A local not-for-profit organization is getting a funding boost from the provincial government to help protect the community from hate and violence.
The province is investing more than $1.7 million over two years through the Safer and Vital Communities Grant program, which is open to community-based, not-for-profit organizations and First Nation Band Councils.
Family Service Kent, a multi-service agency that provides counselling, support and advocacy services in the Chatham-Kent community, is set to receive $101,750 through the program over the next two years.
Another 17 community-based, not-for-profit organizations in Ontario were also announced as funding recipients.
The grants were announced in January 2024 in response to a rise in hate-motivated crime across the province. The program will focus on cultural, ethnic and faith-based hate in communities that have experienced an increase in hate-motivated crime.
