(LYTTON) The New Pathways to Gold Society (NPTGS) is pleased to announce that it has been given charitable status by the Canada Revenue Service, giving it a powerful new way to raise funds to help build economies along the Gold Rush/Spirit Trails corridor from Hope to Barkerville.

“Achieving charitable status allows us to give back even more to our friends and partners who have so generously provided funds towards projects that benefit Indigenous and non-Indigenous economies along the New Pathways to Gold,” said NPTGS Co-Chair Brent Rutherford.

“As of now, all donations towards NPTGS projects are tax-deductible and eligible for a tax receipt. It’s a tangible benefit for all donors in addition to the satisfaction of adding to the legacy of the work that our Society does in making the difference in the lives of corridor communities.”

All donations made via the NPTGS charitable donations portal on the Society’s website and social media platforms will qualify as charitable for tax purposes. For its first charitable campaign, NPTGS is focusing on its three major projects:

The 1926 Alexandra Bridge Rehabilitation Project: Located in the traditional territory of the Spuzzum First Nation, this project will see an icon of B.C. transportation history restored, creating a world-class destination heritage tourism attraction that will benefit all British Columbians.

Cariboo Waggon Road Restoration Project: Covering 650 km from Yale and Lillooet to Barkerville, the restoration of this historic route built on an ancient network of Indigenous trade routes will attract visitors from all over the globe to travel the New Pathways to Gold.

Chief Cexepe’nthlEm Park Project: A partnership with the Lytton First Nation, Territory of the People Anglican Parish, the Village of Lytton and the NPTGS, this project is building a fitting memorial to the great Nlaka’pamux leader Chief Cexepe’nthlEm, a peacemaker and co-founder of modern British Columbia.

NPTGS Indigenous Co-Chair Chief James Hobart says making a donation to these projects will not only benefit local economies, but create a spirit of Reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Peoples.

“The work that NPTGS does, not only in my People’s traditional territories but all the Nation’s territories from Hope to Barkeville, furthers Indigenous Reconciliation and is really putting boots and moccasins on the ground as we build a prosperous future together,” says Hobart.

NPTGS prides itself on keeping administrative costs low and ensuring the maximum amount of dollars raised goes right back into local economies, says Society Secretary Byron Spinks.

“Since 2007, we’ve raised and leveraged nearly $8 million for projects in local communities and ensured the vast majority of those funds went straight into shovels in the ground and the people who hold them,” said Spinks.

To help make the difference in the local economies of Indigenous and non-Indigenous community along the New pathways to Gold, please visit the Society’s website https://newpathwaystogold.ca/donate.

The New Pathways to Gold Society is a non-profit, charitable society dedicated to recreating local economies in the Hope-Barkerville corridor via Indigenous Reconciliation, Multiculturalism and heritage tourism development. Since 2007, it has created over 25,000 person-hours of employment and restored over 300 km of heritage trails as well as completing numerous other projects.

The Society gratefully acknowledges the financial assistance of the government of British Columbia and the Vancouver Foundation via the Recovery and Resiliency Fund.

For more information, please contact:

Don Hauka
Executive Director
New Pathways to Gold Society
604-787-9155