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A Cape Breton couple are opening their hearts and wallets to show their appreciation for the welcoming kindness of their community.
Logan MacInnis and Kesha Bodawala say they were treated like family when they moved to Richmond County, N.S., from Waterloo, Ont., in 2024.
“The kindness and generosity that people met us with when we first moved here was overwhelming,” MacInnis said.
To match that generosity, MacInnis and Bodawala, both 31, have established the MacWala Foundation to offer annual scholarships and grants to young people and community groups in the area.
MacInnis grew up in Antigonish, N.S., only an hour’s drive from their home in Isle Madame, but Bodawala grew up in India. She said she felt a connection to the Richmond County community and wanted to give back in some way.
“We decided let’s do something for the community because that’s the first time in a long time I felt like home here,” Bodawala said.
Out of their pockets, into the community
The married couple, who don’t have children, said the idea for the foundation came from a conversation about what they wanted out of life and a desire to make a difference in the community.
They’ll fund the foundation straight out of their pockets. MacInnis works two jobs, in marketing and security, and Bodawala works for a tech company in Ontario.
“We always thought that we would do this when we were like 50 and we had a bunch of money or houses paid off,” Bodawala said.
“But then every month we looked at our budget and we had this huge fun budget that we were just spending money on things that we really didn’t need. So we were like, ‘well, we could use some of that money for some good cause.’”
The MacWala Foundation will provide funding through scholarships, youth sports assistance and community grants.
It will offer three annual scholarships of $1,000 to students from Richmond County entering or continuing their education in a recognized trade, apprenticeship or technical training program.
A youth sports fund will provide up to $350 to eligible young athletes to enable them to participate in sports, and another program offers grants up to $500 to local organizations, volunteer groups and community initiatives.
Shanna Burke is the head of the St. Peter’s Pirate Days board, the first recipient of a community grant from the foundation.
Burke said the annual community event in September received $500 that will be used to help pay for some of its children’s activities.
I thought this was absolutely amazing, especially the fact that [they] want it to stay in Richmond County.– Shanna Burke
She learned about the foundation through social media and praised its efforts to support a wide range of activities and help families and organizations deal with a “very expensive world.”
“I was excited,” Burke said. “We’re always looking for money and different groups and organizations around here. So I thought this was absolutely amazing, especially the fact that [they] want it to stay in Richmond County.”
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