Agency Funds are invested by the Community Foundation of Greater Peterborough. Each year a portion of the earnings is distributed to the organization that established it.

While the endowment itself remains intact and is held by the Foundation, the annual income provides a reliable stream of support that the organization can use for its charitable work.

Community theatre is built not only by the people the audience sees, but by the people who give their time, judgment, patience, and skill to everything around the performance. At the Peterborough Theatre Guild, two of those people were sisters-in-law Joan McRae and Margaret Carley. For many years, they helped sustain the Guild as dedicated volunteers.

Now their legacy is being honoured through the Joan and Margaret Fund, a new fund established at the Community Foundation of Greater Peterborough by their sons, Dave Carley and Doug McRae.

Both women were deeply involved in the Guild for many years, contributing in ways that audiences rarely see but that every theatre depends on. Joan McRae worked in several areas, including backstage and props. With a degree in English and a lifelong love of literature, she also served on the Guild’s Play Selection Committee, where her enthusiasm for reading and discussing plays made her a valued voice. Her contributions extended beyond Peterborough as well. As the Guild’s representative to the Eastern Ontario Drama League (EODL), she became widely respected for her dedication and was eventually honoured with the League’s Outstanding Service Award.

We’re thrilled to announce that the Canadian Canoe Museum has started a Fund with the Foundation. The Fund will help ensure the long-term strength, sustainability, and permanence of the Museum, its collection, its facilities, and its programs.

The Canadian Canoe Museum is a private, not-for-profit charitable organization that stewards the world’s largest and most significant collection of canoes, kayaks, and paddled watercraft. The Museum is dedicated to honouring and sharing the cultural histories and stories embodied in this collection through thoughtful exhibition development, responsible collection care, research, and meaningful community engagement.

Educational programs for youth range from land-based, curriculum-linked programs for visiting school kids to summer paddling camps to multi-day backcountry canoe trips for youth, while the Museum’s signature ‘Builders in Residence Program’ welcomes canoe and kayak makers and artists from coast to coast to coast to share their skills, stories and knowledge each year in an immersive, hands-on setting.

In addition, a full suite of adult artisan workshops creates empowering opportunities for participants of all ages to learn new skills working with their hands.

All programming at the Museum strives to create authentic opportunities for connection, curiosity, and deeper understanding of our cultural and natural worlds. Working alongside Indigenous Peoples, the Museum strives to care for the collection and share the stories within it in a good way.

Learn more about The Canadian Canoe Museum here. 

Every day at YES Shelter for Youth and Families, staff witness the remarkable strength of young people who arrive carrying experiences most of us will never fully see or understand. Despite living with deep uncertainty and complex trauma, many still have a spark. With the right support, that flicker has the chance to blossom into possibility.

This is what motivated YES to create the YES Education Fund at the Community Foundation. “Though it’s only just begun, our hopes for it are big,” says Aimeé Le Lagadec, Executive Director of YES. “We see it as a much-needed boost of confidence that will help remove the barriers that prevent marginalized young people from embracing school and advanced career training.”

Over the years YES has supported many youth out of homelessness. As they stabilize and move through their experiences, staff work to re-connect them to employment, training, and school. “YES believes that education has the potential to stabilize youth in a truly unique way,” Aimeé says. “But the barriers that keep them out of the system can be immense. One of the biggest obstacles to education that our young clients experience is the need to prioritize their basic needs over their education.”

Visit the YES Shelter for Youth and Families here. 

Step into Sadleir House, and you walk into the centre of Peterborough’s creative spirit – a heritage mansion powered by the energy of artists, activists, and students. The red-brick Queen Anne-style house has stood at the corner of George and Parkhill since 1892. Built as the Kendry family home, it has been called many names over the decades – Strathormond, The Castle, Peter Robinson College – but to generations of students and community members, it has always been more than just a house; it has been a place of gathering, creativity, protest, and persistence.

Over its long history, the house has seen politicians and publishers, horses in the carriage house, and even foreclosure. In 1963, Trent University purchased the property and soon after transformed it into the home of Peter Robinson College, making it a hub of student life and a bridge between the main campus and downtown Peterborough.

When Trent’s Board of Governors voted in 1999 to close Peter Robinson College, the decision sparked widespread outcry. Students, faculty, and community allies fought back with petitions, court challenges, and even a sit-in. The odds were stacked against them, but the spirit of the house, and the belief in what it represented, could not be easily stopped.

Learn more about Sadleir House here. 

For fifteen years, Farms at Work has been quietly doing the kind of work that keeps a region strong. Rather than chasing quick fixes, the organization has focused on building the foundations of a resilient food system by prioritizing healthy soil, protecting farmland, strengthening farm communities, and supporting the next generation of growers.

Now, as Farms at Work becomes a registered charity and launches a new Agency Fund with the Community Foundation, that long-term vision feels especially timely. Helping steer this next chapter is Pat Learmonth, who joined the new Board of Directors after serving as Project Director for twelve years.

“While the organization has evolved, our vision and mission have stayed constant since the beginning,” Pat says. “We have always been driven by concerns about our ability to feed ourselves sustainably into the future.”

Visit Farms at Work here. 

For more than thirty years, 4th Line Theatre has brought Canadian history to life on the rolling fields of the Winslow Farm in Millbrook. Since its founding in 1992, the outdoor theatre has become one of the region’s most distinctive cultural experiences, presenting original plays rooted in the stories, people, and landscapes of Greater Peterborough.

Along the way, 4th Line has also become an important training ground for young people interested in the performing arts. Through apprenticeships and mentorship opportunities, hundreds of emerging performers, technicians, and storytellers have gained their first experience working in professional theatre.

The 30 to the Future Fund, held at the Community Foundation of Greater Peterborough, helps ensure that this work continues. Income from the endowment supports youth apprenticeships, scholarships, and honorariums, along with theatre and public speaking training for young people in the region.

By growing this fund over time, 4th Line Theatre is investing in the next generation of artists while strengthening the cultural life of Peterborough County. The endowment provides a dependable source of support that helps the theatre continue its mission of sharing local stories and nurturing new talent for many years to come.

Visit 4th Line Theatre’s website here. 

In the heart of downtown Peterborough stands Hutchison House, a carefully preserved limestone home that offers visitors a glimpse into life in Ontario during the 1800s. Each year, roughly 7,000 people step through its doors to experience guided tours, heritage programs, and community traditions that keep the region’s history alive.

The Peterborough Historical Society has cared for Hutchison House for decades, ensuring that this important local landmark continues to educate and inspire visitors. In 2022, the Society took an important step to secure that work for the future by entering into an agreement with the Community Foundation of Greater Peterborough to invest two trust funds that support the museum.

Under this partnership, the funds are held and invested as permanent endowments. The capital remains intact, while a portion of the earnings is distributed each year to help support the ongoing operation and maintenance of Hutchison House.

“We are very pleased to be partnering with the Foundation with its strong record of support for local charities,” said Dale Standen, Past President of the Peterborough Historical Society.

Foundation Executive Director Jennifer DeBues welcomed the partnership and the long view it represents.

“It’s fitting that an organization dedicated to preserving the past has its plans so clearly set on the future,” she said. “Just like the Peterborough Historical Society, the Foundation is here for good.”

Visitors continue to enjoy many of the traditions that make Hutchison House such a beloved community gathering place, including Scottish Teas during July and August and heritage lunches held throughout the winter months. Supporters can also contribute directly to the Hutchison House Trust Fund, helping the endowment grow over time and ensuring that this historic site remains a living part of Peterborough’s cultural life for generations to come.

Learn more about Hutchison House/Peterborough Historical Society here.

Interested in starting an Agency Fund?

An Agency Fund allows a charitable organization like yours to build long-term financial stability while continuing to support the programs and services that matter most to Greater Peterborough. 

To learn more, please contact Jennifer DeBues, Executive Director.

jennifer.debues@cfgp.ca
705-740-2347

A single conversation today can help secure your organization’s future for years to come.