Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/207624
marketplace Your One-Stop Guide to Travelling & Leisure to advertise in marketplace, please contact Gillian Trainor at 604.205.1716 34 w e s t w o r l d >> p30-34_Community Impact.indd 34 continued from page 33 UNITED WE STAND When United Way Lower Mainland CEO Michael McKnight talks about BCAA, it's as though he's referring to an old friend. "We've had a long-term history together," he says, "And in recent years, under the leadership of [BCAA President and CEO] Tim Condon, the actual relationship has grown far stronger than it's ever been...They believe in the importance of employees' contribution to the community." A workplace campaign has BCAA employees making pledges to support the United Way's work in preventing child poverty, bullying and senior isolation through special events. And, says McKnight, "until this year BCAA as a corporation matched their pledges by 20 per cent. This year, they're taking that match to 100 per cent, to a maximum of $100,000." Last year, BCAA and its employees raised $105,000; with a steadily increasing participation rate in fundraising efforts, this coming year looks to generate an even greater amount. (In 2010, 29 per cent of BCAA employees donated to United Way; that climbed to 45 per cent in 2012, with dollars raised going from $68,000 to $105,000.) "The number of employees who support the community through United Way is quite high for an organization of that size," notes McKnight. In fact, the United Way awarded BCAA the Greatest Impact Award in the large organization category for the success of its 2012 fundraising campaign, with the amount of giving equalling 50 per cent of the organization's gross payroll for one day. With the United Way supporting hundreds of organizations across the Lower Mainland and B.C., McKnight notes that the breadth of services provided by partnerships like the one with BCAA touches almost everyone. "Sometimes what gets missed is that, with organizations like BCAA and many others, some of their staff and clients use the services that United Way supports," he explains. "It's things such as before- and after-school care being offered by organizations like the YWCA or YMCA...It's about things that most of us use on a regular basis. "Without corporations or organizations like BCAA, these programs don't exist." winter 2013 13-10-25 10:31 AM