Stark Family Grant Fund presents $59,250

Grants totaling $59,250 were awarded to eight Prince Edward County Projects Wednesday night by the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area.
The Stark Family Fund was established by a $1.3 million bequest from Ruth Stark, the last remaining member of a family that included four other sisters, Leata, Keitha, Sylvia and Ival. The five sisters were lifelong residents of the village of Bloomfield, and it was their wish to see the village and county’s residents continue to be supported, particularly in the educational, health and cultural field.
“This year we have awarded over $25,000 in grants to provide bursaries for students from Prince Edward County attending post-secondary institutions. The Girls would be pleased,” said Tim Beatty, chair of the Stark Family Fund Grant Selection Committee, who refers to the Stark sisters affectionately as “The Girls”.
The grants included $10,000 each to Loyalist College and St. Lawrence College to support bursary awards for students from Prince Edward County. The committee took advantage of a matching program from the Ontario Government’s Trust for Student Support program (OTSS).
“Including the government match, since 2006 the Stark Family Fund has contributed
$80,000 to student bursaries at both of these institutions – a substantial investment in the
education of Prince Edward County residents,” added Vikram Varma, the executive director of the Community Foundation.
The grant recipients were selected by an independent, local committee. Grant cheques will be presented at a ceremony later this spring.

2012 Stark Family Fund Grants:
Recreation Outreach Centre, TRIPLE POWER Program, $3,500 TRIPLE POWER Program is a new wellness program for all boys and girls aged 9-13 offered after school in six week sessions addressing three key areas of healthy living: physical,
mental and social well being. The goal of the TRIPLE POWER Program is to improve youth knowledge of healthy habits, increase their daily physical activities, and give youth the opportunity to participate in creative arts and interact positively with their peers. The objective of TRIPLE POWER is to demonstrate how eating well, keeping fit, being creative and forming positive relationships promotes healthy lifestyles. This program will empower young people and give them the tools needed to become healthy and active. The grant will pay for program supplies in creative arts, cooking and sports as there are no fees to participate.
Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation, Campaign for Digital Mammography and Ultrasound Equipment, $17,500 The Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation has committed to bring two vital pieces of medical equipment to our hospital – digital Mammography and Ultrasound Equipment and launched a campaign on October 25, 2011 to raise 750,000 for this need. With the purchase of this new equipment, digital mammography images will be instantly available and stored electronically, making them accessible to any physician serving our citizens’ needs. The new ultrasound technology will provide superior images and because it is much faster, more examinations can be done.
Loyalist College, Endowment Fund for Student Financial Assistance: $10,000 A Capital Campaign is under way at Loyalist College, to help complete and equip the Sustainable Skills, Technology and Life Sciences Centre on campus, and for the Endowment Fund for student financial assistance. This grant will increase the Stark Family Bursary Fund, to provide additional support for Prince Edward County students who attend Loyalist. Criteria were established when the Bursary endowment was established in 2007, and four awards have been presented from investment income since then. The grant will be eligible for matching funds through the Ontario Government’s Trust for Student Support program (OTSS).
Come Alive Outside Prince Edward, The Come Alive Outside Fitness Trail, $7,000 The proposed 2 kilometer long Come Alive Outside Fitness Trail will be located in Picton, and will run through the Johnson Street Soccer Fields property and Prince Edward Fairgrounds. This facility will be adjacent to three schools, a childcare centre, the Fairgrounds, community centre and Youth Park. It will provide eleven pieces of high quality outdoor exercise equipment for teens and adults placed in three pods. An additional exercise pod of exercise equipment specifically for elementary school children will be prominent along the trail. The grant will pay for the supply and installation of the exercise equipment for the elementary
school children.
St. Lawrence College, The Stark Family Entrance Bursary at St. Lawrence College, $10,000 In 2007, the Stark Family Fund at the Community Foundation provided a grant to establish an endowed fund which would provide annual financial awards for residents of Prince Edward County who elect to undertake post-secondary studies at St. Lawrence College.
Provincial matching was applied to the capital of this gift. Over the past five years, interest earned on the fund has provided entrance bursaries to five PEC residents. The initial capital gift of $10,000 has grown, with matching, to $28,283.61. Now the Province of Ontario will match contributions to endowed bursary funds at St. Lawrence College again.
Canadian Diabetes Association, Diabetes Camp for Children with Type 1 Diabetes, $2,000  For more than 56 years, local children with Type 1 diabetes have been attending a special medical camp conducted by the Canadian Diabetes Association called Camp Banting. A unique place for chronically ill children, camp teaches youth how to avoid diabetes complications that can lead to cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, blindness, amputation, or a painful and premature death. It is the only camp of its kind in Canada for local children (ages 8-15) with type 1 diabetes. Camp teaches children about balancing proper nutrition, physical activity and insulin in a supervised and fun environment. The grant will help to send two
children to Camp Banting, one from Bloomfield and the other from Wellington.
Canadian National Institute for the Blind, New Horizons New Dreams – Picton Project, $3,500 New Horizons, New Dreams is a program for seniors newly adapting to various stages of vision loss. It is provided at no cost to the participant and takes place right in Prince Edward County. It consists of eight two and a half hour sessions in which a peer facilitator experienced with vision loss assists in the presentation of topics, shares his/her own life experiences and encourages a group discussion. The grant will pay for teaching volunteers to lead this important peer support activity, as well as the cost of the meetings and transportation.
Rotary Club of Picton, Picton Scholarships, $5,750 This grant represents the five annual scholarships that will be awarded by the Rotary Club of Picton to individuals who are attending post secondary facilities in the fall.