A piece on corporate philanthropy featured in Diabetes Dialogue, Spring 2016

1. DIABETES DIALOGUE • SPRING 2016 • CANADIAN DIABETES ASSOCIATION34
aSSOCIATION
spotlight[aSSOCIATION
spotlight[
HOUSE AD
EXPOS
From left to right: Bruce Cooke, GTA
market director, Dignity Memorial Group;
Colleen Bone, office manager and community
liaison, Scarborough Giffen-Mack Funeral
Home; Jay Branton, Eastern Canada managing
director for Dignity Memorial Group;
Blake Brooks, funeral home director of
Jerrett Vaughan Chapel; Rick Blickstead,
president and CEO, Canadian Diabetes
Association; and Richmond Hill deputy
mayor Vito Spatafora (2011 CDA regional
Volunteer of the Year award winner).
DIGNITY MEMORIAL GROUP (DMG) does not just talk the talk
about diabetes; its staff members walk the walk—literally—with
their “Walk of Memories” event in support of the Canadian Diabetes
Association (CDA).
“The Dignity Memorial network in Toronto is committed to fighting
diabetes by funding research and advocacy. We choose to fight the
disease for ourselves and our families, the families we serve, and our
community,” says Jay Branton, Eastern Canada managing director
for the network of organizations, which provide funeral, cremation,
and cemetery services.
The annual event started in 2008 “as a way to honour the loved
ones of the families we serve,” says Branton. About 30 doves are
released at the beginning of the walk, which each year takes
participants through a local neighbourhood in Ontario. In 2015,
the event was organized by Blake Brooks, the funeral home director
of Jerrett Vaughan Chapel in Thornhill, Ont. Designed for all ages
and fitness levels, that walk offered a variety of routes, ranging
in distance from a half-kilometre to more than five kilometres,
through the historic community of Thornhill, which is located
just north of Toronto.
To date, “Walk of Memories” has raised $86,000, and more than
100 staff, families, and volunteers participate, along with local business
and community supporters who donate to the event.
“The CDA values our partnership with DMG, which helps to raise
much-needed funds for our medical research, and for supporting
our diabetes education program for children with type 1 diabetes at
Camp Huronda in Huntsville, Ont.,” says Anita Mah, senior major
gift officer for the CDA.
So why did DMG choose diabetes as the cause that the company and
its staff would support? “We know diabetes is prevalent not only among
our associates, but also for the families we serve and in the communities
where we live. Supporting a cause that affects them is essential to
making a difference in their lives. But to make a lasting impact, we must
unite with the community to raise awareness of the dangers of diabetes,”
says Branton, adding, “It’s our honour to help the CDA fund needed
research to find a cure.”
To learn how your organization can work with the Canadian Diabetes
Association, visit diabetes.ca/corporatesupport.
“We have staff members who are affected
directly or indirectly by diabetes. We are proud
to hold the Walk of Memories event in support
of all those affected by diabetes.”
– Jay Branton, Eastern Canada managing director, Dignity Memorial Group
Dignity Memorial Group
MEET OUR SUPPORTERS:
By Denise Barnard
Jay Branton, Eastern Canada managing
director for Dignity Memorial Group, presents
Rick Blickstead, president and CEO of the
Canadian Diabetes Association, with a cheque
from the 2015 Walk of Memories event.