Johnston Group created the Advisor Charitable Match Program to team up with our advisors across the country who are supporting community initiatives that make a difference.
Garry Peters’s cousin’s son plays basketball and rugby, enjoys bike riding and has cerebral palsy which has kept him in a wheelchair most of his life.
“I have seen first-hand how activity has helped him grow as an individual and become a healthy and successful adult,” says Garry.
“I am also very fortunate to have two children that are fully-abled, but I do not want to take that for granted,” he says, which is why he contributes to the programs and services offered by Cerebral Palsy Kids and Families. Most, if not all, funds donated go directly into a range of programs and events that create a positive and consistent support system for families and give their children a chance to experience the simple joys of being a kid.
CP Kids & Families runs recreational and social programming that engages kids in music and movement, offers support for family members, helps with funding for adapted equipment, lends out adapted bikes, holds summer camps and adapted adventures like tobogganing, and creates many other opportunities.
“There’s so much more they could be doing,” says Garry. “They have tons of great ideas, but they just don’t have the funding dollars.”
These activities put smiles on the kids’ faces. But Garry points out, as the staff and volunteers at these outings take the reins, it also gives the parents a break while their child goes off to have fun with other kids. “They can come and don’t have to worry about things like how to take a disabled child sledding, which helps these families experience more together,” says Garry.
Garry is a local advisor with Clear View Insurance Ltd. in Calgary, AB for Chambers Plan group insurance. The plan’s administrator, Johnston Group, was excited to help share Garry’s story and match his contribution through their Advisor Charitable Match Program, which is designed to support charitable organizations that are having a direct impact on their local communities.
Garry hopes CP Kids & Families will be able to use this double donation as a “force multiplier” to fund something like a barbecue or other events to generate more interest and donations that also add more opportunities for families to be involved.
“Most of their staff have a child with cerebral palsy, and they are passionate about the cause. Every time I visit their office it is inspiring to see the joy on the kids’ faces and the good they are doing for so many families in Calgary.”
