Just BeCause

Community

Local personalities share their stories and talk about their causes on The Winnipeg Foundation’s official podcast!

The Winnipeg Foundation’s BeCause & Effect podcast talks with people about the Causes they care deepest about, and the effect those Causes have on their lives. Hosted by The Foundation’s Nolan Bicknell, the podcast recently finished its third season with some incredible guests who all shared inspirational thoughts and stories.

New episodes come out on Tuesdays, and all previous episodes are available online at becauseandeffect.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts, including iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and more!

Learn more: becauseandeffect.org

Here is a selection of guests featured on the most recent season of the podcast, and the Causes they care most about.


Jon Montgomery

Host of Amazing Race Canada and Olympic gold medalist Jon Montgomery continues to support a number of Causes in his post-Olympic life. Lending his name to organizations like Ducks Unlimited, KidSport, and Right to Play, Jon cares about maintaining our beautiful environmental landscapes, as well as enabling Canadians from all walks of life to enjoy sport.

“No kid that wants to [play] should go without sport in this country. We have the dollars, the resources, the people, the capacity, the space and the time. No kid that wants to play should be on the sidelines looking in.”

Hear the full interview > BeCause & Effect #27


Fred Penner

A man that needs no introduction, Fred Penner has been entertaining kids and adults alike for more than 45 years. A few of the many Causes and organizations he has supported include UNESCO, World Vision, UNICEF, and the National Conference on Down Syndrome, always with the focus on Children, Youth, and Families.

“Personal connection was always so very important to me. Asking a question, talking, listening and responding to the people around you. I’ve always been a curious and vulnerable person, and children are curious and vulnerable,” Penner says. “When I talk to a child and ask them, point blank, questions about their lives… Children want to share their thoughts and feelings, and if you encourage that, they are more than willing to tell you where they’re at.”

Hear the full interview > BeCause & Effect #29


Diane Roussin

“Because families know best what their children need for educational success; it’s our job to listen and help make it happen.”

As Project Manager of the Winnipeg Boldness Project, Diane Roussin has spent the past seven years focusing on what Children, Youth and Families need most. Through a holistic and circular approach that puts families first, Roussin and her team have been trying to affect systemic change for children in care and families in need.

“I have worked with Indigenous families my whole life. I’ve worked in the neighbourhood for my whole professional career. It continues to be the most inspiring and motivating place to spend my time. The families I get to interact with and work with, they keep you going, they inspire you, they motivate you, they are the reason I have so much hope; because I see the hope in them.”

Hear the full interview > BeCause & Effect #33


Christy Dzikowicz

“Because I believe in the resilience of children.”

Christy Dzikowicz is the Executive Director of Snowflake Place, and Grand Prize Winner of The Winnipeg Foundation’s Fast Pitch 2020 (read more on page 45). Her Cause is helping victims of childhood abuse by creating a safe and comforting environment for them and their families, while law enforcement, and other necessary entities, do their jobs. Dzikowicz has been working in this field for more than two decades, and is now focusing on changing the systems that haven’t been working, to focus more on a child-centred approach.

“Could we be doing better for kids? If the answer is yes, why aren’t we? Is it because the rules are structured in a certain way? Then can we change the rules? And if we can’t change the rules, then what can we do? If you talk to anybody that works in this field, whether it’s a police officer, a social worker, a doctor or a nurse, they could tell you what the gaps are from their perspective. It’s about giving people the opportunity to fill those gaps and really change things.”

Hear the full interview > BeCause & Effect #35


This story is featured in the Spring 2020 issue of our Working Together magazine. Download or view the full issue on our Publications page.


How would you like to start?

Give Now Start Your Own Fund Contact Us