Proceeds from sale of Russell’s paintings send kids to camp
Art teacher’s generosity lives on at Arthritis Society gala in his honour
Artist and philanthropist George E. Russell would doubtless have been proud of the $10,000 raised through the sale of his paintings at a recent Arthritis Society gala in his honour, to benefit its Kids on the Move Camp.
Russell died in March, at 83, of cancer. Although he’d been painting seriously since he was a teen, he spent his life as an art teacher and never promoted or sold his work. A longtime donor to the Arthritis Society, he was approached a couple of years ago to contribute a painting for a fundraiser — and said he was open to donating his entire oeuvre. He had more than 400 paintings along with other works hanging or stored in his Laval home.
Through his generosity, $70,000 has been raised for the Arthritis Society. In addition to the $10,000 from the Aug. 18 gala, a further $60,000 has come in through sales of his paintings at a couple of shows and a silent auction organized by the Arthritis Society, and online purchases through a website created by Society volunteer and software developer Ken Calder.
The Kids on the Move Camp was founded 13 years ago by the Arthritis Society, in collaboration with Dr. Sarah Campillo, a pediatric rheumatologist at the Montreal Children’s Hospital; the gala was also an opportunity to acknowledge her dedication.
Campers Abigaël Walker and Jack Hickman spoke of her commitment.
“When I grow up, I want to be rheumatologist just like you, Dr. Sarah,” Abigaël said in her speech. And on behalf of the 500 children who have attended the camp, she and her family presented Campillo with a plaque expressing their gratitude.
Although arthritis is widely thought of as a condition affecting older people, Abigaël and Jack are among 4,500 children in Quebec living with the disease. It can affect even infants and can be a serious condition that goes beyond joint pain to cause inflammation in the eyes, muscles and even organs. The Arthritis Society provides education, programs and support to the more than 4.6 million Canadians with arthritis. Learn more at arthritis.ca.
Art enthusiasts wishing to support the Arthritis Society can still purchase paintings by Russell at georgerussell.ca.
This summer, Mayor Denis Coderre announced the appointment of Tommy Kulczyk, longtime assistant executive vice-president and director of emergency services and communications at the Sun Youth Organization, as the city of Montreal’s first Commissioner for Children. The appointment is effective Sept. 5.
In nearly 35 years at Sun Youth, he was responsible for a great deal: He set up several programs and services, including the food bank, assistance to disaster victims and access to medication programs. He helped establish agreements between Sun Youth and partners including Hydro-Québec, the Association québécoise des pharmaciens propriétaires and Montreal youth centres.
“Tommy Kulczyk is a true agent of change and we would like to thank him for his 35 years of service. We look forward to seeing him flourish in his new appointment,” reads an Aug. 24 statement signed by Sun Youth executive vice-president Sid Stevens and director Earl De La Perralle.
On Aug. 16-17, during Sun Youth’s annual new clothing giveaway for families with low incomes, 2,400 people took home a total of 4,800 pieces of clothing.
Sun Youth expressed gratitude to Modern Eternity Maternity Coats and Apparel, VF Imagewear Canada Inc., Quebec Copier, JoNoCo Copier and Paragone Inc. for their generosity.