What are some of the things that make your community special? Maybe it's the nature walks in the park down the road or the sound of a ball hitting the wood bat at the Friday night youth baseball game. Maybe it's your neighbour, who drives cancer patients to their treatments each week, or the captivating performances hosted by local musicians.

Communities – and the things that make them special – are diverse indeed, but what unites all these things is the volunteers and non-profit organizations that make our neighbourhoods hum in the most amazing ways.

Sharing those stories and supporting those organizations is at the heart of community news – a responsibility and a privilege that the teams at Black Press Media's 80+ Western Canadian news publications take very seriously. After all, without non-profits and the work they do, our towns would look very different, indeed. 

Consider:

• Hospitals without the latest heart surgery tools – that would have been provided with funds raised by its non-profit foundation
• Food bank shelves bare â€“ without the team to collect donations to help families make ends meet 
• Stages empty – as lights dim on local ballet, symphony and community theatre companies
• Rinks and fields quiet – with no volunteer coaches, managers or board members to operate youth sports organizations
• No place for families to flee domestic violence 
• No resources for lost pets or wildlife needing rehabilitation

Fortunately, those relationships are intact, thanks to the tireless efforts of non-profit teams, donors and volunteers ... and because people learn about their stories, events and opportunities to participate or help out.

Some organizations reach every corner of the province, like the BC Cancer Foundation or the STARS air ambulance service in Alberta. Others are unique to a specific region, like the Victoria Foundation, the 115-year-old Abbotsford Agrifair or the REM Lee Foundation, working to build a new neonatal intensive care unit in Terrace.   

Through advertising support, sponsorships and award-winning story-telling by our 180+ journalists on the ground, your community news publication tells those stories – online and in print – and helps keep that community heartbeat pumping. 

And we wouldn't want it any other way! 

Looking to share the story of your non-profit organization or group? Reach out to the  in your community!