Sienna for Seniors Foundation

Since 1989, the Abbotsford Association for Healthy Aging has helped older adults stay connected, supported, and engaged in community life. With support from the Sienna for Seniors Foundation, the organization will continue its Seniors Social Cafés and Tech Savvy Seniors programs, offering welcoming weekly gatherings, cultural programming, activities, shared meals, and hands-on technology support. Together, these programs help reduce isolation, build confidence, strengthen digital skills, and create meaningful opportunities for seniors from diverse communities to connect and thrive.

The Active Adult Centre of Mississauga is supporting senior caregivers through its new Caregiver Resilience Sessions, a free program designed to reduce caregiver fatigue, isolation, and stress. With support from the Sienna for Seniors Foundation, caregivers will take part in workshops, peer support conversations, gentle movement, meditation, creative expression, and one-on-one counselling, while their care recipients enjoy supervised activities on-site. Together, the program helps caregivers build coping skills, strengthen their well-being, and continue providing compassionate support to the people who depend on them.

Calgary Seniors’ Resource Society is helping older adults remain safe, independent, and connected through its Social Connections for Seniors initiative. With support from the Sienna for Seniors Foundation, the organization will strengthen volunteer-powered programs that provide friendly visits, regular phone calls, shopping companionship, and caregiver respite. These meaningful connections help reduce isolation, support mental and emotional well-being, and remind seniors that they are valued, remembered, and not alone.

Camp Koinonia is creating space for seniors to experience the joy, friendship, and renewal of camp life through its Wise & Wonderful Week. The Foundation’s grant will help older adults aged 55 and up gather on the shores of Haines Lake for a week of fellowship, gentle outdoor activities, live music, reflection, shared meals, and meaningful conversation. Funding will also help remove financial barriers through bursaries, ensuring more seniors can enjoy a welcoming, accessible, and memorable camp experience.

Central Okanagan Food Bank’s Generation Connect initiative will engage seniors through regular wellness, nutrition, and social workshops designed to reduce isolation and improve food security. Participants will take part in hands-on activities such as cooking, education sessions, and group events, while also contributing as mentors and advisors who help shape the program. By combining practical supports with meaningful social engagement, this initiative will build confidence, strengthen connections, and promote independence among vulnerable seniors.

Chess Institute of Canada’s Chess for Life program will bring older adults together through instructor-led chess sessions at Toronto Public Library branches. Designed to support healthy aging and reduce isolation, the program combines guided instruction, peer play, team-based activities, and friendly tournaments that celebrate progress and connection. Through regular weekly gatherings, seniors will build confidence, form new friendships, and experience the joy of respectful competition in a welcoming community setting.

Concerts in Care brings the joy, dignity, and emotional power of live music directly to seniors in care settings. Through a coordinated network in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Ontario, this initiative will support professional concerts that foster connection, stimulate memory, lift spirits, and reduce isolation for seniors who may have limited access to the arts. Building on a national program that reaches tens of thousands of seniors and caregivers each year, this funding will help expand access to meaningful cultural experiences and create shared moments of beauty, belonging, and joy.

Through Foundation funding, the Disabled Independent Gardeners Association’s Seniors Digging Seniors program will help older adults continue enjoying the physical, mental, and social benefits of gardening. This initiative pairs senior volunteers with seniors facing mobility or health challenges, offering personalized support with planting, weeding, harvesting, and seasonal garden care. With adaptive tools, raised beds, skill-building workshops, and companionship, the program helps seniors maintain independence, reduce isolation, and enjoy the pride and nourishment of fresh, home-grown produce.

Good Grief! Bereavement Healing Services will offer You’re Not Alone, a six-week bereavement support group created specifically for seniors navigating grief and loss. Foundation funding will help provide an in-person daytime program that includes guided discussion, practical coping strategies, lunch, and opportunities for participants to share memories and build connection with others who understand their experience. By creating a safe, compassionate space at a time of year when fewer grief supports are available, the program will help seniors feel heard, supported, and less alone.

Indspire’s Building Brighter Futures: Bursaries, Scholarships, and Awards program provides First Nations, Inuit, and Métis students with financial support as they pursue post-secondary education, professional development, continuing education, traditional knowledge programs, and arts training. Through the Sienna for Seniors Foundation’s contribution, Indigenous students pursuing careers connected to care and community well-being will receive support that helps ease financial pressures, build confidence, and bring them closer to achieving their educational and career goals. Indspire’s program is designed to increase Indigenous graduation rates, expand workforce participation, and transform lives through education.

Through Foundation funding, Lake Country Art Gallery Society’s Creative Connections: Art, Joy & Belonging for Seniors will create welcoming opportunities for older adults to connect, express themselves, and take part in cultural life. The initiative includes professionally facilitated art sessions, gallery excursions, digital confidence activities, accessibility improvements, and a public showcase celebrating seniors’ artwork. By reducing barriers to participation and affirming seniors as valued creative contributors, the program will help foster joy, belonging, confidence, and social connection.

The Sienna for Seniors Foundation’s partnership with Ontario Tech University supports both future nurses and new research into healthy aging and happiness. Through the Sienna Senior Living Nursing Scholarship, the Foundation will provide entrance and in-course scholarships for students in the Faculty of Health Sciences Nursing program, helping reduce financial barriers for those preparing to care for older adults. The Foundation also supports the university’s Sienna Senior Living Research Centre for Healthy Aging and Happiness, advancing research focused on well-being, quality of life, and evidence-informed approaches to creating moments of happiness for seniors.

Our Place Society’s 55+ Club – Healthy Aging and Social Connection Series provides a welcoming community for homeless and low-income seniors in Greater Victoria who may be experiencing isolation, financial hardship, or limited access to healthy food. Renewed Foundation support will help the club continue twice-weekly gatherings that include nutritious meals, wellness workshops, guest speakers, crafts, games, birthday celebrations, and recreational outings. By combining practical supports with friendship, learning, and shared experiences, the program helps seniors feel connected, supported, and valued.

The Perley Health Foundation’s Therapeutic Recreation and Creative Arts Programming helps long-term care residents experience creativity, dignity, and connection through adaptive arts. The Sienna for Seniors Foundation’s support will help provide high-quality materials and accessible creative opportunities in Perley Health’s dedicated arts studios, where residents can take part in painting, pottery, drawing, mixed media, and bedside sessions tailored to individual abilities. By supporting self-expression, fine motor skills, emotional well-being, and social engagement, the program helps residents experience pride, independence, and joy in daily life.

The Saskatoon Council on Aging’s Building Joyful Connections for Older Adults initiative will expand proven social and wellness programs that help seniors build friendships, stay active, and feel more connected. Foundation support will help equip community organizations, seniors’ clubs, and faith groups with toolkits, training, and mentorship to deliver programs such as Senior Neighbourhood Hub Clubs, Senior Tech Buddy, Pen Pal, Globe Walk, and Speed Friending. By helping local groups bring these programs to life, the initiative will reduce isolation, strengthen digital confidence, encourage physical activity, and create more opportunities for older adults to experience belonging and joy.

The Senior Living CaRES Fund’s Compassionate Support for Champions of Senior Living program provides emergency financial assistance to team members working in long-term care homes and retirement communities who are facing unexpected personal crises. Through the Sienna for Seniors Foundation’s contribution, more people who care for seniors will be able to access timely support for urgent needs such as temporary housing, transportation, safety resources, or essential household expenses. By helping senior living team members recover with dignity, this program strengthens the workforce that seniors and their families rely on every day.

The Stittsville Friendship Club helps seniors stay active, social, and engaged through a wide range of recreational and community activities. Foundation funding will support programs such as shuffleboard, seniors’ exercise classes, bridge and euchre clubs, line dancing, monthly luncheons with local entertainment, and group trips to plays, musicals, and stage shows. By creating regular opportunities for fun, friendship, movement, and shared experiences, the club helps hundreds of seniors strengthen connection and belonging in their community.

The University of the Fraser Valley’s Trishaw Rides program helps older adults and people with mobility challenges enjoy free, accessible outdoor cycling experiences along Chilliwack’s Vedder Rotary Trail. Foundation funding will support safe, dignity-centred rides led by trained UFV student volunteers, creating opportunities for seniors to enjoy fresh air, share stories, and reconnect with cherished natural spaces. By combining access to nature, intergenerational connection, and inclusive design, the program helps reduce isolation, lift spirits, and strengthen well-being for seniors in the Fraser Valley.

White Rock South Surrey Men’s Shed helps retired, widowed, and divorced men stay active, connected, and engaged through meaningful hands-on projects that support the wider community. Foundation funding will help members purchase materials for woodworking and service projects, from birdhouse kits for youth programs to practical items for seniors’ residences, community organizations, and local shelters. By combining friendship, purpose, creativity, and community service, the program helps older men build connection while making a tangible difference for others.

Windmill Microlending helps skilled immigrants and refugees rebuild their careers in Canada by providing affordable loans and wraparound support for credential recognition, training, licensing, exams, and other career-related costs. The Sienna for Seniors Foundation’s multi-year commitment supports Windmill’s work to remove financial barriers for internationally trained professionals, including many with experience in healthcare and caregiving. By helping newcomers return to meaningful employment, this partnership strengthens families, communities, and the workforce that supports seniors across Canada.