SweetWater Music Festival Received Transformative OTF Grant

(l-r): *MPP Rick Byers, Vivian McCaffrey, Sweetwater Board Chair and Hugh Wilson, Ontario Trillium Foundation Volunteer*

September 19, 2023

LEITH – On Friday, as the members of the SweetWater Music Festival were readying for their evening performance at the Historic Leith Church, MPP Rick Byers was there to officially congratulate the organization on the work done as a result of receiving a $42,000 Resilient Communities Fund grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF). The grant program is designed to help non-profit organizations recover from the impacts of the pandemic.

“It was a beautiful evening in Leith and my pleasure to be there to recognize the Sweetwater Music Festival for their successful receipt of an Ontario Trillium Foundation grant. Thank you for the beautiful music all over our community!” says MPP Rick Byers, Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound.

The grant, awarded in 2022 and now coming to its conclusion, helped SweetWater to hire a “People Power Volunteer Lead” who has helped to design a more organized volunteer program and increase its organizational capacity. Festival organizers also have plans in place for retaining its volunteers and recruit in new ones as well. In addition, the group was able to purchase a CRM program (customer relationship management). As a result of the grant, SweetWater was also able to launch a new website last year and it created new video content as well.

“Funds from the Ontario Trillium Foundation have helped us to increase our capacity to continue to offer fantastic classical, world and jazz music to the people of Owen Sound and beyond. We are grateful for this transformational support which will benefit our organization for the years to come,” said Natasha Bood, General Manager, SweetWater.

SweetWater Music Festival’s vision is to offer music that inspires, challenges, and connects. 2023 marks the 20^th Anniversary of the Festival that occurs annually in Owen Sound and Meaford. SweetWater is grateful for ongoing support of its many private donors, corporate partners, private foundations (including the Leflar Foundation), and key public funders (Canadian Heritage, Ontario Trillium Foundation, Ontario Arts Council, Municipality of Meaford).

The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF), an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations celebrates 40 years of grant-making in Ontario and making a lasting impact in communities. Last year, OTF invested over $110M into 1,022 community projects and partnerships. Visit otf.ca to learn more.