Fifteen hundred employees from more than 100 branches of Western Financial Group took to the road on June 13. The event raised funds for the Western Communities Foundation, a non-profit organization that gave back to the Weyburn community last year with the contribution of an infrastructure grant.
The Foundation's annual Support the Cause Day involves a three to five kilometre walk, beginning from Western Financial Group offices across western Canada. The event raises money to go toward community infrastructure grants, student bursaries and other worthwhile endeavours that support public health, recreation and education. Western donates $50 per participating employee, which is topped up by the pledges employees personally gather from friends, family and clients. Every penny goes to the Western Communities Foundation.
One contribution the Foundation made in 2011 was providing 14 infrastructure grants totalling $70,000 to western communities, including one for the Triple C Centre in Weyburn.
"Support the Cause Day allows us to make meaningful investments in the communities we serve," said Tom Dutton, Executive Director of the Western Communities Foundation. "It's meaningful to Western employees who get to see improvements to the arenas and community centres in their neighbourhoods or a student in their area getting a bursary to go to school. There's a lot of pride around here in what we're doing."
Last year, Western Financial Group employees collected approximately $26,000 in personal pledges. After Western's contribution, their efforts raised approximately $76,000 for the Foundation, well exceeding the goal of $50,000.
"Among other things, last year's Support the Cause Day proceeds helped fund our Community Defibrillator Program which is working to put at least one Automated External Defibrillator in a major public facility in each community that Western Financial Group serves," said Dutton. "We've already installed them in 47 communities and we're working on the rest. That's an impact our staff have made that will literally save lives."
Western Communities Foundation was founded by Western Financial Group in 2001 as a non-profit organization under the Income Tax Act of Canada. Western Financial Group is a subsidiary of Desjardins Group, the leading cooperative financial group in Canada.
