Our COVID-19 Story
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On March 16 we made the decision to close our studio doors and shut down our operations for the health and safety of our community. On top of closing our studio doors, we also cancelled one of our largest competition, The Academy: Urban Dance Competition that was scheduled for March 28. We took a huge hit because we had already invested thousands of dollars in flights, venues, and other hard cost to make the event happen which were non-refundable. Our priority as well was to refund all the people who bought tickets and those registered to compete which we also did.
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Kindred Culture has always been about serving our community. On March 20th, we announced FREE online dance classes, FREE trivia nights, and that we would be encouraging everyone to support The Dance Plug Fundraiser which was helping the dancers and get through this pandemic.
On April 1, we expanded our reach by hosting online interviews with influential dancers across Canada. This new initiative was called our #CommunityConnect where we discussed ways people can motivated in throughout quarantine, growing the Canadian Dance Scene, Social Justice issues, and more.
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As the lockdown continued longer than we were expecting, we launched Kindred ONLINE on April 18 so people could get the Kindred experience right from their home. This included affordable programs, pre-recorded tutorials, online training teams, and other fun online classes to keep people moving.
As the quarantine continued into May, we saw COVID-19 hitting thousands of people across the world and within our own city of Mississauga. On May 15 we ran a fundraiser called PROJECT 1000. This was an initiative where bought 1000 masks and donated it to organizations in need that included the Trillium Hospital, Camilla Care Community, and the Reena Foundation.
In June we witnessed yet another injustice happen in the Black Community. As an company that has been heavily influenced and built off of Black Culture, we responded by leading a Canada wide fundraiser with studios from Ontario, Saskatchewan, Quebec, and Nova Scotia. As a result we were able to help raise over $4,600 USD = $6,100 CAD.
Throughout quarantine we also have donated over $300 to local dance studios and companies running fundraisers to keep their initiatives going.
From the beginning of quarantine, we have provided FREE and affordable dance classes for hundreds of people, raised money and supported different social causes, supported local dance companies and businesses, and continued to give back as much as we can.
Since 2013 we have raised, donated, and given over $50,000 to different Social and Charitable Initiatives that include our own scholarship we created for students, leading different leadership trips to developing communities across the world, supporting local food banks, and more.
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As a small business, giving back has always been our priority. With your support we can continue to give to our community and support charitable organizations that are helping thousands of people locally and internationally.
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Our facility has been home for thousands of people. In the last 3 years we've had over 1,200 people share this space. Since COVID-19, keeping the facility open has been quite a challenge. Currently, our biggest need is paying the rent and utilities of the space. By donating to our fundraiser you are helping us keep our space open and find more ways to be sustainable. 100% of the donations will be going towards rent and utilities.
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We are committed to using our space to bring freedom, hope, and life to our community.
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Thank you all for your support and your generosity goes a long way!
