$306,200 in OTF Funding Help Connections Increase Building Longevity and Expand Outdoor Play Programming

Windsor, ON – On Wednesday, local MPP Lisa Gretzky met with the team at Connections Early Years Family Centre (formerly The St. Mary’s Family Learning Centre) to celebrate $306,200 in funding through two grants from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) to support improvements to the building and to expand their outdoor programming.

“Connections Early Years Family Centre provides vital support to young families in our community through a number of wonderful programs,” said Lisa Gretzky MPP Windsor West. “It is a pleasure to congratulate the organization on the award of these two OTF grants which will allow them to continue their work for many years to come.”

In November 2022, the Centre was awarded a $150,000 Capital grant which funded much needed masonry repairs and weather proofing to the northeast tower of the building to maintain and improve its structural integrity. These renovations will allow Connections Early Years Family Centre to use their building and offer quality programming for years to come while also preserving this unique feature of the Centre and of its original façade.

In May 2023, Connections Early Years Family Centre received a $156,200 Resilient Communities Fund grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation’s Resilient Communities Fund to expand their outdoor play programming and complete a new strategic plan to meet the needs of families post-pandemic. Thanks to this grant, Connections was able to reorganize their strategic priorities and provide a robust Outdoor Learning program that is identified as crucial to a child’s healthy development.  In an outdoor play and learning environment, children will experience ongoing support that fosters stewardship of the land and growth in acquiring skills necessary for the next steps in their learning.

“These two separate grants from the Ontario Trillium Foundation help Connections continue to provide meaningful early development programs, safeguard Connections’ location within central Windsor, and ensure it remains in a position to help contribute to the well-being of families in the community for years to come,” said Barb Brown, Executive Director of Connections Early Years Family Centre.

Connections Early Years Family Centre is committed to providing support, resources, and individualized services to promote the early learning and healthy development of families and their young children from ages 0 to 6. Connections has an EarlyON Centre that offers supportive programs that foster the well-being and engagement of parents and children.

They also offer the Back Soon Program, a no-cost short-term child care program for families to attend appointments while their children are cared for by Registered Early Childhood Educators. Additionally, Connections is the lead agency of the Talk 2 Me Preschool Speech & Language Program, the Infant Hearing Program, the Blind-Low Vision Program, the Ontario Autism Program’s Caregiver-Mediated Early Years Program, and the W.E.R.E.C.E. Mentorship Program.

The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF), an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations celebrates 40 years of grant-making in Ontario and making a lasting impact in communities. Last year, OTF invested over $110M into 1,022 community projects and partnerships. Visit otf.ca to learn more.