The Saunders Family Foundation has raised more than $300,000 since 2009. That’s on top of the amounts raised and donated to organizations, sports teams and initiatives through the family’s generosity before the foundation was launched.
Assisting schools has always been a priority for the family. On the West Shore, the Saunders Family Foundation has provided funding for music programs at Royal Bay and Belmont secondaries, Dunsmuir and Spencer middle schools and John Stubbs Memorial elementary school, as well as Edward Milne Community School in Sooke.
The Saunders’ support for the music program at Saltspring Island middle school has blossomed into a partnership with the local Royal Canadian Legion and Country Grocer that annually funds a breakfast and lunch program at the school.
Always true to his Cowichan Valley roots, Bob Saunders has ensured that the foundation donates between $8,000 and $10,000 a year to sports teams and schools in that region through its annual tournament at the Cowichan Golf Club.
The Comfy Kids Car Program, a favourite initiative of Dave Saunders that was started in 2013, has helped numerous families dealing with childhood medical conditions by donating a Subaru Forester to the British Columbia Childhood Cancer Parents Association. The vehicle provides comfortable, reliable transportation for families dealing with having to take a child to the pediatric oncology clinic at BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver.
The foundation supports a similar initiative with Lady Minto Hospital on Saltspring and has forged partnerships with Co-Op Fuels, HUB International, Brown Bros. Insurance, Island Savings, Harbour Air Seaplanes and HHS Drilling and Blasting to ensure those programs continue to receive the annual assistance they need.
The Saunders Foundation has been instrumental in raising $100,000 through the Wounded Warrior Run B.C. The funding assists current and retired members of the Canadian Armed Forces wounded in the line of duty and those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder through Wounded Warriors Canada.
The Saunders family have provided support for numerous sports programs at the Juan de Fuca Recreation Centre, the Victoria Grizzlies hockey team and the Westshore Rebels football team, as well as a multitude of organizations and individuals throughout the West Shore and beyond.
