Charity Challenge >> September 17 2009
Thank you from Geneva Centre for Autism Foundation
The 2009 Scotiabank Group Charity Challenge will be the first walk/run held in support of Geneva Centre for Autism's 35 year history as a leading Canadian and international autism service leader.
We are very grateful to Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon for this opportunity. It has been a sharp learning curve for us but we have already significantly surpassed our funding goal and will have a respectably sized team running and walking on September 27.
Our fundraising goal was set at $15,000 because this was the first time Geneva Centre for Autism Foundation was reaching out in a formal way to Centre families and our staff to be engaged in a major fundraising event.
As CRS and Scotiabank will know from your system, our Team is in the running as a top fundraising organization. This is due to the Langlois Family of Oakville.
Father Bob, mother Deb and son Taylor are responsible for over half of our $23,000 raised.
The Langlois family was only formally introduced to our organization last year. While they have the personal resources to provide help to nine-year-old Taylor who has Aspergers Syndrome, they quickly realized and were inspired to make personal commitments to help others who need help to address the isolation, dysfunction and economic marginalization that living with autism can bring.
Bob is running his first ever marathon and has been training three to four times a week. Since late last year Bob has also been spending countless hours of committee work helping to raise money for a new youth and adult centre at our organization. He just joined our Board as a director while continuing to do committee work. Deb has engaged her social and family network to support another event held in Oakville by Whole Foods to benefit the Centre. Taylor has appeared in an inspirational video for one of our big fundraisers and spent the day yesterday at our annual golf tournament on hole #17 telling 130 golfers why he was walking the 5k for Geneva Centre. They responded by giving him $1200 for his walk.
There are many other things to tell you but the key message is that the Langlois Family has taken action on a community issue, seen the results of that activism and individually each is on personal journey of discovery that will have lasting personal benefits and produce multiple significant benefits to a non-profit like Geneva Centre.
I have video of Bob in training and video of Taylor explaining how Asperger's Syndrome affects him.
We hope that you find this story as compelling as we do.
Many thanks for all your good work.
Holly Bannerman
Geneva Centre for Autism Foundation
