The Reston & Area Foundation was first organized in 2002 but was not awarded a "charitable” status until late in 2004.
During the intervening time the new Board focused on organizing and setting policy and guidelines. Also, during this time, financial support was received from Dave Braddell and from the RM of Pipestone – these start-up funds were critical in establishing the Foundation.
Of course, there would be no awards to be made or grants to be given until we began to receive donations to create a fund.
From 2004 to 2006, generous donations exceeding a total of $10,000 were received from various members of the Braddell family. Another gift over $11,000 was received from a resident of the area who wishes to remain anonymous. Also, in this period, we discovered we were to receive the ‘residue’ of the estate of John Pearson. The first installment was over $270,000! This was the key to start the process of gathering interest so that awards and grants could be considered.
By 2007 the Foundation had established a Scholarship/Bursary fund and were in position to receive applications for assistance with community projects. More importantly, the Foundation was beginning to be recognized and more contributions began to come from a variety of donors.
Now, in 2020 the Foundation's assets have grown to $842,906.12!
Foundation Funds
The Reston Community Foundation Managed Fund | 80% of the foundation's funds invested with The Winnipeg Foundation and the remainder with Sunrise Credit Union |
Scholarship and Bursary Fund | Managed by The Winnipeg Foundation - income awarded to local students annually |
Brownlee Family Scholarship | Established in 2010 and to be awarded annually (starting in 2011) to a student furthering their education in the field of agriculture |
Health Auxiliary Scholarship | Established in 2009 and awarded annually to a student entering the health care profession. |
Cromer & Area Seed Plant | Established in 2017, a cooperative seed plant from the village of Cromer disbanded. Remaining funds in the corporation were graciously endowed to our foundation to create a scholarship available to schools in our school district - Fort La Boose School Division. |