The story of Kiefer Voigt, a local Surrey man, illuminates the power of social resources and human resilience in creating success.
In his 30s, Voigt decided to return to school and enrolled in an electrical training program. However, it is no secret that education can be extremely expensive, especially alongside Canada’s high cost of living.
Voight was struggling to keep up. He was behind on rent and could barely pay his phone bill.
At this point, he summoned the courage to seek help and contacted the Urban Spirit Foundation.
The Urban Spirit Foundation is a charity based out of the Vancouver area. It provides financial support and resources to urban Indigenous people to help them achieve stability and success.
USF was created by the founders of ACCESS, a non-profit developed by six Indigenous community organizations in 1999. Human Resources Development Canada funded ACCESS to help it provide education and employment training to local Indigenous communities.
Right away, USF provided Voigt with assistance that allowed him to complete his final few courses at school. The timing was critical, as he was in the most serious and final stages of his training.
Voigt told the Surrey Citizen that “They assisted me from borderline poverty to a thriving career. It’s safe to say they helped me jumpstart my life in a trying time and I cannot thank these organizations enough.”
At his graduation ceremony, Voigt was named the program’s top student and received a grant!
Soon after, he was hired by Houle Electric. He is a fourth-year apprentice working on significant projects, such as the Douglas College expansion.
His personal tenacity combined with the vital financial assistance from USF was a recipe for success and positive outcomes. Poverty does not have to be permanent.
USF is working to grow its philanthropic cause. It wants to provide more:
- Education and employment training opportunities
- Secondary and post-secondary scholarships and bursaries
- Community-based programs and projects to prevent poverty
On July 16, USF is hosting its annual golf tournament. Anyone in BC can participate.
They are putting a fun twist on their raffle ticket draws. A drone will drop golf balls labelled with raffle ticket numbers onto the green. The balls that land nearest to the hole are the winners!
For ways to support Urban Spirit Foundation, click here.
Click here for more news articles like this!
