RJCers marched in the Calgary Pride Parade on Sunday, Spetember 3rd in advocacy and support of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. With each step, the Parade showed unity, diversity, and unwavering strength – defining Calgary Pride’s essence. We were thrilled to be a part of this Calgary Pride event, and look forward to next year!
That’s a wrap and pics are in from this weekend, The Princess Margaret Ride to Conquer Cancer in Ontario! This is 16th annual Ride to Conquer Cancer, Canada's largest athletic fundraiser.
More than 3,500 cyclists took part in the ride, beginning at Exhibition Place and ending at Niagara Falls. RJC participates in rides to raise money for cancer foundations across Canada, raising more than two million dollars!
RJC sponsored and was a part of Women and Girls in Science 2023 at the TELUS World of Science - Edmonton. We celebrated International Day of Women and Girls in Science with four female guests sharing insights and highlighting female scientists and the discoveries they made that changed the world. Laura Talboys, Kristina Washburn, Caitlin Vail, and Lisa Henderson had a blast supporting the event, showcasing successful STEM women, and introducing girls to role models in their community.
The University of Alberta and Toronto Chapters of Engineer's in Action (EIA) is a multidisciplinary team of university students working together to design and implement high impact suspended bridges that promote sustainable development with a vision of creating a world free of rural isolation. Creag Vogel, Associate of RJC Edmonton joined a group of students as a Bridge Corps Advisor in Quinamara, Bolivia to help with the construction.
We were back to support and assist Holiday Helpers again this year. RJC provided Silver sponsorship and RJC’s ‘elves’ volunteered their time at Santa’s workshop to wrap gifts and prepare packages in time for Christmas. Holiday Helpers is a charity organization committed to sponsoring 850 low-income families in the Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton with a customized poverty relief package.
Radical renovations happened as RJC staff worked alongside HeroWork at the Indigenous Perspective Society. A fundraiser with the goal of raising $40k for the purchase of building materials was surpassed and reached over $50,000! We were happy to support by donating both time and money to this great cause.
Luke Groeneveld is the first recipient of the Gino Ferri Community Service Award. RJC’s newly established Gino Ferri Community Service Award recognizes an individual's distinguished contribution to their community. Luke’s passion and commitment to the Sonsine Centre continues to inspire his colleagues.
The ultimate fundraiser for social distancing! RJC donated and supported Trevor Botkin (of HeroWork Victoria), in the HeroWork's Lift Challenge, to raise money for the Salvation Army Radical Renovation. Trevor was up on a man-lift for a total of 36hrs to raise $36K for the project. The event ended up raising over $45,000.00 to help purchase project supplies for the renovation.
RJC donated our time to help have the totem pole Xaays, hand-carved by renowned artist Ray Natraoro from the Coast Salish/Squamish nation in BC, temporarily on display at Bow Valley Square (BVS) in Calgary, AB. Xaays will help raise donations for STARS Air Ambulance, the Squamish Nation’s Kwi Awt Stelmexw language program at Simon Fraser University and the Community Futures Treaty Seven Organization’s First Nations employment and economic development programs across the Treaty Seven Catchment Area.
RJC Toronto supported families through Holiday Helpers, an organization founded to assist low income families in the Toronto area by connecting with donors to provide much needed warm clothing, household items, groceries, and toys for children. In addition to our donation, staff joined forces to purchase items for several sponsor families, and spent time at the workshop organizing and wrapping gifts.
A group of eight volunteers from the RJC Calgary office spent three consecutive days cleaning, painting and outfitting a 2-bedroom suite at The Sonshine Centre. The centre provides second-stage shelter spaces for women and children fleeing domestic violence. This secure facility is located in a quiet neighbourhood, has easy access to schools, transit, and community programs.
RJC Toronto teamed up with Tree Canada for a rewarding day of tree planting at York University’s Glendon Campus. The RJC team was praised by Tree Canada for its admirably hard work and for exceeding expectations - again. The group finished early enough to enjoy the rest of the gorgeous fall afternoon satisfied at giving back both to the community and to the environment.
RJC’s Jennifer McAskill and Samantha Hackett celebrated science with the Nanaimo Science and Sustainable Society and Island ConnectED, by providing hands-on activities for kids and adult scientists. Their station encouraged participants to complete a design-build project using crayons, spaghetti and marshmallows!
RJC Toronto collaborated with Habitat for Humanity to help in their quest to provide affordable housing to the community. The response from staff was so overwhelming, RJC volunteers had to split up into two teams, making a valuable impact on two different housing sites. At the Scarborough site, where the group was landscaping, they ran out of sod in the late afternoon, while at the Brampton site, where staff were fireproofing and installing drywall and insulation, they ran out of materials before the end of day - though a bit of the plaster remained as souvenirs on the clothing of our keen group!