While many sports foundations focus solely on their local communities, the Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation (EOCF) works alongside partners across Northern Alberta and has supported over 1,000 organizations, from Cold Lake military family resource centres to Grande Prairie youth shelters to Fort McMurray school programs. Over 25 years, the EOCF, through its key investment area, Standing Up for Oil Country, built a funding network that reaches corners of the province other foundations skip.
Community Grants provided $5,000 to $25,000 in funding to 26 organizations in 2024-25, including school divisions in Drayton Valley and Indigenous programs in Enoch First Nation. Themed campaigns like Hockey Fights Cancer, Kids in Oil Country, and Feeding Oil Country let fans direct 50/50 money to specific causes.
Emergency response moves fast when disaster hits. That speed showed up when Jasper was left devastated by an uncontrollable wildfire. The foundation put $120,000 toward wildfire relief within days. It’s the same approach they take with ongoing needs – Feeding Oil Country has moved 320,000 pounds of food through 100+ food banks across Oil Country. When families can’t afford to stay near their kids for cancer treatment, Hockey Fights Cancer partnerships with the Ben Stelter Foundation and the Kids with Cancer Society cover housing and counselling. The foundation has helped raise over $40 million for cancer care initiatives, supporting treatment, research, prevention, and financial assistance for thousands of Albertans.
Heroes of Oil Country supports the Homes for Heroes Foundation, which builds tiny home villages for unhoused veterans in Edmonton. Make-A-Wish Canada granted 162 wishes in Northern Alberta last year with the help of funding received through the Kids in Oil Country raffle. The foundation also supports CASA Mental Health programs and community initiatives across the region.
Geography usually decides which charities get funding, but not in Oil Country. A kid in Fort McMurray has the same shot at a game ticket or a wish as a kid in Edmonton. A veteran in Cold Lake gets the same support as one downtown. When fans buy 50/50 tickets at Rogers Place, the money spreads to communities most foundations never reach. That’s what 25 years of Standing Up for Oil Country built.
