The Toronto Star | Microfinance Program Combats Stigma of Mental Illness: Goar
Published in the Toronto Star on December 03, 2012
By Carol Goar
Sandra Rotman is one of the busiest and most generous philanthropists in the city.
There is a Sandra Rotman Centre for global health research at the University Health Network; a Sandra Rotman chair in neuropsychiatry at the Baycrest Centre; and dozens of Rotman fellowships, prizes and awards sprinkled across the arts and academe.
She serves — or has served — on the boards of the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Ontario Heritage Foundation, the Toronto Film Festival and the National Ballet of Canada. Over the past 20 years, she and her husband, Joseph, have donated more than $90 million to health-care institutions, universities and arts organizations.
But there is a special place in her heart for one fledgling charity she helped launch three years ago.
It is called Rise Asset Development. It provides microfinancing (loans of up to $5,000) and mentorship to individuals living with mental illness who want to start their own businesses. They get training and coaching…
