London volunteers fund awesome ideas

Header image for Interrobang article CREDIT: AWESOME LONDON
Awesome London has given 18 grants in nearly two years. Cheri McLeod holds up the winner's plaque.

Got a great idea but no money to make it happen?

There is a group of people in London who are ready and willing to help. The group is called Awesome London.

Sue Clifford, dean of Awesome London, explained what the group is all about.

“We are a group of volunteers who, every month, give away $1,000 to someone who has an awesome idea.”

It’s not a business or a charity – they are people who “really just want to help others do things that are going to make London better.”

Eighteen people have each been given $1,000 grants since the group started. There are no strings attached but the hope is that winners would put the money towards their projects.

Kristin Haight, the most recent winner of the grant, is using the money to start a comic book club. Her goal is to overcome low literacy rates by bringing a fun way of learning to kids. The idea is to not only read and talk about comic books but also to get involved in the culture. The kids would learn about the history of comics and even create their own book.

One Western University grad used his grant to start an urban gardening project called Planting Seeds Co. Kyle Hutcheson worked all summer to get his project off the ground. He was able to help My Sister’s Place by setting up a garden and donating 500 pounds of food.

Clifford said that her favourite idea was one that wasn’t originally short-listed for the grant.

A few months ago, one of the finalists stepped down so Awesome London needed to pick a new person for the top three. The new finalist had an idea to create a real-life version of Katamari Damacy, a puzzle video game.

“And that person, who was not in the original top three, actually won that night,” said Clifford.

Anyone can enter an idea. Awesome London accepts applications from individuals, charities and businesses. No one is excluded from the chance to make London more awesome.

Entering is simple. Come up with an idea that you think is awesome, fill out the application form and submit it online. The deadline for idea submissions is the second Sunday of each month.

Three of the submissions are invited to pitch their ideas to Awesome London’s trustees at Pitch Night.

“They each get drilled, kind of like Dragon’s Den style but much nicer,” Clifford said. “It’s about the trustees making sure they really understand what the pitch is all about and what the person is all about.”

After all, the pitches have been shared with Awesome London and the room, the trustees speak in private and decide on a winner, who is announced that night. The upcoming Pitch Night is November 24, and it’s open to the public. It will be held at Poachers Arms and will start around 7 p.m.

The deadline for November’s idea submission was November 9. The foundation doesn’t award a grant in December, but it’s never too early to start cracking on ideas for January’s award.

Visit awesomelondon.ca for more information.