When the Flooding Hit, We were there thanks to you.

When the December 2025 floods hit, we jumped into action along with our partners – the Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce and the University of the Fraser Valley. Together, we put out the call for the Abbotsford Disaster Relief Fund and worked with community to help raise funds for disaster recovery needs. Thanks to our generous community, we raised just over $113,000 with our request.

As we launched our request, we were also working with front line charitable partners who had supported flood impacted community members following the 2021 floods – organizations like Archway, Gateway Church, Khalsa Diwan, SARA for Women – along with Sumas First Nation and the City of Abbotsford. We wanted to ensure that we were meeting the immediate needs of community and putting money entrusted to us where it was most needed as quickly as we possibly could. Since things were so close to the holidays, we understood that money may need to be spent before it could be requested. As we outlined what we would cover – essential needs that our partners told us would be critical – we promised to be there when they were able to request the money. Retroactive granting is not something we often do but in this case, it was absolutely necessary so our partners could help those who needed help, as they needed it.

We also monitored and responded to emails during our Christmas week closure so that any inquiries from flood impacted community members were answered quickly and directed to the appropriate resources. Yes, we were collecting donations but because people saw us on social media and didn’t know where to turn to for help, they turned to us. We had a number of inquiries from flood impacted community members looking for support and were able to connect them directly with front line partners since we knew what our charitable partners were offering. We knew those inquiries needed to be handled in a way that was compassionate and prompt. People were already traumatized and dealing with so many challenges. Our partners responded within a couple of hours of requests we made and to the people we directed them to. Arnold Church held a community event to share the resources available to neighbours. We learned a lot from 2021 and mobilized quickly and efficiently. If people asked for help, we were there as a community.

It was in January that our frontline partners were able to actually take a breath and reach out for grants from ADRF. They had spent money from operations, from contingencies, from wherever they could, to meet the need but now they needed to cover those costs spent on disaster relief. To date, we have granted just over $119,000 for recovery efforts.

Our first grant was to Gateway Community Church for $36,000 to meet immediate needs of flood impacted community members as they had done following the 2021 floods. They provided food, baby needs, essential items for those who reached out to them and to those they reached out to, on the Sumas Prairie. They were working with Arnold Church to make sure they were supporting families and individuals that needed immediate support; who had been evacuated; who were struggling with another traumatizing flood event.

One of the things we weren’t able to do in 2021 but we were able to do this year was support Sumas First Nation, whose lands sit at the epicentre of the Sumas Prairie flooding. This past December, over 15 housing units were washed away or damaged significantly from the landslides resulting from the flooding. They needed to re-house over 15 families quickly, providing emergency shelter, food, and other essential needs. And they would need to replace appliances and basic furniture to make those homes habitable again. We provided a grant of $63,350 to support their disaster recovery efforts.

Another group that was missed after the 2021 floods was the South Asian community’s efforts to support flood impacted victims. We learned how they had fundraised on their own between the 3 local Gurdwaras and the Hindu temple to ensure that people were provided emergency shelter, foods, and other essentials in 2021 but never received a grant from ADRF. This year, we were able to supplement their fundraising for disaster relief with the following grants:

Gurdwara Baba Banda Singh Bahadar Sikh Society – $5,000
Kalgidhar Darbar Sahib Society – $5,000
Khalsa Diwan Society – $5,000
Fraser Valley Hindu Cultural Society – $5,000

Donations & requests have since quieted as the Government of BC announced financial support for flood impacted communities of which Abbotsford was one. For now, our charitable partners are telling us that individuals and businesses are seeking support from the province for now (due date for applications was April 13). Once flood impacted community members know if they qualify the the province’s disaster relief, they wait. As do we.

We have just over $340,000 sitting in the ADRF and we continue to keep in touch with our frontline agencies. We know the next phase will be in the re-building and we will continue to work with our community partners to help those impacted by floods, rebuild and recover when they need us. Thank you to our community that always steps up with generosity and kindness. You have touched so many lives.