Philanthropy is its own reward
Times Colonist columnist Jack Knox has earned his share of accolades, but being called a newspaper executive’s “man candy” has to be a first.
That’s how retail advertising sales manager Jason Scriven jokingly described his table-mate Tuesday evening at the National Philanthropy Day awards event at the Fairmont Empress.
After joking it was because of a rock-paper-scissors game outcome that “I get to speak for Jack,” Scriven graciously accepted the Corporate Citizenship Award on behalf of the Times Colonist. “Job No. 1 at the Times
Colonist is making sure the paper goes out on time six days per week. But a close second is supporting the charitable organizations that are represented here tonight,” Scriven said.
It was one of six major awards presented to local philanthropists during the annual event presented by the Association of Fundraising Professionals Vancouver Island.
Ashleigh Tregear, 16, was there to represent Sooke’s Edward Milne Community School Leadership Class, which received a Youth in Philanthropy Award presented by Telus.
“We like to do service because it makes everybody feel good, and it’s a great way to have fun and enrich that connection with your community,” the Grade 11 student said.
She was particularly proud of their 10,000 Tonight food-drive initiative. With widespread community support, they exceeded their goal, collecting 12,000 items for a local food bank.
“When we first went to the food bank, the shelves were empty,” she recalled. “To be able to experience that [transformation] was pretty amazing.”
Hundreds of local philanthropists and business and community leaders attended Tuesday’s event, including Dodd’s Furniture and Mattress founder Gordie Dodd.
The soft-spoken philanthropist, whose local charitable endeavours include his annual Thanksgiving and Christmas meals, was overjoyed by what he saw.
“I’m really happy to see so many people doing community work,” he said. “This is important, and if you recognize people who do community work, others will learn from it.”
Philanthropy plays a pivotal role provincewide, said Veronica Carroll, CEO of the Children’s Health Foundation Vancouver Island. The foundation presented a Youth in Philanthropy Award to six-year-old Andrei Marti, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes last year, for his work raising funds for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
“I think when you’re inspired and motivated to support causes in your community, it makes your community stronger,” said Carroll, whose foundation assists children with disabilities and health challenges and their families.
“Our strategic focus right now is on mental health,” added board vice-chair Sandra Hudson. “We have a pilot project on the north Island for youth mental health, and we’re very close to announcing a major project for the south Island, a youth mental health hub.”
The community causes supported each year are as diverse as the individuals and organizations whose community contributions are honoured, from health organizations to artistic institutions.
Canadian College of Performing Arts president Marguerite Rowe, for instance, was nominated for the United Way of Greater Victoria’s Generosity of Spirit award that went to the Hopkins family and Team 4 Hope for its fundraising events for neuroblastoma research.
“I love the fact that we have this college here in Victoria,” said Rowe, who has volunteered for seven years and been a passionate supporter of the college owned and operated by the nonprofit Canadian Heritage Arts Society. The mandate of the college, best known for its musical-theatre program, is to educate, train and support promising young Canadians for performingarts careers.
“It’s a national college, and from the board’s perspective, we want it to continue to grow. We never give up.”
Emcee Bruce Williams, the local philanthropist and CTV Vancouver Island personality, said National Philanthropy Day’s “Change the World with a Giving Heart” slogan is particularly meaningful this year.
“We’ve seen a lot of change in the world, certainly politically and socially in the last little while — everything from the [Chicago] Cubs to Donald Trump,” he said.
“Change can happen in a lot of different ways caused by different catalysts. Doing it with the heart is different than doing it politically or business-wise — it’s about the sincerity that this event represents.”