The Calgary Foundation is a registered charity in Canada that serves Calgary and surrounding Alberta. It fosters a healthy, vibrant, generous, and caring community. We want to share more about its operations, vision, and core values. Read on at calgary1.one.
Founding The Calgary Foundation
Community leaders established The Calgary Foundation in 1955. One of these individuals was Doug Hawkes. He recalled the generosity and kindness of Red Cross representatives who cared for him during his military service in World War II. From then on, he promised to one day repay that kindness, doing everything possible to make it happen.
In the early 1960s, The Calgary Foundation received its first injection of capital. That’s when 20 founding donors, including Doug Hawkes, each contributed $5,000. These donations were pooled and invested, and the income was distributed as grants to local charitable organizations. The first grants were awarded in 1964 to the United Fund ($1,000) and Mount Royal College ($500), now known as the public University of Calgary.
Vision and Values
Representatives of The Calgary Foundation strive to build a healthy and vibrant community where everyone feels like an integral part of the collective.
The Foundation’s website highlights its core mission: The organization inspires philanthropy, continuously supporting the charitable sector, and creating a permanent endowment to meet the current and future needs of people in the community.
It is worth focusing specifically on the charity’s values, which form the reliable foundation for its work.
- Accountability. The Calgary Foundation is well aware of its responsibility to the broader community and all stakeholders, including donors, grantees, partners, and volunteers. Therefore, the organization is committed to being fully transparent in its activities, financial practices, and results. Upholding accountability ensures trust and confidence in the Foundation’s responsible and effective operation.
- Compassion, which involves caring for people and their well-being. Understanding the needs and challenges of community members forms the basis of The Calgary Foundation’s decisions and activities. This means improving people’s lives by considering their circumstances and creating a favourable environment for residents of Calgary and surrounding areas.
- Excellence, meaning exceptional performance in all aspects of its work. This value encompasses efficient fund management, careful selection of projects for funding, and adherence to high standards of governance and operational activity.
- Inclusivity. The Calgary Foundation recognizes the importance of diversity, including the different knowledge, experiences, and perspectives present in the community. This core value helps the charity better understand complex issues and find innovative solutions.
- The final fundamental value of The Calgary Foundation is Integrity, which means reliability, honesty, responsibility, and ethical conduct in all the organization’s actions.
An Inspiring Story
The charitable organization has many stories to share. Let’s talk about Hockey Hall of Fame Builder Bill Hay and his wife, Nancy. Bill Hay played center for the Chicago Black Hawks from 1959 to 1967. He won the Calder Trophy, becoming the NHL’s top rookie in his first season. He helped his team win the Stanley Cup in 1961. These are just some of the achievements of Calgary native Bill Hay. For example, he served as President and CEO of the Calgary Flames and Hockey Canada. He was also Chairman and CEO of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Despite his many awards, Bill Hay’s family was what he cherished most. The Hay couple is known for their community involvement and volunteering, efforts that have benefited a significant number of Calgarians. Their achievements include establishing one of the first donor-advised charitable funds in Calgary’s history. They created the Nancy and Bill Hay Family Fund in 1979.
Some may wonder about the family’s inclination toward philanthropy. It began with the birth of their son, Donald, in 1962, who had a number of health issues. In 1979, the child underwent brain surgery. The family’s fund provides grants to organizations that help children with special needs. Past grant recipients include the Calgary Society for Persons with Disabilities, Children’s College Society, the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation, and Momentum.
The Hay Couple
The Hays began collaborating with The Calgary Foundation in 1979 at a special party organized to boost popularity and the number of benefactors. That night, nearly $2 million was raised, and the Hays committed to establishing a donor-managed charitable funding endowment.
The couple and their children (Donald, Penny, Pam), and later their grandchildren, continued the legacy of community support. Annual meetings were held where family members discussed where the greatest needs were and where funding should be allocated.
On November 1, 2024, The Calgary Foundation posted a message about the passing of Bill Hay. We’d like to conclude by recalling something he often said. He noted that writing a cheque when you have a bank account is easy. However, he emphasized that the true value is not in the money, but in the people we meet and what they teach us.
Funding Education
Over 200 student award funds annually provide more than 500 scholarships, awards, and bursaries at local, provincial, and national post-secondary institutions. The Calgary Foundation manages its own awards, the majority of which are designated for students graduating from Calgary high schools and surrounding areas, or students attending post-secondary institutions in Alberta.
To find student awards for which you may be eligible, you can use their search tool. You can filter by current education level, high school division, post-secondary institution, field of study, and award type. You can view all 46 available awards.
Online application forms for the awards are available until January 31, 2025, and the awards are designated for students attending post-secondary institutions during the 2025–2026 academic year.
Modern History and the Role of The Calgary Foundation
The Calgary Foundation was established to serve social, cultural, educational, health, environmental, and other charitable purposes in Calgary and surrounding areas. The charitable organization operates by distributing income generated from endowments and other donor-established funds.
Each year, The Calgary Foundation directs 5% of the market value of each fund toward charitable activities. Any income exceeding 5% after covering administrative costs is added back to the funds’ principal endowment.
As of 2007, The Calgary Foundation’s endowments amounted to $334 million. That same year, the TCF provided $33 million in support to 547 different charitable organizations. The total value of grants in Canadian dollars as of the end of March 2024 is approximately $904.0 million (up from $828.5 million in 2023).
Calgarians who share the vision and values of The Calgary Foundation can become volunteers for the charitable organization. Applications can be submitted online through the official website.
For those looking to build a career in the charitable sector, job postings are available on LinkedIn and through the Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations.