#GetVocal About the Need for Organ Donation
Why does Canada have one of the worst organ and tissue registration rates of all developing countries in the world despite the increasing wait list? David Foster wants to know that you can take two minutes to help save a life, with April being recognized as National Organ & Tissue Donation Awareness Month. Foster and the David Foster Foundation are using this month to draw awareness to the constant need for support and encourages all Canadians to get #GetVocal. The national non-profit Canadian charitable organization is dedicated to providing financial support for non-medical expenses to Canadian families with children in need of life-saving pediatric organ transplants.
“This month really helps raise awareness and highlights the importance of organ and tissue registration and donation,” said Foster, Founder of The David Foster Foundation. “Sadly, the need for registered organ donors is often overlooked but we want to let everyone know that they can help change this. It takes less than two minutes to register and together we can make a significant change in the lives of so many people.”
Organ and tissue donor rates in Canada are disappointing and in 2020, registration was down 39 percent due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 4,500 Canadians are currently waiting for a life-saving organ transplant and each year upwards of 1,600 people are added. Of those on the wait-list, the number of deaths work out to roughly five deaths per week and one death every 30 hours, all which could have been avoided. One organ donor can save up to eight lives and improve the quality of life for up to 75 people.
“This is an important month for all of us to draw awareness to the alarming numbers and to the urgent need for organ donation — let’s all #GetVocal,” said Michael Ravenhill, Chief Executive Officer at The David Foster Foundation.
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You Know the Brand, Here’s the Foundation
The John Deere Foundation will invest $200 million over the next 10 years in initiatives that will bring to life John Deere’s higher purpose: We run so life can leap forward. The financial commitment builds significantly on the Foundation’s legacy of philanthropy. Since its founding in 1948, the Foundation has awarded over $340 million in grants. As part of its 10-year commitment, the Foundation will invest:
• $100 million in the families and youth who live, work, and learn in John Deere’s home communities to ensure their inclusive and equitable access to resources and educational opportunities critical for human dignity and self-sufficiency. Annual investments of two million dollars in food banks will provide the equivalent of 100 million meals over the next decade, and investments in youth education will reach at least one million underserved and underrepresented youth.
• $50 million in farmers throughout the world to bolster their capacity to make a living, feed a growing global population, reduce inequality, and protect the world around us. Through its work with a range of global partners that serve smallholder and resource-constrained family farmers, the Foundation will help 15 million farmers unlock their enormous potential.
• $50 million in John Deere’s extraordinary workforce — its greatest asset — to further mobilize and build on their enormous volunteer talents and generosity to strengthen their communities and improve lives around the world.
“The urgency of running today with the vision of a better tomorrow is John Deere at our core,” said John May, Chairman and CEO of Deere & Company and Chairman of the John Deere Foundation. “The Foundation’s financial commitment holds true to this purpose by investing deeply in the people we serve to overcome the challenges they face today and create for themselves paths to a more prosperous tomorrow.”
The Foundation’s 10-year commitment aligns to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and the Foundation will track and report investments against relevant targets and indicators, said Nate Clark, President of the John Deere Foundation. In the coming months, the Foundation will announce several key grants that will illustrate how this commitment is being put into action, Clark said.
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Brand New RCAF Foundation Flies a Major Initiative for Canadian Youth
Twenty scholarships are going to be awarded to students for study in areas related to aviation or aerospace as part of the brand new The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Foundation. The organization unveiled its purpose, mission, new identity, and website along with a major commitment to furthering the education of Canadian students in the areas of S.T.E.M. (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). The mission of the RCAF Foundation is to recognize, foster and celebrate the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) through community engagement, education programs and commemorative activities.
Former Commander of the RCAF Lieutenant-General (Ret’d) Michael Hood, CMM CD said. “I loved being a member of the RCAF, serving my country, being the face of Canadian commitment and generosity in my many missions abroad. And I was privileged to serve alongside so many talented men and women. Today through the RCAF Foundation we will honour and celebrate our history and the many men and women who have made the RCAF the renowned and cherished institution it is today.”
The RCAF Foundation’s new logo and brand looks back to the nearly 100 years of the Royal Canadian Air Force with the classic roundel imagery but also forward over the horizon and into the future. Jeremy Diamond, Founding CEO, RCAF Foundation, said, “This identity reflects our purpose to inspire Canadians to learn about and support this important national institution, and highlight the future of Canadian aviation, ensuring its dynamic growth and expansion.”
The Foundation’s first campaign #ONE DAY I WILL challenge asks youth across Canada to share their hopes for their future in a short video clip. The challenge launched on April 12 on Instagram.
The Foundation will also contribute to the Royal Canadian Air Force Association so they can meet their entire 2021 fundraising goal and bring their Trust Portfolio to a total of $300,000 which is annually leveraged to award Cadet flight training scholarships. Twenty scholarships will be awarded to students for study in a S.T.E.M. area that could lead to a future role in areas related to the fields of either aviation or aerospace. The scholarships will be awarded by mid August of 2021. The criteria for application will be posted to the RCAF Foundation web site by May 15, 2021.
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