MONTREAL, Sept. 23, 2015 /CNW Telbec/ - The 2015 edition of the Par pur plaisir… de donner! Day, the annual employee volunteer activity of the Société des casinos du Québec (SCQ) started this morning with the collection and sorting of foodstuffs at Moisson Montréal. Organized within the partnership framework 4 casinos, 4 Moisson, the day allows employees of the four provincial casinos and the SCQ headquarters to participate, outside of work hours, in a huge volunteer operation that benefit the four participating Moisson food banks.
Mr. Claude Poisson, President of Operations for SCQ, and Gregory Charles, spokesperson for Quebec's Casinos, chose to start their employee encouragement and engagement tour at Moisson Montréal at around 10 am in front of a crowd of 40 Montreal Casino employees. The pair will then head for 2 pm to one of the grocery stores of the Casino du Lac-Leamy area where employees will do a food drive benefiting Moisson Outaouais. The tour will then continue at a grocery store in Saint-Jovite at 4:30 pm to join the employees of the Casino du Mont-Tremblant associated with Moisson Laurentides. Finally, volunteers from the Casino de Charlevoix will be rolling up their sleeves to help the Service alimentaire et d'aide budgétaire de Charlevoix-Est (SAAB), affiliated with Moisson Saguenay.
"We are proud that each of the four Québec casinos has made a concrete gesture towards the food bank in their region with the goal of keeping the partnership 4 casinos, 4 Moisson, initiated in 2014, alive and well. All profits from these activities will enable us to develop sustainable solutions for those who find themselves in precarious situations in Montreal and Quebec, stated Dany Michaud, Executive Director of Moisson Montréal. Thank you SCQ for your support in our fight against food insecurity, which affects close to 400,000 people across Quebec!"
The Par pur Plaisir… de donner! Day will gather close to 200 employees who will donate their time to carry out various activities from sorting food to meal preparation, as well as the collection of foodstuffs from supermarkets across the province.
"I am honoured to go out and meet the employees that I have often had the opportunity to interact with in the casinos. Today, these good-hearted people are rallying together to help the community in their region. I was raised in a home where mutual assistance counted heavily. I was taught at a young age to be proactive in meeting the real needs of others and help my neighbour. I am even more proud to be here today and encourage the employees of the Québec casinos.", said Gregory Charles.
It is worth mentioning that the SCQ, who was already offering timely support to certain regional Moisson food banks by way of activities soliciting their employees' engagement, has chosen to support the food insecurity cause in a sustainable way and make a commitment towards the following four Moisson food banks: Montreal, Saguenay, Outaouais and Laurentides. The first phase of the partnership involves the organization of recurring events benefitting said organisation, such as volunteerism activities, foodstuffs collection and fundraising campaigns. On September 9th, 2015, the SCQ invited some 20 partners and suppliers to participate in the annual golf antitournament Far from the Greens, Close to the Heart (Loin des verts, près du cœur), which raised $37,500. The second phase of engagement will require other Quebec companies and organisations to join the movement, created by the SCQ, alongside the four Moisson of Quebec in the fight against food insecurity.
In this solidarity spirit, Moisson Montréal receives today a $25,000 donation of from the Casino de Montréal! The money comes from, among others, a multitude of slot machine tickets of low values ($0.05, $0.10 or $0.25) abandoned by clients of the Casino de Montréal.
About Moisson Montréal
A non-profit organization founded in 1984, Moisson Montréal is today the largest food bank in Canada. Through its centre for collecting, sorting and distributing emergency food assistance, the organization allocates nearly 1,000 tons of food per month to close to 250 accredited community organizations on the Island of Montreal. In turn, these organizations provide food assistance to 140,000 people, including 40,000 children between the ages of 0 and 5. Moisson Montréal receives funding and supplies mainly through donations. Its operations require the collaboration of nearly 8,000 volunteers each year and result in the redistribution of about 13 million kilos of foodstuffs, representing a total value of close to $61 million. Winner of the 2015 Novae Corporate Citizenship Prize in the Supply category for its Food Recovery Program with Supermarkets. For additional information: www.moissonmontreal.org
About the SCQ
The Société des casinos du Québec (SCQ), a subsidiary of Loto-Québec, is responsible for operating and developing Québec's casinos and Espacejeux.com, Loto Québec's online gaming platform. Close to 10,000 direct, indirect and spinoff jobs have been created or are maintained by the SCQ. The Corporation purchases goods and services from over 2,300 Québec suppliers and pays close to $200 million in taxes to both the provincial and federal governments every year, making it powerful tool for developing regional economies across Québec. The SCQ is also a major tourism partner in four regions of Québec thanks to its casinos in Montréal, Charlevoix, Gatineau and Mont-Tremblant.
SOURCE MOISSON MONTREAL
Image with caption: "The Casino de Montréal gave Moisson Montréal a $ 25,000 check on September 23, 2015. From left to right: Kevin Taylor, Chief Operating Officer at the SCQ, Gregory Charles, spokesperson for the SCQ, Dany Michaud, CEO of Moisson Montreal and Claude Poisson, President of Operations of the SCQ (CNW Group/MOISSON MONTREAL)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20150923_C1462_PHOTO_EN_504565.jpg
Alexandra Carpentier, Communications coordinator, Moisson Montréal, 514 701-4206, [email protected]
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