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Weekly draw
for Centraide donors
The odds are way, way better than Loto-Québec, especially in the
first weeks, so get those pledge cards in early!
Prizes will include dinner for two, sportswear, gift certificates and
some surprises. Draws will be made October 13, 20 and 27, and November
3.
Winners will be announced as they’re drawn — watch this space.
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by Barbara Black
Montreal’s Centraide campaign kicks off at 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday,
October 4, with a mass event, La Marche des Mille Parapluies — The
March of 1,000 Umbrellas — a parade from the corner of McGill and
Ste. Catherine Sts. to Complex Desjardins. Bring a big red-and-white Concordia
umbrella and join the fun. You’ll be prepared for the weather, no
matter what it is!
Concordia’s Centraide committee has planned its own ways to raise
money and awareness. Ann M. Bennett is setting up a raffle (see ad at
left). She and Patricia Posius have also rounded up teams to clean the
windshields of cars going into the J.W. McConnell and Loyola parking lots
on October 19. If you want to join them (Imagine the pleasure of squeegeeing
your boss’s car and then asking for money), please contact them.
Last year, only 12 per cent of Concordians gave to Centraide, the umbrella
organization that funds 250 social agencies in the Montreal area. The
average gift was $186.79, or about $7 a paycheque, for a total of $43,266.
How did we stack up against our neighbours? At McGill, a total of $167,191
was pledged. The rate of participation was slightly lower than ours, 11
per cent, but the average donation was higher, $230.13, or nearly $9 a
paycheque.
Over at the École Polytechnique and the École des Hautes
Études, the participation rates were an impressive 26.9 and 27.3
per cent respectively. While these are smaller schools, and their average
donation was modest, the figures tell you something about their responsiveness
to this important annual appeal.
As for donors outside the universities, some large companies, such as
Hydro-Québec and Pratt & Whitney, post annual participation
rates by employees of 90 per cent or more.
The most efficient and painless way to give is through a payroll deduction.
Any day now, you’ll get a letter and a payroll deduction form. You
may also be reminded by one of your colleagues. These campaign volunteers
are going to be primed with an orientation luncheon on October 11.
Over the next few weeks, Concordia Centraide volunteers will speak at
council meetings around the campus to explain why this massive campaign
is so important.
The agencies that depend of Centraide vary widely — food banks, soup
kitchens, citizens’ advocacy, projects to keep children in schools,
and many more. We’ll be telling you more about some of them in CTR
as the campaign at Concordia proceeds.
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