Canadian Western Bank donates more than $1 million to children's charities through The Greater Interest GIC®

EDMONTON, Dec. 12, 2012 /CNW/ - Canadian Western Bank (CWB) is pleased to report $1,040,668 in total donations made to children's charities across Western Canada since 2008 as a result of The Greater Interest GIC® campaigns. The one million-dollar milestone was surpassed in October 2012.

"We're very excited to surpass this million-dollar mark for total donations made over the past five years as a result of The Greater Interest GIC^®," said Angela Saveraux, CWB's Community Investment Manager. "This started as a unique way of giving back to our communities, and has since become an investment product that both our clients and employees look forward to every year."

The Greater Interest GIC^®, offered annually in September and October, gives clients the opportunity to invest in a guaranteed investment product that offers a solid rate-of-return while also positively impacting their local community. Based on every dollar invested in The Greater Interest GIC^®, CWB makes a donation of 1/8% to the local Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) organization in the community where the investment was made. As a result of the 2012 campaign, CWB will make a corporate donation of $195,000 to seventeen BBBS organizations from Vancouver Island to Winnipeg.

"CWB plays a vital role in helping our agencies build meaningful relationships with local youth," said Joel Porter, Vice-President, Revenue Development, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada. "With the dollars donated by CWB this year alone, BBBS agencies will be able to provide mentors and role models for nearly 400 higher-risk kids. CWB's team understands our goals and they are highly engaged in helping us to achieve them."

About Canadian Western Bank
As the largest publicly traded Canadian bank headquartered in Western Canada, CWB is committed to supporting and contributing to communities at the local level. Through corporate donations, sponsorships and employee volunteerism, we strive to positively impact communities and social initiatives that are important to our clients and employees. In order to maximize the benefits of our contributions, we mainly focus our support in the areas of education, health and wellness, and community and civic services. Visit www.cwbankgroup.com/csr to learn more.

About Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada
For nearly one hundred years, Big Brothers Big Sisters has been making a positive difference in the lives of our nation's youth by developing and implementing a wide range of mentoring programs. Serving as role models, our mentors teach by example the importance of giving and giving back, of staying in school, and of having respect for family peers and community. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada provides quality mentoring services for more than 33,000 children and teenagers. Big Brothers Big Sisters currently has over 25,000 volunteer mentors working at 125 agencies that serve children in over 1,000 communities across the country. Learn how you could start something at www.bigbrothersbigsisters.ca.

SOURCE: Canadian Western Bank

Contact:

Angela Saveraux
Community Investment Manager
Canadian Western Bank
Phone: [phone]
E-mail: [email protected] 

Joel Porter
Vice-President, Revenue Development
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada
Phone: [phone] x16
E-mail: [email protected]