It may be time to rename a Queenstown philanthropic organisation.
Impact100, established in 2020, will this year be providing two separate $100,000 grants to local charities, with the remainder of the $208,000 being split between the remaining three finalists.
Chair Clare Irons says she’s thrilled with the total committed by Impact100 members, each of whom donates $1000 to the funding pool, all of which is passed back to the community through the annual grants.
‘‘We set ourselves a goal of two major grants for the year, so it’s wonderful to have reached it with over 200 women donating to Impact100.
‘‘This will bring us to nearly $700,000 that will have been granted to Whakatipu charities after only four years, and an example of the generosity of the women in this community.’’
Last year, St John Wakatipu won the major grant, totalling $148,000, for a new health shuttle, with a wheelchair hoist, which transports people of all ages to essential medical and health-related appointments, and a community support vehicle to support non-clinical St John activities, like the Whakatipu’s ‘friendship drive’.
The wheelchair-accessible health shuttle’s expected here later this year.
The winner of the 2021 $100,000 grant, Pivotal Point Charitable Trust, has started running in-school professional development and screening programmes to help identify and support neurodiverse kids in the Whakatipu, and is running parent support programmes.
And the Routeburn Dart Wildlife Trust, which won $85,000 that same year, has been trapping feral cats in the Rees-Dart Valley as part of its predator eradication programme and is hopeful a takahē release programme may happen later this year.
Impact100’s now calling for expressions of interest from charities wanting to apply for grants this year — to qualify, applicants must be a registered charity, be based in the Whakatipu, and have a project to the value of at least $100,000.
Expressions of interest are at impact100wakatipu.org,and close at 5pm on Friday, June 30.
Members will vote on the winner at their awards dinner in late October.
