Avison Young offices across Canada took part in the company’s second annual Day of Giving recently. The employees in Avison Young’s 71 offices in Canada, the U.S. and Europe dedicated the day to participating in volunteer projects in their respective cities.
“By setting aside a day for all 2,000-plus Avison Young professionals to volunteer their time, we will continue to broaden our philanthropic efforts as a company and give back to the communities,” says Mark Rose, the company’s chair and CEO.
In Winnipeg, Avison Young representatives lent a hand to Norquay Elementary School. It is in the Inner City District, home to two out of the three poorest postal codes in the country. One in three students drops out of school before Grade 9.
Avison Young’s Vancouver staff worked at the Imouto Housing for Young Women project.
Norquay Elementary, with 220 students and a faculty of 45, works with the community, parents and guardians to create a safe and respectable learning environment. Avison Young’s volunteers were split into two teams. The “art” team went into various classes and with a pre-cut puzzle piece, asked the children to draw what their idea of giving would be. Their visual answers were heart warming and touching – and some show promising artistic ability, the company says. The pieces were put together as a mural on the walls throughout the school. The “sports” team went into the gym with the children to play soccer. AY also purchased popsicles and handed them out to all the students.
Avison Young’s Vancouver staff volunteered at the Atira Women’s Resource Society’s Imouto Housing for Young Women facility, a low-barrier supportive housing project in the Downtown Eastside. AY staff spent the day repainting, landscaping and constructing a new patio deck and gazebo to accommodate a new barbecue. They also prepared care packages for each of the residents.
