Thank you for your generosity

This holiday season our Compass Rose team was reminded of the overwhelming abundance of good will, generosity and compassion that prevails in our community.

We have been a long-time supporter of The Shoebox Project, which provides women in local shelters with holiday boxes filled with cozy items, delicious treats as well as necessities like toothbrushes, soap and hairbrushes. This year we stepped up our involvement, serving as a community drop-off hub and a distributor to several of the locations that serve women affected by homelessness.

This gave us an opportunity to see what our community is made of first hand, and the final numbers are staggering. There were hundreds of boxes lovingly and personally created through donations of filled boxes, items or financial contributions. Six shelters provided with boxes. Nearly 400 women going through a tough patch whose spirits will be lifted this holiday season.

There was so much love and compassion that went into preparing and stuffing these boxes. Donations poured in from school children, from seniors and from members of all ages in our community. They poured in from our amazing clients. They poured in from other public affairs firms, who responded so generously to our friendly challenge. 
Many of the donors included genuinely heart-felt messages of support, empathy and caring. Every woman receiving a Shoebox will know they are loved, valued and cared for by their community. 

A special thank you to the amazing Compass Rosers Samantha Thompson, Kathleen Harris, Kat Walsh who spent countless hours leading and organizing this initiative; their enthusiasm and positive energy are contagious. And thanks to so many others on the Compass Rose team who volunteered their time to make this initiative so special.

Another special thanks to Compass Rose founder Jacquie LaRocque, who never misses an opportunity to help improve the lives of Ottawa residents; her tireless energy, generous spirit and dedicated outreach sparked a tremendous, truly collective effort of which we can all be proud.

Our sincere gratitude to so many whose support, hard work and generosity are making such a positive impact for so many women and building a more compassionate and caring community. 

We wish everyone a wonderful and restful holiday season.