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by Katie Dennis on Tue, Jul 07, 2015 @ 08:07 AM
Customers donate more than $35,000 to Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation
Edmonton Valve President Keith Johns presenting the cheque to the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation CEO and President Mike House (left). One of the two Stollery Bears at the golf course #stollerygolf (right).
One of the great pleasures of working with our customers is seeing how much they care about our community. They showed their spirit again this year at our 2015 Charity Golf Tournament for the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation. The June 24 tournament raised more than $35,000 for the foundation, plus more than $1,100 for Kids Up Front, which provides access to arts, culture, sports and recreation to children who otherwise would not have the opportunity.
With more than 100 customers coming out, there were three things helped this year's tournament be such a success. First, we had a beautiful day (not like the wind and rain that greeted us last year). Second, we made an extra effort to get the word out on social media with the hashtag #stollerygolf to raise awareness. Some executives from Swagelok's Ohio headquarters also made a special trip to Edmonton for a chance to meet and greet our customers.
And we had a pro golfer come in and do a $1 million hole-in-one competition. Our own Dave Flett from Drayton Valve & Fitting got the opportunity to take his shot. Unfortunately, it didn't go in the cup.
Edmonton tradition
Our tournament has become something of a tradition at Edmonton Valve, and we have been fortunate enough to be featured in the foundation's Spring 2015 magazine, Heroes. (See page 34 of the Spring 2015 magazine for the full article.)
As the magazine notes, our customers have helped raise more than $500,000 for the foundation since 2000 by participating in the golf tournament. Some of them donate money from their own fundraising events held prior to the tournament.
You might wonder how a valve and fitting distributor ended up picking a hospital foundation as the centerpiece for philanthropy. Our President, Keith Johns, has childhood memories of long car trips from Northern Ontario to Toronto, five hours each way, when the family had to take his sister for special medical care for her eyes. The golf tournament, then, isn't just random corporate giving. It's rooted in personal experience.
It's gratifying to see our customers showing their own connection to the community, with their participation and dollars, as well as their words. It made the day a bit brighter for all of us.
Additional resources
- We'd Rather Have Customer Loyalty Than Mere Satisfaction
- Quick-Connect Fittings Make Maintenance Easier
- Katie Dennis and Taryn Hardes - the Architects of the Edmonton Valve Website
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