Happy New Year and hope 2017 is a great year for you.

We are sharing this inspirational message that was sent out before Christmas from the President at Halton Particular Council, Judith Nunn. Should you wish more information about this RESP program, please contact Linda Alexander, Seeds of Hope Project Coordinator at seedsofhope@ssvp.ca.

We have just heard that Mary Mother of God Oakville has helped its 100th child to gain access to education savings through an RESP!!

A special note of congratulations and thanks to the dedicated team that has made this happen.

A particular recognition must go to Linda Alexander, who in 2012 responded to a newspaper article where she noted that very few low income families were accessing the funds available for their children's future through RESP's especially the Canada Learning Bond. Since then she has worked relentlessly bringing about awareness through the Halton Particular Council conferences, then beyond to Ontario and recently Nationally. In her own conference, Linda kept educating the members about the funds, and put into effect a strategy to ensure that one by one, the moms were made aware and helped to open the RESP's for the money to start flowing in.

Despite some challenges over the years to expanding the awareness and participation beyond her conference, Linda has never stopped sharing and building the awareness and trying to encourage champions in each and all of the SSVP conferences. Her focus never has wavered and never will until each child has this hope for their future.

Linda's most accomplished CLB Champion is Theresa Yeh of Mary Mother of God conference. With Theresa's dedication and quiet determination in the past two years, the moms have been gently guided and encouraged to open up the RESP's. Theresa has been amazing and so focused, with her persistent gentleness beautifully engaging the moms into this opportunity of hope.

Linda and Theresa, will both be the first to say, it is the moms that take the steps for their children and this is certainly the case. We celebrate the moms creating hope for their children, they are the ones who achieve the accomplishment.

Linda and Theresa, have opened up the avenue for them to achieve this and 100 RESP's in one conference is a fantastic milestone.

Great work CLB team! Wishing you great success in bringing about more awareness and access in 2017.

~ Linda Dollard
ONRC President