A record number of volunteers participated on October 26 in United Way of Peel Region's Day of Caring, an event that provides employees from businesses and organizations across Peel with the opportunity to help out for the day at a United Way-funded agency.
more...

“Yo-ho-ho!” ESI Canada Inc. held a pirate-themed Halloween fundraising event in aid of United Way.
more...

United Way of Peel Region Board member Vijay Kanwar and his wife, Neena, were named as Ontario's Entrepreneurs of the Year in the Health Sciences Category at the 2006 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards Gala on October 19.

"Neena and I had the honour of accepting the Entrepreneur of the Year award on behalf of all of the staff at KMH who continue to make the company an incredible success," said Vijay Kanwar, President and CFO of KMH. "The award is a testament to the hard work, dedication and inherent entrepreneurial spirit of the management and staff at KMH."

The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year awards were created to recognize and raise awareness of the benefits of entrepreneurship to organizations. The Entrepreneur of the Year Award is the premier recognition of innovative business leaders in Canada.

The Kanwars were announced as Ontario finalists on July 6. In considering the awards, Ernst & Young looked at four key indicators including how a spirit of entrepreneurship guided decision-making at KMH, the performance and future prospects for the company, a profile of the management team and the people-friendly philosophy at KMH. The company's commitment to innovation and the highest-possible standards were obvious across each of the categories, according to Ernst & Young.

Founded in 1988, KMH Cardiology and Diagnostic Centres has established itself as a benchmark of consistent, high-quality service and has grown to include eight locations across Southern Ontario, performing over 75,000 diagnostic tests annually. KMH is North America's largest provider of nuclear cardiology services.

United Way of Peel Region has officially launched its revamped, revitalized website to help increase its effectiveness in communicating with the community. New features include links from the main page to popular pages on the site to make it easier to download United Way's logo, reports and publications and information on funded agencies. In addition, participants can register online for Training and Consulting courses, and funded agencies can submit job postings via an online form. Don't forget to visit the site every Monday to see how much has been raised to date during our 2006 campaign.

"I'm thrilled with our new website," said Trudi Ford, Communications Manager and Webmaster. "Visitors should find it much easier and convenient to navigate."

Visit our new website at www.unitedwaypeel.org. Please email your comments and concerns regarding the site to tford@unitedwaypeel.org.

This year, students in Peel who get in the spirit for United Way will be recognized for their efforts. United Way has expanded its popular Spirit Awards program to include categories for student-run campaigns in elementary, middle and secondary schools. The It's Your SAY Spirit Awards for Youth will be presented to schools that find innovative and creative ways to promote school spirit, fun and cooperation while fundraising for United Way of Peel Region.

"We know that there are many different fundraising activities going on in schools during the fall," explained Ted Fauteaux, United Way's Director of Resource Development, "So, we want to celebrate the efforts of student-run campaigns that not only raise funds, but also increase awareness about United Way."

In addition to the new It's Your Say Spirit Awards for Youth, United Way presents awards in the following categories:

Outstanding Agency Campaign Award
Presented to an agency employee campaign that has exceptional participation and promotes giving to the Community Fund. Awarded to both funded and non-funded agencies.

Outstanding Corporate Campaign Award
Presented to a corporation/company that excels in the many areas of corporate support to United Way.

Outstanding Employee Campaign Award
Presented to the employee campaign that has the greatest increase in participation and/or dollars raised.

Best First-Time Campaign Award
Presented to a new workplace campaign that has had outstanding participation in its first campaign. It recognizes new campaigns that have vitality, excitement, involvement and excellent communication. Workplaces that have not run a campaign in two years are also eligible.

Leadership Giving Campaign Award
Presented to the workplace campaign that conducts an exemplary Leadership Giving campaign. There is only one Leadership Giving Campaign Award presented each year.

Best National Employee Campaign Award
Presented to the employee campaign that runs an exceptional national campaign has the greatest increase in participation and/or dollars raised.

Outstanding Joint Union-Management Campaign
Presented to a workplace campaign run jointly by union members and management that exemplifies teamwork, leadership and community giving. Awarded in both the private and public sector categories.

Speakers' Bureau Award
This award will be presented to the Speakers' Bureau volunteer who was an active and effective ambassador for United Way throughout the entire campaign.

Chair's Award of Merit
Presented by the Campaign Chair to a company or organization that has gone above and beyond their traditional support during the campaign.

Spirit Award entries must be received by 5 p.m. on Thursday, January 11, 2007.Spirit Award winners will be announced at United Way's Community Achievement Celebration on February 15, 2007.

For more information about the Spirit Awards, visit the Spirit Awards page on United Way's website.

A record number of volunteers participated on October 26 in United Way of Peel Region's Day of Caring, an event that provides employees from businesses and organizations across Peel with the opportunity to help out for the day at a United Way-funded agency.

More than 160 employees from 15 different businesses and organizations in Peel rolled up their sleeves to complete 26 projects at 13 United Way-funded agencies. Activities included painting, preparing meals, home repairs, sorting and organizing, and job interview coaching. The volunteers also got to see first-hand how their contributions to United Way work hard in the community, supporting services and programs for hundreds of thousands of people in Peel.

The following companies and organizations sent volunteers: Alcatel, Alcon, Ceridian, CPR, GlaxoSmithKline Inc., IKON Office Solutions, Ingram Micro, Motorola, Nacan Products Ltd., Petro-Canada, Region of Peel, Ricoh Canada Inc., Transalta, Trillium Health Centre and the University of Toronto at Mississauga.

Day of Caring was sponsored by McKesson Canada of Brampton. Breakfast was provided by Tim Hortons at Dixie Road and Aimco Boulevard in Mississauga.

"I really want to thank the volunteers who helped out," said United Way's CEO Shelley White, at an early morning breakfast rally. "By giving their time and energy, they are enabling the agencies to preserve precious resources for frontline services."

On October 24, the annual Chefs' Challenge, sponsored by AstraZeneca Canada Inc. and Delta Meadowvale Resort and Conference Centre, cooked up more than $100,000 for United Way of Peel Region.

Left to right: Harry Mann, Board Chair, United Way of Peel Region, Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion, Michael Cloutier, President and Chief Executive Officer, AstraZeneca Canada Inc., Martin Stitt, General Manager, Delta Meadowvale Resort and Conference Centre.

Jerome sought help from the agency to learn how to "speech-read" (lip- read), cope with his hearing loss and overcome his extreme feeling of loneliness. After participating in the classes for a while, it became evident that Jerome was changing. He smiled and participated more in class activities. His speech reading and communication skills improved considerably.

Then, Jerome made the big step. He had learned about the "hearing-ear" dog program run by the Lions' Foundation and he decided to apply for a dog. He felt that this would help him to become more independent. He qualified and Neo became his best friend.

"I'll never forget when the two of them graduated from Dog Guide School," said Smith. "Jerome was so happy and declared that he was no longer 'this lonely man'. His creative talent has begun to appear and he is now writing quite beautiful poetry, much of which portrays his feelings about his transformation. Yes, he still has a profound hearing loss, but has learned to cope, thanks to a service that could not be provided without the funds supplied by United Way of Peel Region."

“Yo-ho-ho!” ESI Canada Inc. held a pirate-themed Halloween fundraising event in aid of United Way.


The icing on the cake: GE Canada’s Meadowvale site ran a sweet fundraising campaign in support of United Way.

Join us at United Way of Peel Region's annual Community Achievement Celebration, February 15th. We're celebrating you - our community heroes who have helped to make this year's campaign a success. Together, we've made a difference! Join us as we recognize our achievements and salute the companies, organizations and individuals who helped make this campaign soar.

A range of "heroic" sponsorship opportunities for Community Achievement Celebration is available. Please contact Marilyn Caird, Communications Manager, Events & Sponsorship, at 905.602.3625 or mcaird@unitedwaypeel.org for details.

United Way of Peel Region can trace its origin back to 1957. At that time, it was called the Brampton Community Chest and the operation was confined to the Brampton area. Volunteers staffed the original Community Chest. The fundraising campaign lasted only one week and $14,955 was raised and distributed to 10 agencies. In 2007, United Way of Peel Region will mark its 50th anniversary. Stay tuned for announcements on how we will celebrate this milestone.

Approximately 1.2-million people live in Peel Region. Peel's population, which has doubled in the past two decades, comprises 9 per cent of Ontario's total population. Unfortunately, the human services sector in the region is severely under-funded, leaving residents on long wait lists for attention to their health and social needs.

Casual Day
Even if your organization has a "casual day", consider adding another one or charge a fee for your current one throughout your United Way campaign. Get permission from management to charge employees $2 to dress casually on the designated day. Give a sticker to those who pay that states they are dressed casually in support of United Way of Peel Region. Stickers are available from the United Way Canada - Centraide e-store, a great source for campaign supplies.

Scavenger Hunt
Hold a scavenger hunt. Split into teams (perhaps by department) and have employees search for a few items during lunch hour. Award a prize to the winners.