The Phil McNamee Charitable Foundation

To invest in environmental initiatives that promote, restore and sustain the love and care of nature and healthy living. To provide scholarships to exceptional students enabling them to pursue post-secondary education to realize their full potential. Enabling students the opportunity to pursue post secondary education; and helping people to live healthy and productive lives through barrier free access to nature.

We Enable. We Invest.
We Care.

WE ENABLE

It starts with a graduating high school student, who has overcome obstacles and yet maintained good grades, and wants to pursue post-secondary education to enable them to meet their full potential.
WE INVEST

It starts with investing in the preservation of land for the many benefits of being surrounded by the songs of birds, the croaking of the frogs, the fluttering wings of the butterflies, the whimsy of the wildflowers and the rustling sound of leaves in the towering trees.
WE CARE

It’s pure and simple. The joy and energy that is brought forth by being in nature and caring for the few remaining Carolinian woods and observing our students, who meet and exceed their goals and dreams for a brighter future.

“I’m the first in my extended family to earn a high school diploma and now a University Degree, I feel an immense sense of accomplishment.”

— John T.

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Our Values

WE ARE COMMITTED TO THE FOLLOWING:

Good governance — Sustainability — Preservation and Integrity of the land

Enriching the lives of students, and all people near and far

Strategic Priorities

EDUCATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS:

Through fiscally responsible financial planning, investing and stewardship, the Phil McNamee Charitable Foundation will ensure ongoing Scholarships and support for exceptional high school students, who have overcome obstacles, to pursue post-secondary education.

ENVIRONMENTAL INITIATIVES:

Preserving and caring for the unique composition of the remaining Carolinian forests that once comprised most of the natural environment of southwestern Ontario, the Phil McNamee Charitable Foundation will ensure that people have access to the benefits of nature through Solitude Nature Reserve and Serenity Nature Reserve.

COMMITMENT and INVESTMENT:

The Phil McNamee Charitable Foundation is committed to the preservation of the land through restoration and sustainable activities and support of barrier-free access to nature; and to engage with our students to ensure their success in reaching their full potential.

PEOPLE and PARTNERSHIPS:

The Phil McNamee Charitable Foundation values and cares for our students, volunteers and donors by establishing and stewarding good working relationships.

Our Impact

Our focus is in two distinct areas: Education and the Environment.

We work with the Thames Valley Education Foundation to provide exceptional graduating high school students, who have overcome obstacles, to provide scholarships for them to pursue post-secondary education. Currently there are more than a 15 students working through their post-secondary education. In total, since 2011, we have granted 60 Scholarships.

On the other front, we support and manage Solitude Nature Reserve and Serenity Nature Reserve that are barrier-free for people to enjoy all the benefits of being in nature. Outdoor natural settings play a crucial role in combating the growing trend of sedentary lifestyles, particularly among our young people. There is a greater need for less structure, less technology, and more free green space to explore and learn in nature. We promote the Vitamin-N factor to help decrease the mental and physical ailments that our society is experiencing today as natural settings are all-inclusive links to healthy development.

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Our Origin Story

It all began one Friday morning in 2010, we were listening to the local news on the radio. We heard a very heartwarming, inspirational story that launched us into our Scholarship program. It was the story of a graduating high school student who had overcome obstacles during his high school years. This student was the recipient of the Ernie McTavish Award that is given every year to a graduating high school student who has maintained good grades to pursue a post-secondary education, all the while living in a motel and parenting his father.

That story inspired us to create the Phil McNamee Charitable Foundation (PMC-Foundation) to provide scholarships to exceptional students, who have overcome an obstacle(s), and want to pursue a post-secondary education. Thus began a relationship with the Thames Valley District School Education Foundation to grant exceptional students scholarships to help them to reach their potential.

During those early formative years of the Foundation, we also observed that many people lacked Nature in their lives. And going to provincial and national parks was getting very expensive. Reading the book, “Last Child in the Woods” by Richard Louv, we learned about Nature Deficit Disorder, a concept that resonated with what we had observed ourselves in society: that many people faced restrictions accessing natural environments, by either accessibility, affordability, health issues, and other reasons. With that in mind, we sought to purchase a property to develop a Nature Reserve that was close to home. The first property we purchased was a 35-acre woodlot located on the Dexter Line, in the Municipality of Central Elgin, near the shores of Lake Erie. It became Solitude Nature Reserve, with accessible trails, day use area, celebration tree garden, picnic tables, composting toilets, six wilderness campsites and free parking. Free to the public and open year round.

The success of Solitude Nature Reserve inspired the Directors of the Foundation to purchase another 40-acre woodlot in the Municipality of South Huron, near the shores of Lake Huron. Named Serenity Nature Reserve, it also includes accessible trails and a day use area allowing people to come and enjoy nature. It is also free-of-charge, and open year round.

Our Foundation remains steadfast in its resolve to invest in education and keep our natural environments accessible and open for all the people in our communities.

— Phil and Mary