As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc on local economies, the non-profit sector in Nova Scotia is feeling the financial squeeze.
Closures and layoffs have tightened the public purse, dried up donations and forced charities to cancel or suspend key fundraising events.
Easter Seals Nova Scotia, for example, lost roughly $75,000 during the month of March — the month it typically holds its Bunnyland fundraiser at the Mic Mac Mall in Dartmouth and collects cash from paper egg sales. “We have to figure out how we’re going to make that up in the long run,” said local Easter Seals president Joanne Bernard. “There’s only so much of the fundraising pie to go around, so it’s extraordinarily difficult on organizations.