I immigrated to Canada as a preteen. I remember the start of my journey here: my earliest memories of Canada are snow, the holiday season, and some of the more unique things this country has put in place to care for one another as a society. Things like the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP), and a high-functioning public education system were foreign to me. My mother took English as a Second Language from an immigrant services organization that was supported by the local community foundation. The idea of a community foundation was also foreign to me.

The coronavirus pandemic has pushed many organizations across the country into crisis management mode. Our first instincts are to defend and preserve — and later understand and change. But we may not be able to return to our familiar pre-pandemic normality. The crisis has revealed gaps in our es