Our last Annual General Meeting was on November 10, 2020. In 2021 there was no AGM. This disruption was caused by the postponement of our 2020 AGM from March to November, when the board decided to temporarily suspend operations for a few months due to the pandemic. This AGM on February 1, 2022 will cover the two fiscal periods of 2020 and 2021.
During these last 24 months, the 8 person Board has been active, meeting regularly via zoom. I want to thank all board members for their tireless efforts as volunteers in support of CanUgan.
Jacqueline Tumusiime
Amanda Cox
Caroline Marshall
Rick Morello
Moses Yorke
Shauna Devlin
Tess Fremont Cote
Our partnership with the Kasese District Union of Persons with Disabilities (KADUPEDI) remains strong. In the spring of 2021, Bwambale Robert a key member of our intermediary team stepped back from a direct role on the team. Joshua Mugenyi a long standing member of KADUPEDI took his place. Nonetheless, Robert continues to provide support to Joshua in his new role. We continue to have a close working relationship with Baluku Peter, who is a very busy man as he is also Deputy Mayor in Kasese. Kahnya Joseph is also a member of the intermediary team. In this year of change, all documentation to support the transfer of funds on a quarterly basis for assistive devices remains thorough and comprehensive. Our last site visit to Kasese was in the early spring of 2020 by CanUgan treasurer Rick Morello. In December of 2021 CanUgan Vice President Jacqueline Tumusiime also made a short visit to see members of KADUPEDI in Kasese.
In June of 2020 in spite of the pandemic making fundraising a challenge, we raised $6,550 thanks to 55 donors. In 2021 we raised $10,243 thanks to 63 donors. This is our most successful online fundraising campaign to date. Special thanks are in order to CanUgan board members who reached out to their networks to support the campaign and the many donors who are now making regular annual contributions to CanUgan.
In 2020 we had our first on-line appeal in November / December and raised $4,935 thanks to 22 donors. In 2021, we raised $8,734 thanks to 41 donors. We are very encouraged by the growth in donations from 2020 to 2021. We attribute this to improving our website for easy access to information, launching a newsletter in 2021 to pitch the campaign to members and donors and syncing our campaign to “Giving Tuesday”, a campaign run by Canada Helps.
Early discussions have commenced with Jennifer O’Neil, a part time Professor in the School of Rehabilitation Services, Physiotherapy Program at the University Of Ottawa. She is taking a lead role in a project to provide physiotherapy students with the opportunity to “challenge their assumptions around inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility (IDEA)” in the provision of physiotherapy services. This involves a partnership with CanUgan, to develop a communications hub in Kasese connecting persons with disabilities there, with physiotherapy students in Ottawa. CanUgan would engage Bwambale Robert, a health professional and former member of the intermediary team on a short contract, to set up this communications hub. Funding for this initiative would come primarily from the University of Ottawa. The long term goal is not only to train physiotherapy students on understanding cultural context but to set up a larger research program that could directly benefit persons with disabilities in Kasese.
2020-2021
| No. | Particulars | Year 2020 | Year 2021 |
| 1 | Tricycles | 7 | 10 |
| 2 | Tricycles Gear System | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Wheelchairs | 3 | 4 |
| 4 | Crutches | 21 | 29 |
| 5 | White Canes | 15 | 19 |
| 6 | Raised Shoes | 8 | 8 |
| 7 | Surgical Boots | 6 | 9 |
| 8 | Calipers | 5 | 9 |
| Total | 65 | 88 |
More fixes have been added to our website to optimize functionality. We encourage members to visit the site for up to date information on CanUgan. Special thanks are in order to Rick Morello for leading this initiative on the Board. This has had a very positive impact on our fundraising campaigns. We also use social media to support our fundraising efforts. Special thanks to Caroline Marshall for coordinating this effort.
In 2021, two CanUgan e-newsletters, one in the fall and one in the spring, were sent to CanUgan members and donors. Special thanks to Board member Shauna Devlin for her work on putting the newsletters together.
In the fall of 2021, Caroline Marshall led the board through a strategic planning exercise. The results of these discussions at the board have been put together in a chart which will be presented at this AGM to get member feedback.
