The Little Give Toronto

If there’s one thing about the Little Give that isn’t little at all, it’s all of the big hearts that come together to contribute to this effort. 

The Little Give is coming fast – we’re only two days away! We’ve notified clients that our office will be closed on Friday, June 3, as all of our staff will be participating in the Little Give. Just like last year, our clients are happy to support our effort and are unconcerned by the little inconvenience our office closure may cause. 

The excitement is growing in the office, as we all gear up for a very busy 48 hours this weekend. The building excitement is good thing, because excitement and energy are some of the driving forces behind the Little Give. When we say 48 hours, we really mean it…our teams define their own working schedules. It’s a competitive initiative, with final outcomes judged by an independent panel of experts. We’re all competitive by nature…so naturally that translates into late nights and early mornings, as teams put every ounce of competitive energy into delivering a final product that really brings value to our partner organizations. 

This year, that competitive energy will have a little extra boost when the hours get long and fatigue sets in thanks to the incredible generosity of our clients. This year’s Little Give is powered by Starbucks, and our awards presentation and celebration is sponsored by our friends at Labatt. We are so grateful for their support and thank them for their big hearts! 

Get excited. We are now less than a week away from the Little Give 2011! The magic of the event will be captured through real-time pictures, videos and stories posted both here and on our Facebook page. The way you see working at Edelman will never be the same! (We mean that in a good way). 

Thanks to everyone who has joined us at our Little Give-themed Foursies! With only a few weeks left until our annual charity initiative, it’s been a blast getting the office ready for the big (little) event with charity spotlights and mini weekly challenges (ie. the Little Games) at Foursies.

For our first Little Give-themed Foursies on May 5th, we were delighted to have The Remix Project & The SPOT bring in their artwork to colour our walls. It was also a pleasure to have live musical entertainment!

Last week, we were proud to showcase two additional charities; Humewood House & Camp Awakening. Drop by the cafe sometime this week to pick up a bag of jelly-beaned goodness as a treat. Also, congratulations to Rohini for being our first Little Games winner, taking away a sweet $25 gift card & some valuable spirit points!

See the slideshow below for a few snapshots of our latest festivities:

LAST CHANCE: Tell us who you looked up to as a kid and why in order to enter this week’s Little Game! Post your answer on Facebook and on the bulletin board to earn points! If you’re really competitive; include a photo or a video to earn bonus points. This ends today (May 18th) at 5pm.

Join us tomorrow at another festive Foursies to learn about a few more charity partners and to hear about our new challenge!

The Little Give in a nutshell.

Edelman Toronto is thrilled to announce our 2011 Little Give charity partners. Employees nominated and voted foo their favourite Toronto-based youth charities, and the result is nine worthy, wonderful causes to which we’ll be dedicating this year’s Little Give initiative:

Camp Awakening is an integrated, outdoor recreation program for youth, ages 9-18, with physical disabilities. Campers with a wide range of disabilities such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and amputation are integrated into the camp setting to experience all summer camp has to offer.

Finding young, talented filmmakers from Toronto’s priority neighbourhoods, City Life Film Project uses the arts to help them achieve their full potential. City Life’s program aims to provide relevant skills and a foundation for disadvantaged youth to find their voice and build towards a career in film, television and other creative industries.

Running programs that reach 3,000 children each year in the east downtown Toronto neighbourhoods of St. James Town, Cabbagetown, and Regent Park, Green Thumbs Growing Kids offers food growing and environmental education programs that teach children the importance of food and environment sustainability.

Providing a safe and caring environment for young pregnant/parenting women and their children, Humewood House offers residential services, life skills training, childcare, education and counseling delivered by a well-trained and dedicated staff to build the next generation of Canadian families.

Interval House provides a continuum of services and a holistic approach to help women and children escape violence and rebuild their lives. Families are nurtured from crisis intervention to re-integration into the workforce and the community with programs providing emotional support, practical help and life skills.

Kids Up Front provides access to arts, culture, sport and recreation for children who otherwise do not have the opportunity. Can’t Use Your Ticket? is their trademark program and it’s mandate is to redistribute unused tickets to movies, the theatre, and sporting events to underprivileged youth.

By teaching and mentoring promising young talent who otherwise would not have the opportunities to pursue their passion, The Remix Project is equipping the next generation of creative artists, recording artists and entrepreneurs.

A drop-in centre offering after-school programming and access to information, The SPOT provides a safe and welcoming place for at-risk young people to hang out, and helps build skills by including youth in all aspects of running the centre, from informing the programming to designing the centre’s signage.

By matching children aged 6-15 with trained and dedicated Youth Volunteers aged 16-29, Youth Assisting Youth helps improve life prospects for at risk and newcomer children by providing positive role models.

We’re one month away from embarking on a Canada-wide CSR initiative! Yes ladies and gentlemen, The Little Give is almost here. There are only three criteria for this event:

• The charities are aligned with Edelman’s international cause, youth
• The organizations are small, without resources to do what they need
• The “ask” must be something we can accomplish within 48 hours.

I have the pleasure of joining ten colleagues to form the Toronto Little Give committee. This is truly a remarkable group of people, volunteering their time in support of a great cause. So who are we? Visit us on Facebook or read below for select member profiles.

Stay giving,

Erica

Reason for joining the committee: You know that expression about the squeaky wheel? Well, I squeaked and wound up on this committee. In all seriousness, I joined Edelman two days after last year’s event took place. The project sounded too good to pass up - how could I NOT join?

Person of inspiration: My little brother - he’s not afraid to be unique and treats EVERYONE with respect.

Favourite childhood game/treat: Crazy Eight Countdown with a side of Go-Fish!

Reason for joining the committee: I still think about last year’s Little Give and what an incredible experience it was. This year, I really wanted to be part of the planning process and work with people across all practices to execute another amazing Little Give!

Person of inspiration: My mom because she’s really set an amazing example for me. She has shown me that you can have a successful career, loving marriage, great relationships with friends and a supportive family.

Favourite childhood game/treat: Watching family videos with me in them. Is that vain?

Reason for joining the committee: Little Give 2010; the people

Person of inspiration: My Bubby (Helena Glazer): Holocaust survivor, 2 daughters, 8 grandchildren, 9 great-grandchildren (10th on the way), landlord.

Favourite childhood game/treat: Cheetos (The only way my parents could keep me quiet for our frequent five hour trips to Montreal. I’d arrive orange, but happy).

Reason for joining the committee: Had an amazing time last year and wanted to be more involved this time around!

Person of inspiration: Jann Arden

Favourite childhood game/treat: Playing with my pretend lawnmower that made BUBBLES! (And I wish I still had it…)

Reason for joining the committee: My team thinks I have a cold heart (not really true - I hope).

Person of inspiration: Jane Goodall

Favourite childhood game/treat: Chinese Checkers

Reason for joining the committee: The role was thrust upon me; and I’m certainly grateful for that. Last year’s Little Give was truly a transformative event.

Person of inspiration: Kennedy, Lennon & Branson

Favourite childhood game/treat: I lived for Lego. My ambition in life was to replicate London, England out of Lego…and I did a pretty swell job if I may say so myself!

Reason for joining the committee: I was looking for an opportunity to get more acquainted with Edel-peeps from other practices and to get more involved in Edelman Toronto. After hearing about last year’s event, I knew I’d found the right way to do it.

Person of inspiration: I have to pick one? Anyone who has been struck by illness or tragedy and still finds the energy to fight for their cause, be it for additional research, public awareness, or prevention. It’s noble and exhausting, and when I consider my own motivation and energy levels when I’ve got something minor like a cold or flu or when I’m feeling sorry for myself, I can’t help but be amazed by the selflessness and strength it takes to do that.

Favourite childhood game/treat: T-ball was awesome. The best thing about it? IF a ball was actually hit (and I do mean IF), every kid on the field would abandon whatever “position” they were playing to chase it down. Except that one kid in the outfield who was daydreaming/birdwatching/generally not paying any attention whatsoever. Hilarious.

Reason for joining the committee: I love the passion and drive that fuel non-profit work, and want to be a part of bringing that to Edelman through the Little Give.

Person of inspiration: Sally Armstrong, for her courage to tell the stories no one else is telling.

Favourite childhood game/treat: Bubblicious Gum

Reason for joining the committee: I had such a great time participating last year that when the opportunity came up, I knew I had to get involved as an organizer this time around. The 48 hours we donated were some of the most rewarding hours I’ve ever spent. Can’t wait to see how the team this year will blow it out of the water!

Person of inspiration: Arlene Dickinsin. I once attended a conference where she was a keynote speaker. For her, entrepreneurship was not a career choice, it was out of survival for her and her family.

Favourite childhood game/treat: Guess Who? and Cheesestrings!

Reason for joining the committee: Good people + good causes = guaranteed wins.

Person of inspiration: I’m easily & often inspired, by “builders” generally (artists, teachers, entrepreneurs, parents, grandparents…)

Favourite childhood game/treat: Sleeping in a pile of Lego/the crumbly bits at the bottom of the KFC bucket.