Learn more about us!

Here you will find our latest Annual Report, our compelling Case for Support, our Fundraising Ethics and more.

DOWNLOAD OUR 2018 ANNUAL REPORT (1mb PDF)

DOWNLOAD OUR 2016 ANNUAL REPORT (1mb PDF)

CAPITAL CAMPAIGN – $8 Million

HOW YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

The first facility of its kind in Canada and a global model for how communities can best address this complex, mysterious and often misunderstood condition, the Pacific Autism Family Network (PAFN) has developed and will operate the GoodLife Fitness Autism Family Hub (the “Hub”) will be a multi-purpose free-standing facility that offers state-of- the-art assessment, therapy, education, and support services and programs for children, youth and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and neutral disorders, and their families throughout British Columbia and Canada. Now, for the first time ever, families in BC will have a “go-to” support system housed in a purpose-built, family-friendly facility designed to meet the specific needs of individuals with ASD and their caregivers. This state-of-the-art facility is a magnificent, technologically sophisticated Hub providing a shared home for a wide variety of existing organizations and agencies serving the Autism community, as well as acting as a springboard for the development of new programming designed to fill gaps in the current service infrastructure.

The Hub, has the atmosphere of a home away from home and includes highly specialized clinics, treatment centres, lab classrooms, spaces for specialty Autism organizations and non-profit organizations, lecture theatres, videoconferencing facilities, and a library and information commons. Acting as a focal point for BC’s Autism community, the Hub provides unprecedented opportunities to make the best possible use of available resources by facilitating information sharing and dissemination and by achieving enhanced synergies and coordination within a community that has been fractured and fragmented.

Although physically located in the Lower Mainland, the Hub will serve communities in the province, through outreach, workshops, online resources, and videoconferencing. In time, the Hub will serve as a coordinating node serving spoke locations throughout the province and Canada. Visionary investors to the Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation (PAFCF) will be among the most forward-thinking philanthropists of our time, helping to establish a brand new kind of facility that will be preeminent in Canada, and unique in the world. Namings associated with the overall facility, its clinics and satellites stand to become cherished, highly visible philanthropic brands that will serve as a permanent reminder to British Columbians that their province was the first to face a medical challenge with the potential to stagger communities worldwide in the coming decades. A wide range of naming partnerships are available.

CATALYST ENDOWMENT – $5 Million

The heart of the establishment of the PAFCF Catalyst Endowment Fund is to ensure the Hub is positioned for long-term sustainability and that it is poised to move quickly to fill current service gaps. These named endowments, established in perpetuity, will enable donors to become partners and co-creators, helping to build the Hub across a range of dimensions. Catalyst endowments will provide seed funding to launch new initiatives, providing the means to launch or design new program concepts. In many cases, the endowments will play a critical role in inspiring matching funds or launching innovative partnerships within many vitally needed areas of focus.

pdf- Read the complete report: “The Campaign for the Pacific Autism Family Centre”

Key Messages

1. Autism Spectrum Disorder is a growing condition that is impacting our society in profound ways

  • 1 in 88 children affected, with symptoms typically appearing in the first 3 years of life
  • Boys affected 5 times more than girls; 1 in 54 boys has an ASD
  • Affects a person’s social relationships, communication, interests, and behaviour which significantly impedes their ability to learn, work and lead a fulfilling life
  • Presents in a wide range of severities making it harder to diagnose and treat – some may attain PhDs while others may need 24 hour care
  • A complex condition spanning medicine, education, social justice, homelessness, corrections, community
  • A ticking time bomb: Key Messages 1. Autism Spectrum Disorder is a growing condition that is impacting our society in profound ways
  • 1 in 88 children affected, with symptoms typically appearing in the first 3 years of life
  • Boys affected 5 times more than girls; 1 in 54 boys has an ASD
  • Affects a person’s social relationships, communication, interests, and behaviour which significantly impedes their ability to learn, work and lead a fulfilling life
  • Presents in a wide range of severities making it harder to diagnose and treat – some may attain PhDs while others may need 24 hour care
  • A complex condition spanning medicine, education, social justice, homelessness, corrections, community
  • A ticking time bomb: numbers expected to rise steadily
  • Devastating to families both financially and in human terms: Early intervention costs up to $60,000 a year per family, with only a small portion covered by the province; can cost $3 million over a lifetime per person
  • No fulsome approach to the dissemination of knowledge and resources to families about best practises, new research, treatments and support; families essentially left to their own devices
  • A tragedy because today there are effective treatments available

2. An issue whose time has come

  • Great strides have been made in many aspects of this complex condition
  • Many pieces of the puzzle are in place; now we have to put them together
  • It takes a village – we have to help families, but we have to educate whole communities
  • A special kind of interdisciplinary organization is needed to leverage this knowledge and develop the new applied tools and solutions
  • Leverage is needed to bring new innovations into the actual lives of individuals and their families
  • Knowledge translation and dissemination – get the information to communities in a timely and accessible fashion; develop a holistic set of approaches that are evidence based and proven effective
  • Protect desperate families from misinformation
  • No one group can do this alone – communities, schools, healthcare systems, and governments must work together

3. British Columbia is poised for leadership

  • BC is emerging as a global hub, attracting some of the top researchers and practitioners in the field
  • Unique ‘convener’ environment means BC has already built a strong community network; poised for action
  • Visionary founders have brought the community together to tackle this problem
  • We can build human potential and safeguard our future competitiveness and prosperity
  • Autism is emerging as one of the most pressing issues of our times
  • Once-in-history chance for British Columbia to be first and best and position itself as a global leader
  • Government has made a visionary $20 million contribution;
  • Opportunities to think differently about treatment, education, prevention, health, wellness, person- and family-centered care
  • Enormous potential to impact many parts of modern life

4. A Vision for a Centre unlike any other in Canada, if not the world

  • The next set of solutions will be at the convergence of a wide variety of disciplines and include families, communities and a wide range of thinkers
  • A physical structure in partnership with government, healthcare, education, and the community
  • The whole will be greater than the sum of the parts – capitalizing on the experience of families and positioned to link research, teaching, direct care
  • A hub of innovation. At last, a place to go for families seeking reliable, unbiased information and help, no matter where they live in BC
  • Truly interdisciplinary – strong technology platforms, informationsharing, outreach, research: a locus of unprecedented collaboration
  • Providing the platform for creating actual models and clinical approaches and continuously evolving/improving them in real time

5. Leveraging what we already know; maximizing the potential of many efforts

  • Building on the outstanding work of many other centers and universities
  • Knowledge translation – creating applied models from the fruits of basic and clinical research
  • Creating an environment in BC of unprecedented collaboration and collegiality
  • The networks, the brain power, the experience, and the critical mass to tackle important parts of this puzzle in a way nobody else can
  • Build a new generation of researchers, specialists, attract the best and brightest here
  • If not now, when? If not us, who?

6. Investor impact: Shifting the paradigm and building a new future

  • Today’s PAFC donor will be at the frontier of 21st century healthcare, education, social justice, and social innovation
  • Canadian and global impact
  • A lifeline impacting every aspect of society and community
  • Advances in genetics, neuroscience, earlier diagnosis, brain plasticity, intervention – all the puzzle pieces are there; we just have to put them together
  • Opportunity to have an immediate impact today and for generations
  • The world will be different because of what you do

PAFCF Fundraising Ethics

A. Financial Disclosure

Policies and Practices

The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation observes the following practices when responding to requests from donors and prospective donors for financial information:

  1. we act promptly to provide the information requested in its most current form
  2. we provide information that will reasonably add to the public’s understanding and confidence in our operations and methods and costs of fundraising
  3. our financial statements and annual reports are accessible, user-friendly, complete, understandable and truthful
  4. our financial statements are prepared in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”) in all material respects and with all other guidelines adopted by the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (“CICA”) that apply specifically to our type of charitable organization
  5. if we release a financial summary or extract, it is clearly related to and consistent with the information provided in our full financial statement including Notes

B. Restricted and Designated Donations

Policies and Practices

The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation adheres to the following fundraising practices as they relate to restricted or designated donations:

  1. we recognize that donors who restrict their donations or designate them for a specific use have a right to expect that their donation will be applied according to their specific directions
  2. we honor all statements we make regarding the use of a contribution
  3. we have a procedure or policy in place to deal with donations that cannot be applied to a specific project; and, surplus funds raised over and above the requirements of a given campaign
  4. our accounting system tracks funds that are restricted or designated for a specific use
  5. we review documentation to ensure that we adhere to donor intentions in the administration of gift funds

C. Fundraising Costs

The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation observes the following practices when incurring administrative and fundraising costs:

  1. our Governing Board is responsible for overseeing the way in which fundraising costs are incurred and reported
  2. our Governing Board approves and monitors The PAFC Foundation’s fundraising activities and the disclosure of fundraising expenses
  3. our administrative and fundraising costs are kept to the minimum necessary to meet our objects, as registered with the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency
  4. the allocation of expenditures to administration, fundraising and program services reflect The PAFC Foundation’s mission and actual activities and conform to GAAP and all other appropriate guidelines adopted by CICA that are applicable to our type of charitable organization

D. Collection, Maintenance, Use and Confidentiality of Donor Records

Policies and Practices

The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation observes the following practices when collecting donor information, maintaining and using confidential donor records, and protecting donor anonymity:

  1. we guard against making unwarranted or intrusive inquiries into a donor or prospect’s gift history or personal life and gather only information that is relevant and necessary to our fundraising efforts
  2. we make all reasonable efforts to ensure the personal information we collect is complete and accurate we require attribution for all data that we collect
  3. we encourage donors to review, correct and update personal information
  4. we require a donor’s consent before confidential information is released to outside parties
  5. we have established and follow reasonable time periods for the retention and disposal of donor information
  6. we have established special security safeguards to protect donor information and limit access to donor files
  7. we give special protection to all records pertaining to anonymous donors
  8. we recognize that our duty to ensure the confidentiality of donor records continues even after our relationship with a donor or prospect has ended
  9. we obtain a donor’s oral consent regarding the proposed use of their personal information when information is collected by phone
  10. we provide donors with an opportunity to remain anonymous and to request that the donor’s name and/or the amount of the gift not be publicly released

E. Donor Complaints

The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation has designated responsibility for responding to complaints, in accordance with the Code, to staff member(s) or volunteer(s), and upon request, the designated individual or individuals will be identified to donors or prospective donors.

F. Governance

Policies and Practices

Our Governing Board reviews our fundraising practices and policies on a regular basis and tests them for continuing relevance, legislative compliance and applicability. Adjustments are made, as required, to ensure that the maximum amount possible is applied to our charitable activities in a manner that is consistent with the long-term interests of The PAFC Foundation and its beneficiaries.

G. Supervision of Fundraisers

Policies and Practices

The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation observes the following practices when monitoring and supervising the activities of volunteers, employees or paid solicitors (collectively referred to as “fundraisers”) who solicit or receive funds on our behalf:

  1. we take reasonable steps to ensure that every person participating in our fundraising program is aware of and complies with the Code
  2. we inform our fundraisers about the provisions of all municipal, provincial and federal laws applicable to our fundraising practices and ensure that our fundraising activities are carried out in accordance with the law
  3. we complete all reports that must be filed as part of applicable regulatory regimes properly and in a timely fashion
  4. we encourage our fundraisers to adhere to the applicable professional codes of conduct, such as the Canadian Association of Gift Planners’ Standards of Professional & Ethical Practice, the Association of Fundraising Professionals’ Code of Ethical Principles and Standards of Ethical Practice, the Association of Healthcare Philanthropy’s Statement of Professional Standards and Conduct.
  5. we recognize that donors and potential donors have a right to be informed of the exact nature of the employment or contractual relationship we have with our fundraisers and respond promptly and honestly to all inquiries in this regard

I. Conflicts of Interest

Policies and Practices

We address actual or perceived conflicts of interest in the following manner:

  1. we define a conflict of interest for our fundraisers and advise all fundraisers that they must act in the best interests of The PAFC Foundation rather than in furtherance of their personal interests or the interests of third parties
  2. we instruct all fundraisers to avoid situations where their personal interest conflicts or appears to conflict with their duties within The PAFC Foundation
  3. we instruct all fundraisers to evaluate their conduct in light of the impact on our organization
  4. we require our fundraisers to disclose both actual and apparent conflicts of interest
  5. our conflict-of-interest disclosure procedures are clearly articulated and we believe well understood by all staff
  6. our fundraisers recognize that the duty to disclose even an “apparent” conflict of interest, requires a consideration of public perception when evaluating whether a conflict of interest is present
  7. we are mindful of our fiduciary duty to ensure the disclosure of any conflict of interest that would be of material interest or relevance to a donor or which may influence a donor’s decision to give
  8. where a donor elects to make a gift in spite of the presence of a conflict of interest, we encourage that the donor obtain independent legal advice regarding his or her gift

J. Fundraiser Compensation

Policies and Practices

The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation observes the following performance-based compensation practices:

  1. fundraisers are compensated on the basis of their experience, expertise and the time requirements of the position
  2. where a fundraiser’s performance exceeds job expectations and additional compensation is merited:

eligibility for and calculation of the amount of compensation to be paid is not based on a percentage of income (e.g., in the form of donations, gifts, grants and similar funds) received by The PAFC Foundation as a result of the fundraiser’s efforts and we have a performance-based compensation policy in place that applies to all our staff whose efforts surpass expectations and performance goals for all staff are pre-established and mutually agreed-upon and our governing board has approved our performance-based compensation policy

  1. we undertake the institutional planning, board development and volunteer recruitment necessary to make our fundraising program successful over time

Endowment Policies

The investment objective of the The Pacific Autism Centre Foundation is to enhance the value of the endowment portfolio and at the same time provide a dependable, increasing source of income, which will be used to support the operating budget of The PAFC Foundation.

The portfolio shall include both equities and fixed-income investments. The equities are designed to provide current income, growth of income, and appreciation of principal.

The fixed-income investments are intended to provide a predictable and reliable source of interest income while reducing the volatility of the portfolio. Investments will be diversified in order to enhance return and reduce risk.

Financial Objective

Total return shall be the method for measuring the performance of the endowment. This refers to the combination of income (interest, dividends, and net rents) and appreciation/depreciation in the fund’s value for a certain period of time. The specific financial objective is for total return less expenses and distributions of income to equal or exceed the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for that period. Real growth is a measure of the extent to which total return, less expenses and distributions, exceeds the CPI. It is recognized that this objective will not be attained every year because of market fluctuations, but it is expected to be attained over a period of time.

Spending Policy

Income (interest, dividends and net rents) from the endowment shall be distributed to The Pacific Autism Family Centre Foundation not less often than annually, and such income shall be used for the charitable purposes designated by the donors or, if undesignated, at the discretion of The PAFC Foundation.

All capital gains, realized and unrealized, shall be allocated to the principal of the endowment, and there shall be no encroachment on this principal except as may be necessary to satisfy the disbursement quota from a capital account.
(Note: The PAFC Foundation may prefer to invest some of its funds in a reserve fund where it may expend capital as needed. It can do this with any funds not subject to the ten-year rule under Section 149.1(1)(e)(i) of the Income Tax Act, or even with those funds after the expiration of the ten-year period. The policies here presented presuppose that The PAFC Foundation is establishing a pure endowment with the intention of spending income only.)

Asset Structure

To facilitate investment and accounting the endowment shall function as a mutual fund. Each individually-named endowed fund shall hold units as part of an investment pool. The initial value of a unit shall be $10.00, and thereafter it will fluctuate with the changing market value of the investments held in the pool. The number of units assigned to each fund shall change only when additions are made, usually by gifts. On the last day of each quarter, the unit value will be determined by dividing the total market value of the endowment pool by the number of units in the pool. On occasion, income may be capitalized and transferred to the principal of a fund.

When contributions for the endowment are received they shall be temporarily retained by The PAFC Foundation in a holding account and added to the endowment on the first day of the following quarter. The number of units assigned shall be determined by dividing the amount of the addition by the unit value as of the end of the immediately preceding quarter.
The funds within the endowment shall consist of all named funds and the general endowment.

Investment Management

The endowment shall be managed by the finance and investment committee of the Board (or other committee to which this responsibility is delegated), whose responsibilities in the area of investment administration are as follows:
To recommend to the Board policies for the management of the endowment.
To make recommendations to the Board on the selection of portfolio managers.
To determine how assets are to be allocated.
To monitor the management of the endowment portfolio in order to enhance return and control risk, and to keep the Board fully informed.

Asset Allocation

The monitoring and adjustment of the mix of assets among the investment classes is a major factor in achieving investment return. The finance and investment committee shall carefully review the mix of assets in the endowment and periodically make, or instruct the portfolio managers to make, transfers within prescribed asset class limitations. Ordinarily 40 to 60 percent of the portfolio shall be invested in equities and the balance in fixed-income investments and cash equivalents.

Portfolio Managers

The Board, upon recommendation of the finance and investment committee, may appoint one or more portfolio managers and may allocate endowment assets among them in whatever proportions it deems appropriate. One or more managers shall be given responsibility for equity investments, and one or more for fixed-income investments, or any manager may be given responsibility for both.

Minimums for Designated Endowments

Any amount may be contributed for the general endowment or for any previously-established named endowment.
The minimum required to establish a named endowment, the income from which can be used at the discretion of The PAFC Foundation, is currently $10,000.

A named endowment for a non-listed purpose may be established subject to the consent of the Board. The amount required for such an endowment will depend on the objectives to be accomplished, and will be negotiated between the donor and appropriate representatives of The PAFC Foundation.

Execution of Endowment Agreements

A named endowment can be established either by a lifetime gift or by bequest. When it is created by a lifetime gift the donor and officers of The PAFC Foundation will sign an endowment agreement that sets forth the terms of the endowment. When the donor executes a will containing language directing that a named endowment be established, no other documentation is required.

Contributions for existing named endowments or for the general endowment require only a transmittal letter or bequest language stating the donor’s intention.