Fall brings new team for Centraide Estrie
At the annual general meeting for Centraide Estrie, several executive seats were filled by experienced leaders in the community.
Marie-claude Landry, an experienced philanthropist and previous Executive Director for Heritage Montreal, officially joined the team as the Director of Philanthropy, and after several years working in different areas of the organization, Ismael Sondarjée took up the role as president.
“I come from a very privileged background and was raised that giving back is important,” said Landry. “When I arrived in the area, having an impact in my new community was a priority for me, and joining the Centraide Estrie team was the perfect opportunity.”
Over the years, Landry has led several fundraising campaigns and programs in the Montreal area. As the new Director of Philanthropy, she has outlined three priorities for her term; broadening the network of corporate partners, increasing engagement of current partners, and diversifying the source of philanthropic revenues.
“In order for local organizations and programs to pursue their mission, mostly sustained by Centraide Estrie’s support, we need to always be increasing philanthropic revenues,” said Landry. In order to do so, she has proposed personalized cultivation and adaptation to the fundraising tools and strategies to meet specific organizations’ and programs’ needs.
According to Landry, building relationships with community leaders and entrepreneurs is essential to accomplish her goals as Director of Philanthropy. “I’m always amazed to meet people who do amazing things, but work in the shadows,” she said. “We can learn a lot from them.”
As president, Ismael Sondarjée plans to incorporate similar business practices. “We’ve been shy in the past, we didn’t want to release exact targets for campaigns or create any waves,” he said. “Last year, we had the highest grossing campaign in the last 40 years with an increase of 30 per cent.”
Sondarjée commented that, by incorporating individuals from different backgrounds onto the board, he will be able to examine the many aspects of different campaigns and the best ways to assist the organizations and individuals who make use of the resources offered. “Cherry picking experienced people in different fields and bringing them in will allow for us to really get the whole picture,” he said.
He added that making hard but necessary decisions to better the organization and improve community outreach is one of his top priorities. “We want to rebuild the image that we have, and for people to understand that what we do is not just financial support,” he said. “People need to have a better understanding that our assistance isn’t only for a small percentage of the community, and that a lot of people will reach out quietly. A lot of the time it’s for other types of support.”
Centraide Estrie works with 67 different community organizations and programs in all different areas. Sondarjée commented that, while the work is widespread, many issues need to have more time in the spotlight. “Mental health, support and awareness for the LGBTQ community,” he said. “All of those in the dark issues are what need to be at the forefront of everything that we do moving forward.”