Council for the Rural Municipality of Hanover has slashed its grant budget for 2025.
This year, Council will be awarding $31,750 in grants through their annual financial plan. This does not include ward discretionary grants. There are 12 recipients this year. The list includes:
- Hanover Ag Society - $10,500.00
- Mennonite Heritage Village - $5,000.00
- Menno Home Foundation - $5,000.00
- STARS - $3,000.00
- Headway - $2,500.00
- Chortitz Church Heritage Association - $1,000.00
- Friedensfeld Community Centre - $1,000.00
- Safe Families - Steinbach - $1,000.00
- Randolph Community Centre - $1,000.00
- Ukranian Peoples Home - Pansy - $750.00
- Ukranian Peoples Home - Sarto - $750.00
- Pansy Recreation Association - $250.00
The $31,750 in grants this year is down from $92,250 in 2024. The biggest reason for that is Hanover is not providing a grant to Bethesda Foundation this year. Last year their grant was for $62,500. The grant to Bethesda Foundation was an arrangement made by Hanover Council years ago and 2024 was the last year of that agreement. Hanover Reeve Jim Funk says it was a 10-year agreement and a substantial amount of money.
Funk says it is a difficult decision to come up with their list of grant recipients each year, noting they receive more requests than they can honour.
"The needs are there, and each one probably is there for probable reasons," he says. "And yet, you have to draw the line somewhere."
Further to that, he says Council needs to be smart with its spending.
"Council is somewhat being mindful as to where we spend our money," he explains. "And we would like to keep our monies within our communities and within our municipality."