Our background:

 The Reston & Area Foundation was first organized in 2002 but was not awarded a “charitable” status until late in 2004.  During the intervening time the new Board focused on organizing and setting policy and guidelines.  Also, during this time, financial support was received from Dave Braddell and  from the RM of Pipestone  –  these start-up funds were critical in establishing the Foundation.  Of course, there would be no awards to be made or grants to be given until we began to receive donations to create a fund.

From 2004 to 2006, generous donations exceeding a total of $10,000 were received from various members of the Braddell family.  Another gift over $11,000 was received from a resident of the area who wishes to remain anonymous.  Also, in this period, we discovered we were to receive the ‘residue’ of the estate of John Pearson. The first installment was over $270,000!  This was the key to start the process of gathering interest so that awards and grants could be considered.

By 2007 we had established a Scholarship/Bursary fund and were in position to receive applications for assistance with community projects.  Most importantly, the Foundation was beginning to be recognized and more contributions began to come from a variety of donors.