About Us
Our Mission
The Community One Foundation creates a strong, vibrant and diverse community by supporting individuals and groups that enhance the development of the LGBTTIQQ2S communities in the Greater Toronto Area including Durham, Halton, Peel and York Regions.
Our Story – A history of doing good
In 1980, the Lesbian & Gay Community Appeal of Toronto (LGCA) was founded by a group of Toronto activists led by Harvey Hamburg, Tom Beechy, Rosemary Barnes and others. The LGCA was a response to the lack of financial support for community projects and organizations.
The visionary founders recognized the importance of building community through philanthropy and connecting great ideas and good people with the resources needed to contribute to social justice.
“Future generations may wonder when queers stepped back from fighting for space in order to start building on it. In Toronto, 1980 is a good bet. That’s the year the Lesbian & Gay Community Appeal set up shop,” wrote Xtra writer Paul Henderson in 2005.
“…There is hardly a queer person in the city untouched directly or indirectly by dollars raised by the Appeal. Like a shadow, the Appeal isn’t always noticed, but it really is everywhere.”
The LGCA was asked to lead Toronto's Pride Parade in 2004 as the Honorary Group and recieved a special Unified Award at Pride Toronto's annual gala in 2008. In 2005, the LGCA was awarded the City of Toronto's Pride Award for contributing to the well-being and advancement of the LGBTQ community.
“We were hard pressed to think of a comparable organization that unifies our community in celebration, providing the vital and often only resources available to [community projects] to do the crucial work they need to do,” said former Pride Toronto executive director Fatima Amarshi on the decision by Pride Toronto to recognize the LGCA/Community One Foundation with their Pride Unified Award 2008.
“Over your many years of operation, the LGCA [now the Community One Foundation] has developed a profile and a working model that is respected, admired, and much loved in our community.”
A new era begins
In 2008, the LGCA became the Community One Foundation to recognize the ever evolving and diverse community that the Foundation serves and to promote the need for unity and philanthropy in our community. The Community One Foundation has expanded its reach in the Greater Toronto Area to include the regions of Durham, Halton, Peel and York.
The portfolio of programs and partnership has expanded to include:
·RAINBOW GRANTS PROGRAM (formerly known as LGCA Grants)
·PRIDE ACCESS & DIVERSITY GRANTS PROGRAM
·STEINERT & FERREIRO AWARD
·BILL 7 AWARD
·THE LGBT GIVING NETWORK
The Community One Foundation’s volunteers and donors have raised millions of dollars to support over a thousand projects that have strengthened the LGBTQ community. The Foundation is a public foundation and registered charity. The Foundation operates primarily through individual donations and, with the exception of the Steinert & Ferreiro Award, does not currently have an endowment fund.
100% of the funding for the Rainbow Grants Program comes from generous contributions by individual donors and by businesses and organizations who recognize the importance of building a strong community foundation.
The LGCA was formed in a highly politicized era where LGBTTIQQ2S folks were fighting to be recognized as people deserving of civil rights, dignity and the freedom to love. The Foundation is proud to have played a role in the evolution of our community over the last three decades. However, we recognize that there many people in our community that have yet to benefit from the great achievements of our predecesors. With so much love and talent in our community, it is the Foundation's hope that together we can support those that are still vulnerable and unsupported.
We pay tribute to the thousands of donors, volunteers and community organizers that have made a difference through the Lesbian & Gay Community Appeal of Toronto. The new Community One Foundation name celebrates the LGCA’s tradition of effectively bringing our diverse community together.
We believe that through our shared history we can build a better future.
Read our 2008-2010 Strategic Plan to learn more about our current direction.
