A love of outdoors parlayed into helping thousands of families facing barriers remain active earned a Greater Victoria man the provincial Medal of Good Citizenship.
The award recognizes outstanding citizens and reflects generosity, service, acts of selflessness and contributions to community life.
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Tim Cormode founded Power To Be in 1998. It started with the simple idea to help people living with a disability or barrier to access nature. Armed with a small government grant he created an organization that has now reached more than 11,000 youth and families.
“Cormode’s dedication to fostering collaboration is evident in how he leverages relationships and resources. He cultivated a culture at Power To Be that maximizes collaboration, leading to its position in the top 20 per cent of charities for fundraising and revenue,” according to a provincial release announcing the award.
He created the created the Power To Give Foundation six years ago recognizing the sometimes burdensome dynamics between social-impact organizations and philanthropy. The foundation’s mission is to kindle visionary possibilities in the social-impact sector, fostering collaboration between philanthropists, change-makers and communities to embark on bold endeavours collectively. The foundation has helped get $60 million to various charitable organizations.
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Cormode earned a B.C. Community Award in 2015 and an induction into the Canadian Disability Hall of Fame in 2020.
“Cormode’s leadership also played a crucial role during the COVID-19 pandemic, where he redirected resources to support food-security charities. Cormode contributes his time helping social entrepreneurs and philanthropists to be the best they can be. In the words of those who know him, Cormode isn’t just a CEO, he’s a generous team and community leader, always ready to extend his network and experiences to connect philanthropists with causes that truly matter,” the news release said.
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