A nearly $200,000 provincial grant has led to improvements at the Safety Village.
The organization received $190,700 through the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) to install a new roof.
The Safety Village team celebrated the completion of the project over the weekend.
This roof is the original roof that was installed when the Safety Village first opened in 2002.
The funding was awarded to the organization in June 2024 to replace the roof to ensure the building remains safe and sustainable.
Melissa Lauzon, Executive Director of The Safety Village, says it was the original roof still on the building.
"The roof was definitely aging, and needing to be replaced. Over the last few years we've had some issues with it, so this capital stream grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation came up, and we were really thrilled to be chosen as the recipient."
She says the grant covered all of the work.
"So we had Empire Roofing complete the work for us, and that was their cost, so essentially that grant covered exactly what the quote was for the roof."
Lauzon says this was critical funding for the organization.
"Fundraising is difficult in this climate, it is for every organization, so the fact that we can focus our fundraising dollars now on program delivery, this is very, very meaningful for us that the roof can be replaced. And really without a proper facility that is up to standard nothing really matters what is happening under that roof, so we're so grateful for this grant."
Construction finished throughout the summer months this year.
The Safety Village provides interactive and engaging safety education programs for children, families, and community members throughout Windsor-Essex.
Programs cover topics such as fire safety, bicycle safety, internet safety and first aid.