Curbex staff chowed down for a good cause today. Topper’s Pizza is known for their cheesy and delicious pizzas, but this lunch is a little different. Topper’s Pizza regularly raises funds for SickKids and today’s lunch did just that. This is the 5th year for the fundraising effort in support of SickKids Hospital in Toronto and Topper’s Pizza has donated over $200,000 so far! Curbex was happy to donate the cost of lunch in exchange for Topper’s delicious pizza.

Curbex in the Community:

Says graphic designer Janette: “Who doesn’t love pizza? Of course we jumped at the chance to eat pizza for a good cause!” SickKids Hospital in Toronto serves Ontario families and their children, and even internationally. It is a world-leading pediatric hospital on the cutting edge of children’s health research and treatment. If you’d like to learn more about Toppers Pizza and SickKids, you can visit the official page here. To learn more about SickKids, click here.

Curbex is known for their community involvement and charitable giving. To learn more about Curbex in the community, click here.

Two members of the Curbex team made time in their day to volunteer for the annual McDonald’s McHappy Day. Erin and Rebecca are account managers here at Curbex and normally spend their days answering hundreds of call and emails from their clients. On Wednesday however, they spent their morning doing a different kind of work: serving #McHappyDay customers at the Richmond Hill McDonald’s location!

Curbex in the Community:

Says Rebecca: “It was so busy! We had a great supervisor who made it look so easy, but man is it ever busy in there!” The annual fundraising event is in support of the Ronald McDonald House Charities^® and is in it’s 40th year this year. The fundraising event is original to Canada and has grown so popular that it is now held in 18 countries around the world. Ronald McDonald House Charities^® assist 30,000 families across Canada every year. If you’d like to learn more about McHappy Day, you can visit the official page here.

In addition to volunteering their time, Erin and Rebecca brought along a donation of one of Curbex’s retail products, the Downtowner, to help advertise the event on-site. This isn’t the only time Curbex has given back to the community; To Learn more about Curbex volunteering and donations, click here.

A few members of the Curbex team made it down for a beautiful morning at Angus UN Peacekeeper’s Park and Base Borden. The completion of the new 18 honorary pedestals Curbex installed at the park was perfect timing for the UN Peacekeeper’s Park Parade that marched to Base Borden for the centennial celebrations. Peacekeeper’s Park includes the memorial wall Curbex installed in 2012.

Curbex in the Community:

Curbex has donated or supplied heavily discounted signage for many years to many community organizations in the area. Most notably is the Oro African Church signage donated in summer 2016. The commemorative park houses several memorials to each of the UN Peacekeeper’s missions over the past decades, as well as a remarkable stone wall, carved with an honour roll of those killed from 1951 to present; 274 names in total. The Take a tour in the beautiful drone footage below.

When Curbex president, Garry Cooper, was first approached with the project of creating the memorial wall, he immediately jumped on board. Garry and the Curbex team co-ordinated the project and were able to reduce the price of the project from $100,000 to just $40,000. The remainder of the cost was fund-raised by the Huronia chapter of the Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping.

“He has put his heart and soul into it,” Says Fern Taillefer, vice-president of the Huronia chapter of the Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping “He has persuaded other businesses involved to either donate or discount materials.”

If you are unable to visit Peacekeeper’s Park in Base Borden, the above drone footage is a great way to experience the wonderful park. This website has a complete list of the honour roll names for those interested.

It’s been a long time coming, but the Oro African Church, located just north of Barrie, Ontario, is ready to be re-opened. In celebration of the restoration and grand re-opening, Curbex Media Group has donated a beautiful hand crafted timber frame sign for the property.

Curbex in the Community:

Curbex has a long history of supporting community initiatives, and it was easy to recognize the significance of the Oro African Church. The Cooper family lived just 5km from the church, and recognized that it was an important part of the community’s history. The commemorative sign was designed, built, and installed by Curbex’s talented craftsmen. The timber frame design was chosen to reflect the building techniques used in the church itself. Learn more about Curbex’s donation to the Oro African Church in CTV Barrie’s coverage below.

The History of the Oro African Church:

The African Episcopal Methodist Church is a National historic Site, and was built by African-Canadian settlers in the years following the War of 1812. Some of the settlers were veterans of an all-black militia unit called Runchey’s Coloured Corps which helped defend what would later be Canada. Many of these settlers volunteered to defend the province again, in the Rebellion of 1837. The church was well used by the local African-Canadian community until the 1930’s, and was abandoned in the 1940’s. Local residents lobbied to have the building repaired. The Township and the County have been maintaining and making improvements ever since. The recent restoration project was made possible by a federal grant and a local grassroots fundraising campaign. What is most significant about the Oro African Church, is that the settlers who built it were land owners “Oro-Medonte was the first place in the British empire that people were given grants of land regardless of ethnic background” read the full article here. You can read more about the Oro African Church and the African-Canadian settlers in the Oro area here. You can see many photos of the restoration process on the Facebook page here.