Women Building Futures announces Family of Endowed Funds

Funds will support women in their journey to obtain careers in the trades.

Women Building Futures (WBF) is pleased to announce the establishment of the WBF Family of Endowed Funds, the first in the organization’s history. The new endowment fund will support WBF in its mission to create positive economic change for women wishing to explore, pursue and/or advance in trade careers.

Ms. Archer is establishing the JudyLynn Archer Fund with a generous donation of $100,000, marking the largest single personal donation received by the organization to date, and it will be used to help women enrolled in WBF programs with tuition expenses and obtaining affordable housing. The JudyLynn Archer Fund is the first in the WBF Family of Endowed Funds.

“I am establishing this fund in memory of my great-aunt Bertha McCarren who once said to me when I was feeling unsure about my future, ‘Oh stop crying. You can do anything you set your mind to’ (my great-aunt was a homesteader; she didn’t suffer fools gladly),” said JudyLynn. “Throughout the years at Women Building Futures, I witnessed miracles that women achieved when they set their minds to it. I learned that what my greataunt had said was, in fact, true. This endowment fund is my way of honouring her by paying it forward.”

Upon JudyLynn’s announcement of the WBF Family of Endowed Funds on May 11, North West Refining and Canadian Natural Resources Limited (longtime WBF partners) immediately stepped up to contribute matching donations of $100,000 each.

“This endowment, conceived by our founding President and CEO JudyLynn Archer, is simply incredible,” said Kathy Kimpton, President and CEO of WBF. “Even after her retirement, JudyLynn continues to demonstrate her unwavering commitment to Women Building Futures, to our mission and to the numerous women we serve. Donations of this magnitude don’t happen every day and, while the dollar value is significant, the impact this endowment will make in the lives of so many women and their families is truly immeasurable.”

The video of the announcement can be seen at https://youtu. be/c_40zt768ik