Stark Family Fund gifts more than $60,000 to local organizations

The Stark Family Fund, held within The Community Foundation for Kingston and Area, will be granting $63,072 to support 10 initiatives by local charitable community service organizations in the Prince Edward County area. The foundation expects the grants to directly impact 48,784 individuals, including 8,154 youth.

Bloomfield’s Stark sisters and spouses.

The Stark fund was created in 2002 with a $1.2 million gift from the last two surviving members of the Stark family – Ival and Ruth. The five sisters also include Leata, Keitha and Sylvia. All the sisters were lifelong residents of Bloomfield in Prince Edward County, and put their estates, and those of their spouses, toward an endowment fund to support local community granting in their fields of interest – especially in the areas of education, health, social sciences, animal welfare and culture, in Prince Edward County.

“As we mark the 20th year of granting from The Stark Family Fund, we are so very pleased to be able to support these diverse and impactful projects that will enhance the community health, resilience, and vibrancy of Prince Edward County,” said Stacy G Kelly, CFKA’s executive director. “Our special thanks to the team of County-based volunteer reviewers who greatly assisted CFKA by playing an integral role in assessing the grants applications.”

Stark Family Fund 2024 Recipients:
• Baxter Arts Centre for Skill Building Programs for School Aged Children in Prince Edward County
• Brain Injury Association Quinte District, “Fidget Quilts for Residents with Alzheimer’s and Dementia”
• County of Prince Edward Public Library & Archives, “Get Active at the Library”
• Humane Society Hastings Prince Edward, “HSHPE Spay Neuter Clinic for Low Income Pet Owners”
• Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation, “Direct Patient Care Equipment for Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital”
• Quintissimo El Sistema Quinte Region Inc, “Quintissimo’s Free After School Music Program”
• Reaching for Rainbows, “Reaching for Rainbows program”
• The Prince Edward County Community Care for Seniors Association, “Supporting Seniors into the Future”
• theROC Youth Services, “Get Grounded Mental Wellbeing Project”
• Trenton Memorial Hospital Foundation, “Stop the Bleed”

About this year’s grant recipients:

Animal Welfare (1 recipient)
Humane Society Hastings Prince Edward – Spay Neuter Clinic for Low Income Pet Owners – Granted: $4,000 
Reducing the number of off-spring through spay and neuter procedures lowers not only the cost of veterinary care, but also expenses for food, litter, and other animal-care costs. Last year, the HSHPE spayed and neutered 532 cats in our care before sending them along to their ‘forever homes’. Our 2023 Spay Neuter Clinic for Low Income Pet Owners sold out of dog surgeries in just two days and cat surgeries were filled shortly thereafter.
Impact: 480 Individuals (including 230 Youth)

Arts & Culture (1 recipient)
Baxter Arts Centre – Skill Building Programs for School Aged Children in Prince Edward County – Granted: $3,357.50
Pilot program in 2024: “Aerial Arts” is an extension of the popular Circus Camp, run in summers, where children explore circus arts, including juggling, acrobatics, clowning, and more. We hope to offer this program year-round and funding will be used to secure equipment rather than renting as needed. We strive to keep registration fees affordable for the families of Prince Edward County and are seeking funding to help offset the cost of these valuable programs.
Impact: 125 Individuals (including 55 Youth)

Community Development (2 recipients)
Brain Injury Association Quinte District – Fidget Quilts for Residents with Alzheimer’s and Dementia – Granted: $5,080 
This program will help individuals living with Acquired Brain Injury by promoting creativity, improving fine and gross motor skills, and improving social skills. Quilts made by members of the BIAQD art group are donated to the residents of nursing homes located within PEC who are living with Alzheimer’s and dementia – approximately 30 per home to start, and would require approximately 300 over a three-year span. People living with Alzheimer’s and dementia typically experience gradual decreases in brain function and as the disease progresses, their hands become more fidgety as they continually search for something to occupy them. Fidget quilts fulfill this pursuit, and provide senses of comfort through the hands and eyes.
Impact: 500 Individuals

Reaching for Rainbows – Reaching for Rainbows Program –
Granted: $5,000. 
Prince Edward County has greater inequality in adjusted household after-tax income than either Ontario or Canada. Children in low socioeconomic communities are almost two-times as likely to be behind in early development skills as high socioeconomic status peers; • High school graduation rates are ~10 per cent lower than the provincial average; • Childhood educators indicate that girls’ confidence drops by 30 per cent starting at age eight. Each year as we welcome our new girls, we see these statistics reflected in their lives. The issues and challenges that affect social competency, emotional maturity, language and thinking skills, communication and knowledge inform their development as they progress through school and life. By the time they are eligible for our program the areas where our programming and support will be most effective are evident.
Impact: 70 Individuals (including 30 Youth)

Education (2 recipients)
County of Prince Edward Public Library & Archives – Get Active at the Library – Granted: $3,000.00
This project will offer physical activity programs – at no charge – that welcome everyone. The Vital Signs Report put together by the County Foundation identifies several groups facing barriers to inclusion including youth, persons living with disabilities and people living on low income. This project will specifically invite members of these groups to join. Additionally, if the room is equipped with resources most children do not have at home, it will become an attraction to families who may not have yet visited the library and introduce these children to the world of lifelong learning.
Impact: 150 Individuals (including 150 Youth)

Quintissimo El Sistema Quinte Region Inc. – Quintissimo’s Free After School Music Program – Granted: $9,450 
Funds will be used to supply necessary instruments as programs expand, including: renting 8 Yamaha 200 series student model flutes for returning flute students from the 2023-2024 school year, purchasing 10 Nuvo JFlutes (and upgrade kits) for an additional 10 flutes between Grades 1-2 for the 2024-2025 school year, and renting 8 fractional sized cellos for students returning to the program from the 2023-2024 school year. Each student participating in the program is guaranteed continuous access to an instrument for the duration of the school year.
Impact: 440 Individuals (including 140 Youth)

Health & Social Science (4 recipients)
Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation – Direct Patient Care Equipment for Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital – Granted: $10,000 
PECMH is a primary care hospital; patients with emergency, complex, or serious health issues are stabilized here before being transported to a larger centre. A new MX500 monitor, critical to caring for patients experiencing cardiac symptoms and respiratory concerns, is a critical need in the hospital’s emergency department for patient care.
Impact: 44,735 Individuals (including 6,549 Youth)

The Prince Edward County Community Care for Seniors Association – Supporting Seniors into the Future – Granted: $3,185 
Good nutrition with the added bonus of a reassurance check is available when seniors participate in Meals on Wheels. 2024 marks 44 years that Community Care has operated the hot and frozen Meals on Wheels program in Prince Edward County. The agency currently has 154 active MOW clients receiving over 6,500 frozen meals each year. A commercial freezer is needed to maintain and expand capacity. As well, the Ministry of Health has funded Quinte Health for a “Lower Limb Preservation Project” (LLP) of which Prince Edward Community Care is a partner because of our foot care program. Community Care has over 800 foot care clients and nine well-qualified foot care nurses. Clients see a nurse every six weeks at one of three clinic locations in The County — Picton, Wellington & Rossmore. The current debriding machines receive heavy use and are often down for maintenance. Having two more machines will mean there won’t be any interruption to this vital service for seniors.
Impact: 2,154 Individuals

The ROC Youth Services – Get Grounded Mental Wellbeing Project – Granted: $10,000 
There has been a significant increase in local youth anxiety and mental distress over the past few years resulting in: academic disengagement, challenging peer relationships, self-isolation, self-harm, increased trouble with the law, and a lack of emotional regulation. Preventative intervention through the Get Grounded Project supports youth in understanding how to navigate indicators of stress, encourage and increase protective factors, and learn healthy behaviours.
Impact: 1,100 Individuals (including 600 Youth)

Trenton Memorial Hospital Foundation – Stop the Bleeding –
Granted: $10,000
There are patients throughout the region that require upper limb surgeries for carpal tunnel, trigger finger, and de Quervain’s. These are done at the outpatient clinic at Trenton Memorial Hospital under local anesthetic. Patients walk out after a 20-minute procedure (start to finish) with basic pain medication. Tourniquet use is a common practice in orthopedic surgery to stop blood flow to the limbs. Two orthopaedic surgeons, Dr. Birchard and Dr. Steinitz, identified the need for the tourniquet and Stark Family Fund grant funding will be used for the purchase of a Tourniquet for the Surgical department at Trenton Memorial Hospital. This will see a reduction in surgical errors (as a result of poor visibility of the surgical site), resulting in a quicker recovery time as well as less wait time for procedures.

The Community Foundation for Kingston & Area strengthens the community by connecting the generosity of donors with the energy and ideas of people and charities addressing local community needs. For more information visit www.cfka.org