Grade 9 YPI Winners Present $5,000 Award to Charity

Congratulations to the winners of the Grade 9 Youth Philanthropy Initiative, who landed a $5,000 grant for their charity of choice.

Each year, all Grade 9s at Greenwood participate in months-long Youth Philanthropy Initiative (YPI) project. The YPI project allows youth in Canada to advocate for local charities and learn about issues in their community. The winning teams from each participating school wins a $5,000 grant for their charity choice. 

At Greenwood, working in small groups in their Adviser sessions, the teams search for a local charity to research and interview. The groups create a presentation on why their chosen charity should receive the YPI grant. The project aims to spark an interest in students and inspire them to engage with community outreach either with these organizations or elsewhere. 

Finalists chosen from the Adviser sessions presented to a panel of judges on May 6. The teams spoke about charities whose work ranged from accessibility in sports to mental health to childhood rehabilitation services. 

This year’s winning team, Maya Kassam ‘28, William Stewart ‘28 and Blake Wolburgh ‘28, spoke about the Matthew House Toronto, a charity specializing in building resilient communities for refugees. 

On May 23, the team presented the $5,000 YPI grant to the Matthew House Toronto’s executive director, Jacky Tuinstra. The students were gifted T-shirts designed by one of the refugees who used the Matthew House Toronto’s services. The team also expressed interest in visiting one of the Matthew House locations to see their work in action.

Congratulations once again to the winners for helping the Matthew House Toronto secure the YPI grant and great work from all of the finalist presenters!