St. Mary’s Villa Foundation gratefully received a cheque for $5000 from  Credential Asset Management/St. Gregor Credit Union toward its facility replacement fund. Executive Director of the St. Mary’s Villa Hospital Foundation Donna Muench received the cheque from Tara Stuckel, wealth consultant and Allyssa Rieger, office coordinator from Credential Asset Management. The donation puts the fund up to $567,000 to date. Fundraising efforts for the new building began in 2018. 

“The $5000 is going toward our $8 million “Build A Home” Campaign, so we still have a way to go yet,” says Muench.

The $8 million target represents 20 percent of the estimated cost of replacing the home. The replacement is a necessity over the next few years given the state of the current building.

“We are going to need to build a new care home because this one was built in 1963, and different levels of it between 1963, 1965, 1977, and the early a990s. Our infrastructure is starting to fail; it’s needed.”

Thus far, there has been no official announcement of government funding support, says Muench. The facility is on a list of other care homes with needs with the hope of approval in the next couple of years. Meanwhile, fundraising is important to secure the dollars that the Villa Foundation is required to commit to the project. 

“It’s more difficult to raise money and receive money from larger corporations because we don’t fall into the criteria of raising money for a hospital and raising money for children. Unfortunately, there is no criteria for long term care homes.”

With more corporate dollars available to them, hospitals have a threshold of 40 percent to contribute, Muench explains. It means that donations like that of Credential Asset Management/St. Gregor Credit Union are greatly appreciated. Fundraising met additional challenges throughout the pandemic, but the Villa Foundation is back on track and planning additional fundraisers. 

There are 85 residents in St. Mary’s Villa, primarily in Level 3 and 4 care. Find out more about the St. Mary’s Villa Foundation and its efforts and activities on its Facebook page.