priority given sport and play groups that work with children with disabilities; girls and young women; Black, Indigenous and People of Colour children; and families in financial need.
The program must start between Sept. 1 and Dec. 31, run for at least five hours, consist of at least five sessions and include participants aged four- to 18-years-old.
Applications will be accepted through the Jumpstart website from Sept. 12 to Oct. 4 and will be selected by an evaluation panel including Olympic gold medalist Beckie Scott and Paralympic gold medalist Benoit Huot.
For more information on the Sport Relief Fund program and Jumpstart in general, be sure to check out their website.
