RBC: The Transformative Power of Corporate Citizenship
This past September, the KGH Foundation hosted ‘Heart of Gold’, our marquee fundraising event held every two years to support the advancement of world-class care at Kelowna General Hospital. Heart of Gold has become legendary in the philanthropic community, not only for its exquisite themes and marvelous décor, but because the guests arrive ready to do their part. This year, together, they raised over $1.3 million in a single evening.
Anyone who works in event planning knows that pulling off a soiree of this scale is no small feat. It takes hundreds of helping hands, and in this case, volunteers. For the past several Heart of Gold events, many guests have found that the smiling faces checking them in felt oddly familiar… like someone they’ve met before, even had pleasant conversation with, but just can’t quite put a finger on where.
That’s because they are usually behind a wicket in a branch on the corner of Pandosy and Cedar or across from the mid-town movie theatres, helping with a deposit, or cash for travelling, maybe opening an account for your nine year old daughter.
They give of their time voluntarily; their desire to give back to their community is genuine.
In addition, their employer, RBC Royal Bank, also gave $20,000 to support the cause; JoeAnna’s House, a home away from home for the families of patients who must travel to KGH for specialist care. The KGH Foundation events team has relied on local RBC Royal Bank staff volunteers to manage the Heart of Gold registration.
“The RBC Royal Bank volunteers are the first to greet our guests when they arrive at this very important fundraising event,” notes Chandel Schmidt, Director of Annual Programs for the KGH Foundation. “They are so enthusiastic and are an integral part of our events team.”
“We are really proud of RBC’s commitment to local, corporate citizenship,” said Pam Shaw, RBC Regional Vice President BC Okanagan Kootenay. “It makes our staff feel really connected to their community and their clients, to be able to give back in this way.”
“Many of our staff and clients have experienced the hardship of having to travel for medical care first-hand,” said Ray Warren, RBC Vice President Commercial Financial Services, Okanagan Kootenay Region. “To give back by supporting JoeAnna’s House is a source of great pride for our team.”
The best part is charity is sneaky… in a good way (like magic!). Not only does it transform the lives of the people that it’s designed to help, but it transforms the ones giving. It is changing our hospital. It is changing our community. It is changing us.
It’s why we say around here, ‘giving changes everything’.