L’Arche Greater Vancouver gratefully announces that its We All Belong campaign has received a second major donation from the same family Foundation. In 2019, shortly after L’Arche launched its redevelopment campaign, the Morris and Helen Belkin Foundation donated $500,000 to start the campaign. This donation was the largest L’Arche had ever received. On May 1, 2024, they added a second gift of $500,000 for a total donation of one million dollars towards the campaign goal of six million dollars.

“We were struck by the passion of the people and the heart of L’Arche Greater Vancouver,” says Margaret Corbett, representing the Morris and Helen Belkin Foundation. “L’Arche and its supportive and productive programs allow community members to do a lot for themselves and for the community.”

L’Arche Greater Vancouver’s redevelopment project at 7415 Sussex Avenue in Burnaby will replace three current homes for people with developmental disabilities, add 10 units of housing for adults with diverse needs who can live more independently, plus 29 units of rental housing for individuals, couples and families who wish to live in an intentional community. This mixed-use plan will ease the challenge of rent affordability, plus expanded community inclusion programs, which provide volunteer, social, and recreational opportunities.

The redevelopment project has a projected total cost of 36 million dollars. To date, three levels of government have made provisional commitments of 13.6 million dollars. With the Morris and Helen Belkin Foundation’s latest donation and long-term financing, the We All Belong campaign goal still needs $900,000 to reach its six-million-dollar fundraising goal.

“We are honoured and humbled to receive this generous gift. This donation helps L’Arche expand its mission to serve more people with disabilities and build community,” says FeiFei Peng, L’Arche’s Community Leader/Executive Director. “With the help of the Morris and Helen Belkin Foundation and the generosity of others, our dream is becoming reality.”

L'Arche Greater Vancouver has supported adults with developmental disabilities since 1974. In a large city where many people feel isolated and alone, L'Arche is a valuable asset that encourages community and offers a place of belonging. Support of the “We All Belong” campaign helps ensure safe, affordable housing for adults with developmental disabilities in the community. The Sussex Avenue property redevelopment project is currently under construction and is slated for occupancy in the Fall of 2024.

For more information, please contact: Sigrid (Sig) StarkDirector of Philanthropy and Communications  Cell: 778.866.6341sstark@larchevancouver.org

Ross SullivanRoss Sullivan CommunicationsCell: 604.802.7139ross@peakco.com

We are people with and without disabilities sharing life in community

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We humbly acknowledge that we live, learn, grow, work, and build community on the unceded, ancestral, traditional, and occupied homelands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.