#FREE-LEARN supports various marginalized communities, social justice causes and initiatives. We are here to help others.
Grants For All
Free Learn Canada (FLC) is a self-funded entity whereby all profits are utilized to assist those in need. These amounts are converted into Grants and have been bestowed in the names of individuals that have made significant contributions in academia, community advocacy, leadership, cultural awareness, business, sports, and politics. Each individual named herein has had a significant relationship with the leadership team of the FLC, and we are confident that the leaders named within this section share our mission of “Enabling equal access to education” in spirit.
Grants are awarded through the recommendation of the Executive Director, Volunteers, and The Board of Governors. Grants range between $500 to $1,200 per year and are provided directly towards fees, resources and tuition for individuals seeking formal education.
Gerald Cody Hodgson (1974 - 2019)
Mr. Hodgson was the first Indigenous Person to be appointed to the River Cree Casino as a Director of Security Operations. Under Paragon Gaming he managed and secured a portfolio valued to be within the excess of a billion dollars in assets and revenues. Shortly after, he was elected to serve on Band Council, serving on many committees including, yet not limited to Business and Economic Development, securing many of the vital pathways for Enoch Cree Nation for their pathway for economic independence. After his departure from political life, he continued his entrepreneur skills gaining the operating license for the Enoch Cree Nation Bottle Depot, and his security company Gecko and led Indigenous Rights & Advocacy and became a senior leader in Indigenous Relations for Atco Group of Companies.
Tony was a much respected educator and administrator for 32 years with Edmonton Catholic Schools after which he opened Western Educational Activities Ltd. and remained active in his business until the age of 89.
Mr. Anthony (Tony) Wacowich M.Ed., P.Eng. (1917 - 2007)
Mr. Robert (Bob) W. Dean, B.Sc., B.Ed. M.Dip (1929 - 2007)
Robert served for five years as a member and Chairman of the Edmonton Police Commission and the Canadian Association of Police Boards and three as a school trustee. He was a member and Past Master of Ivanhoe Masonic Lodge, a Charter member and Past Potentate of Al Shamal Shriners, and a Charter member and Director of the Edmonton Eskimo Alumni Association.
Equality Grant
Dorothy valued home and family, taking great pride in the accomplishments of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Alongside Bob, she was a founding member of St. Martins United Church maintaining a lifelong involvement in the Sanctuary Choir and the United Church Women until ill health prevented her participation.
Dorothy Hall
Harold Hall
Freedom Grant
At the age of 19, Harold enlisted into the Canadian Armed Forces and successfully fought bravely with the 49th Battalion, The Loyal Edmonton Regiment, until the end of World War II. Upon his return, Harold’s career took him to Edmonton where he began working for Edmonton Transit where he remained a faithful employee for 36 years. Harold was an extraordinary Canadian with a gleaming presence who loved sports, music and politics and always lived his life with the utmost integrity.
Manmeet Singh Bhullar was a Canadian politician and Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta who represented the constituency of Calgary-Greenway as a Progressive Conservative. He served as a cabinet minister from 2011 until the defeat of the Progressive Conservative government in 2015.
Manmeet Bhullar (1980 - 2015)
Ron Hayter (1936 - 2018)
Ronald John Hayter (July 30, 1936 – April 21, 2018) was the longest-serving city councillor of Edmonton, Alberta, having served from 1971 until 1995, when he stepped down to join the National Parole Board. He returned to council during the 2001 civic election, was re-elected in the 2004 and 2007 civic elections, and retired in 2010. During his tenure, he spearheaded people-friendly development such as the Shaw Convention Center, the LRT, waste recycling programs, preservation of the River Valley wilderness, and promotion of arts and especially sports events that helped turn a modest oil and agriculture city into a world-class capital. He was proudest, though, of his lifelong efforts to promote the rights of and create reconciliation with First Nations communities.
Bryan Kent Anderson (July 5, 1942 – September 4, 2020) was a Canadian politician in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He was first elected to the Edmonton City Council in 1998, representing Ward 5. He was re-elected in 2001, 2004, and 2007. In 2010 the wards were renumbered, and Anderson was re-elected to the new Ward 9 in 2010 and 2013. Before entering politics, Anderson was a high school football and basketball coach for 34 years. As head coach, Anderson brought his teams to 38 city finals and won about 20 championships. He was inducted into the Alberta Schools’ Athletics Association hall of fame in April 2010 in honour of his high school coaching career. As a city councillor, Anderson pushed for the building of recreation centres, arenas, and other sports facilities to encourage a more active and healthy lifestyle for Edmonton residents. Not everyone agreed with Brian Anderson’s strong approach and promotion of city-use chemicals to control a widespread dandelion seed problem in Edmonton, a plant that later became protected from city spraying.
Bryan Kent Anderson (1942 - 2020)
Mr. Terry Cavanagh (1926 - 2018)
Cavanagh was born in Edmonton on July 19, 1926, to recent Scottish immigrants. He attended high school in Edmonton before moving to Galt, Ontario, to play hockey for the Galt Red Wings of the Ontario Hockey Association, where he was a teammate of Gordie Howe. After stints with the Dallas Texans of the United States Hockey League, the Valleyfield Braves of the Quebec Senior Hockey League, and the Los Angeles Ramblers and the Trail Smoke Eaters of the Western International Hockey League, he retired from hockey and found employment in the purchasing department of Consolidated Mining and Smelting Co. in Trail, British Columbia. Cavanagh married June Gould on April 12, 1948; the couple would have three children, and June would herself serve as an Edmonton alderman from 1980 to 1983 for Ward 3. In 1957, he returned to Edmonton to work as the purchasing manager for Premier Steel Mills Ltd. He stayed on when the company was taken over by Stelco Steel in 1962 and remained in the position until 1977.
Treaty Six Acknowledgement
#FreeLearn Canada acknowledges that we are on the traditional land of Treaty 6 and home of the Metis Nation of Alberta Zone 4.
We also acknowledge the Inuit and other diverse Indigenous peoples whose ancestors have marked this territory for centuries, a place that has welcomed many peoples from around the world to make their home here.
We at FreeLearn Canada commit to restoring and honouring the Truth and Reconciliation calls to action; we strongly believe that truth must be acknowledged to move forward to reconciliation.
"Together, we call upon all our collective communities to build a stronger understanding of all peoples who dwell on this land we call home."
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