With a new year comes a new campaign. And this year we are very excited as 2006 marks ShareLife’s 30th anniversary of reaching out to the community. To mark the occasion, our slogan for the 2006 campaign is: "Will You Answer The Call To Give – 30 Years of Caring and Sharing." We’ve set a target to raise $12 million from within our parishes. That’s up from last year, when you helped us raise $11.03 million. Unfortunately the needs in our community have not decreased as more and more people are turning to our agencies for help. But we are confident that with your generosity, we will reach our target and continue to help those in need – just as we have done for 30 years. If you’d like to be one of the first to donate to the 2006 campaign, you can do so on line by clicking here.

(January 23, 2006) ShareLife is marking its 30th anniversary with a celebration reception, sponsored by St. Joseph Communication, on February 16 at the Renaissance Parque Banquet Centre in Concord. Clergy, ShareLife volunteers and our 34 ShareLife agencies will gather together on that evening to commemorate the accomplishments of 30 years of caring and sharing. The event will feature music, a dramatic performance, speakers and the launch of ShareLife’s new campaign video. ShareLife agencies will have displays on hand to raise awareness of the important community work they do.

Two longtime ShareLife volunteers were recently honoured for the work they have each contributed to supporting Catholic social services in the Archdiocese of Toronto.

Michel (Mic) Jory, of Toronto, and Harry Cogill, of Collingwood, were presented with diocesan medals from Aloysius Cardinal Ambrozic in a ceremony last month.

Mr. Jory recently retired from the ShareLife Advisory Board after 29 years of service to the fundraising arm of the Archdiocese of Toronto. He became associated with ShareLife as a volunteer canvasser when ShareLife was first established by Archbishop Pocock in 1976 and later served on the ShareLife Advisory Board for 17 years, including a term as the Chairman of the Board (1991-’98). He retired from the ShareLife board in December 2005.

Mr. Cogill is the Past-President of the ShareLife Advisory Board, having served as the board’s president from 1998 to 2004 and provided professional strategic planning guidance on a number of occasions. Cogill also served as a corporate canvasser for ShareLife during his longtime tenure with Xerox.

Three new ShareLife volunteers have joined the ShareLife Advisory Board in 2006.

Following the departure of Mr. Jory and fellow board member Charlotte Stanton, who recently moved outside of the Archdiocese, the board has welcomed Patricia Manson, Efe Oputu and Robert Schultz as new members.

Ms. Manson is currently the Director of Education/ Secretary-Treasurer of the Board for the Durham Catholic District School Board. She brings more than 25 years’ educational experience to the ShareLife board, having worked as a classroom teacher, school administrator and Superintendent at the school board level. She is also a Past-President of the Ontario Catholic Supervisory Officers Association.

Mr. Oputu, an accounting software consultant, joins the board with more than 20 years of experience consulting the technology and financial services industry. He is an active member of the Knights of Columbus and is involved in his parish, St. Francis Xavier in Mississauga.

Mr. Schultz brings a great amount of corporate and volunteer experience to the ShareLife board. Currently the Executive Chairman of Rockwater Capital Corporation, he has also served in his career as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Merrill Lynch Canada and at Midland Walwyn. In addition, Mr. Scultz is currently the Chairman of the Capital Campaign for St. Joseph’s Health Centre and previously sat on the board of the Toronto East General Hospital.

We gratefully thank Mic Jory and Charlotte Stanton for the exemplary service they have provided to ShareLife and welcome Patricia Manson, Efe Oputu and Robert Schultz into the ShareLife family. We appreciate the time and talents they are committing to the aid of those less fortunate in our communities.

(February 17, 2006) ShareLife recently celebrated its 30th anniversary, marking three decades of support for Catholic charities.

Despite freezing rain and icy road conditions, more than 400 community, corporate and church leaders attended a reception February 16 at the Renaissance Parque in Concord, ON to mark the 30-year milestone. Since its inception in 1976, ShareLife has raised more than $250 million to support Catholic charities within the boundaries of the Archdiocese – stretching from Oshawa to Mississauga, and from Toronto to Midland.

"Over the past 30 years, ShareLife has had a direct and meaningful impact on thousands of needy people within our Archdiocese, regardless of religious affiliation," said Arthur Peters, executive director of ShareLife. "This celebration gives us an opportunity to showcase the work of the 34 ShareLife-funded agencies and to thank many of the volunteers and donors who have contributed to our success, including those who have been involved since the very beginning."

The reception, sponsored by St. Joseph Communication, included the live music of the St. Michael Catholic Academy band, Thornhill, as well as speeches and reminiscences from Bishop John Boissonneau, Chancellor of Spiritual Affairs for the Archdiocese of Toronto; Rudy DeSiato St. Joseph Communication and Salt & Light Television; ShareLife Chairman of the Advisory Board Michael McBride; ShareLife Executive Director Arthur Peters; and Mike Cyr, of ShareLife agency Silent Voice. The evening also marked the launch of ShareLife’s latest promotional video two weeks prior to the beginning of the 2006 parish campaign, which coincides with the Catholic Lenten season.

(February 22, 2006) ShareLife is accepting donations for disaster relief following the recent landslide in South Leyte, Philippines. We will channel any emergency relief funds received from individuals and parishes to our international partners in the affected communities.

The area hardest hit was the farming village of Guinsaugon, where most of the community’s 1,800 villagers were feared buried under earth, boulders and trees when the slope of a rain-drenched mountain gave way February 17. ShareLife partners are working to address the immediate relief and rehabilitation activities in Southern Leyte. The rebuilding efforts will continue for months and years to come.

Please note that ShareLife does not apply administrative fees for any funds received for humanitarian relief – 100% of the collected funds go directly to the affected region.  To donate, please click here.

ShareLife Accepting Donations for Indonesian Earthquake Relief

St. Aidan's ShareLife Walk-a-thon

(June, 2006)  The youth of St. Aidan’s Parish in Scarborough took it upon themselves to keep the ShareLife Walk-a-thon tradition alive in their Scarborough parish. The small group took advantage of the fantastic weather in early June to participate in a day of fundraising and fellowship.

 

 

(August 21, 2006)  ShareLife recently received a donation of over $8,000 from Bell Canada through its employee payroll deduction program. Pictured above, ShareLife Executive Director Arthur Peters (centre) receives a cheque from Bell Senior Vice-President, Enterprise Marketing Renato Discenza (right) and Bell employee Peter Paul at Bell Canada’s downtown Toronto headquarters. Employees participating in Bell’s Employee Giving program contributed to ShareLife through the year by having a contribution regularly deducted from their paycheques and held in a fund designated for ShareLife. If you are interested in contributing to ShareLife at work – employers will sometimes match the contribution – let your employer know. If you need help, contact Keith Hall, our manager of Corporate and Community Campaigns.

Photograph by Luca Viorel

Employee Giving Works!

Peter Paul donates to ShareLife through Bell Canada’s employee payroll deduction program. During Bell Canada’s employee giving presentation ceremony, Mr. Paul talked about his donation to ShareLife:

"ShareLife Trust works through others in our communities by providing financial support to many programs and initiatives that go largely unnoticed by even the GTA Catholic community.

Donating a decent amount of money to ShareLife in previous years was difficult - I'm just not that good with keeping money in my pocket! But through Employee Giving, I'm able to give something without even missing it and before I can even touch it! I applaud the Employee Giving program and invite Bell employees to use it as an opportunity to make a real difference for those around us."

Getting the Fund Raising Rolling

Fifty students from Cardinal Leger Secondary School in Brampton recently raised $600 for ShareLife by holding a bowl-a-thon.  These are just some of the thousands of students across the Archdiocese currently offering their time, talents and treasure to the 2006 ShareLife Campaign.  [More School and Youth Zone]

 

 

Walk.  Talk.  ShareLife!

(October, 2006)  More than 1000 students and teachers at St. Francis Xavier Secondary School in Mississauga participated in a school walk on October 26. In total, the school raised over $5500 for ShareLife through the event. Congratulations to all who were involved and thank you!

If you are interested in having a ShareLife walk in your school, please contact Tim Lee Loy at tim.leeloy@archtoronto.org or call (416) 934-3400, ext. 521.

(November 23, 2006) 115 high school students from across the GTA spent Thursday, October 19, 2006, giving back more than 10,000 volunteer hours to the community.

Travelling on six "service buses" across the GTA, the students took part in diverse projects:  from fall clean-ups to visits with seniors and the handicapped to serving Toronto's homeless.

The Toronto Day of Service raises no money.  Instead, the project allows young Catholics to give back to the community, developing leadership skills at the same time.  The "blitz" is a partnership between ShareLife, the charitable fundraising arm of the Archdiocese of Toronto, the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) and the Archdiocese's Office of Catholic Youth.

To find out more about it, or to get involved, contact Tim Lee Loy, ShareLife Schools and Employee Campaign Coordinator, at tim.leeloy@archtoronto.org .

 

 

(November 23, 2006)  Neville Mant, Principal of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Secondary School in Mississauga (left) presents a cheque for $5,500 to ShareLife Executive Director, Arthur Peters, and ShareLife Schools Campaign Coordinator, Tim Lee Loy.  St. Francix Xavier students, Leah D'Souza and Connie Kuang, were also present along with Parent Council Representative, Rosemary Shields (far right).  More than 1,000 students and teachers at St. Francis Xavier Secondary School participated in a school walk on October 26, 2006.  Congratulations to all who were involved and thank you!

(November 23, 2006) Most Rev. Richard Grecco, Auxiliary Bishop of Toronto, presents BMO Bank of Montreal Senior Executive Vice-President Personal and Commerical Banking Canada, Maurice Hudon, the Past-Chair of the ShareLife Corporate Campaign, with a gift in appreciation for the guidance he provided during the 2005 and 2006 Corporate Campaigns.  Mr. Hudon led the ShareLife Corporate team to two consecutive record campaigns.  ShareLife extends its gratitude to Mr. Hudon for his ongoing support and leadership.

Find a Penny, Pick it Up ... and ShareLife!

(November 23, 2006)  Mary Venditti, Principal of Immaculate Conception Catholic School, says, "Immaculate Conception Catholic School wanted to help some agencies in Toronto.  We discussed the various agencies and how they help thousands of people in the city of Toronto.  The teachers decided they wanted to challenge the students.  They had each division bring in pennies and charted which division was the most generous.  We did announcements to motivate the students.  They were made aware of the power of caring and how little it takes to help our fellow man.  This was an excellent lesson in Christian charity and caring for our fellow man.  I was very proud of my students and staff and all the community who pitched in to make it a successful initiative."

(December 5, 2006) In response to the devastating effects of Typhoon Durian on the Bicol and Southern Tagalog regions of the Philippines in the past week, the ShareLife office is receiving donations from those wishing to support the relief efforts.  [Make your donation here].

Contributions will be forwarded to our international relief partners at Caritas Internationalis, through the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development & Peace, the Caritas representative in Canada. Caritas Philippines has launched an appeal for US$ 1.3 million to the Caritas network, targeting a month-long relief operation for more than 15,000 families.

Caritas diocesan relief teams are currently assessing the situation and establishing immediate response needs. This appeal is intended only for relief efforts for the nine seriously affected dioceses of Legazpi (3,000 families), Libmanan (1,500 families), Naga (2,000 families), Sorsogon (1,000 families), Masbate (1,000 families), Virac (3,000 families), Daet (1,000 families), Boac (2,000 families), and Gumaca (800 families). Local Caritas efforts will cover food needs, medicines, blankets, mosquito nets, sleeping mats, kitchen utensils and shelter materials for the affected families.

As always, please know that 100% of the funds received for this humanitarian relief appeal will be forwarded to Development & Peace with no administration fees applied.

Thank you for your ongoing support of this appeal and all our ShareLife initiatives. Together we are demonstrating that Christ’s messages of charity and love are alive in our Catholic community today.

Learn more: www.caritas.org

2 years After the Tsunami:  Development and Peace Successfully Continues Its Reconstruction Work