By Mark Kerzner, President, TMG The Mortgage Group
In the early Fall of 2013, I had the pleasure of meeting Daniel Germain, founder of Breakfast Club of Canada (http://www.breakfastclubcanada.org). Over the course of our meeting, Daniel shared his personal story with me -- to say I was touched was an understatement. In his passion and commitment to helping others in a number of countries around the world, Daniel then focused his attention to his own backyard right here in Canada.
What surprised me during our conversation was that he was also ‘interviewing’ us (TMG) to ensure we were a suitable partner, with shared values. He asked a lot of questions about TMG -- our history and our people. I believe one aspect that may have impressed him was not only our desire to raise money for his organization, but also our interest in getting involved in the school communities across the country.
As soon as we ‘officially’ kicked off our national commitment to support Breakfast Club of Canada (BCC), TMG’ers were volunteering in local schools and raising money through regional events. As well, our passion for this organization has encouraged others in our small business community, including lenders, suppliers and customers, to get involved and give as well. Within two months of launching our support for BCC we exceeded our first year fundraising objective.
On May 29, 2014, we marked our first ever TMG National Day in the Schools where 10 teams from PEI to Victoria helped serve nutritious breaks and hand deliver ‘Smile Bags’ to participating students in some schools. As president of TMG I am so proud of the level of engagement and am so excited to see how this initiative will continue to grow over time.
One in seven of our kids in Canada go to school hungry every day. For $1 we can feed one child. It’s that simple.
The volunteers of the Breakfast Club of Canada welcomes close to 130,000 kids every day. Canada is the envy of the world. We live up to that adoration in the way we treat our own at home.
On a personal level I want to thank John Charbonneau for introducing us to this amazing organization, which has given us the opportunity to give back in some small way.
Cheers,
Mark