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Insurance brokers partner with scouts, guides
February 12, 1997; Canadian FundRaiser
One childhood memory that stays with of us is being driven by our parents to a Girl Guides or Scouts meeting. And it is precisely this warm identification with organizations that drive corporations to form partnerships with such groups in fundraising efforts. "I've been involved with the Scouts for most of my life," says James Madon, president of MFC Inc., a Montreal insurance brokerage which supports the local Girl Guides. "My grandfather, my father and my son have all been involved with Scouting and I have nothing but admiration for the organization."
Looking for philanthropic focus
This type of connection and familiarity with Scouting has prompted Madon and his brokerage to continue supporting Girl Guides in their fundraising endeavours. Every year, MFC purchases several hundred boxes of Girl Guide cookies, sells them on the Guides' behalf, and even gives them as corporate gifts to clients. "Our corporate policy on charities is that we must focus our efforts...we cannot be all things to all people," says Madon. "But the Girl Guides is one charity we felt as a company we believed in and wanted to support."
"As a province, we don't do much fundraising so this partnership with MFC is very helpful," says Mary Austin, provincial commissioner of Quebec for the Guides. The relationship between insurance brokers and Girl Guides has translated into a more formal partnership in other provinces such as Ontario and New Brunswick. In Ontario, there is a partnership between the Scouts, Girl Guides and the provincial insurance brokers association.
"We felt that the Scouts and Guides associations were compatible with our members and we wanted to find a group or organization which was community oriented," says Diane Wigley, president of Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario. "We didn't just want to sign a cheque; we wanted to get involved financially, but also to be able to get our members involved doing volunteer work," says Wigley. "Many of us were involved with the Scouts or Guides as kids. And now our children are there, and some of us are leaders."
A Bipper on every box...
The most visible example of the joint venture is the IBAO's logo "the Bipper", which is printed on each box of the new chocolate mint cookie. The new cookie was launched in 1993, and in 1995 the Girl Guides sold 1.5 million boxes. "The new cookie provided an ideal opportunity for an alliance that provides financial donations for our organization and more exposure," says Timmins-based Maureen Lawrence, provincial commissioner for Girl Guides in Ontario. "And the partnership gave insurance brokers a chance to get involved on a grassroots level with the charity they support."
The partnership, once launched in Ontario, opened doors for other provinces to jump on board. "Since the relationship with the insurance brokers was established in Ontario, it gave us the idea to pursue the same type of partnership in our province," says Verna Shaw, provincial commissioner of New Brunswick.
The insurance brokers association in New Brunswick felt it was a worthwhile proposition, but the initiative was more feasible there since it was already running well in Ontario which had developed the new cookie. "New Brunswick is a relatively small province; there is no way we would be able to make a large enough order of the cookies to make it financially worthwhile . Thanks to Ontario's volume, we are also able to run the program," Shaw says.
More partnerships to come
Shaw says the success of this venture with insurance brokers and Girl Guides shows there are "definite possibilities in developing other partnerships with industry leaders." Jim Georgeff, executive director of the Greater Toronto Region of Scouts Canada, agrees that the partnership is a natural fit. "I think that businesses want to be seen to care about the community which they serve, and this type of partnership benefits everyone involved," says Georgeff.
Although the partnership with Girl Guides is more structured and visible, insurance brokers also have an ongoing relationship with Scouts Canada. The IBAO is sponsoring the national Scout Jamboree to be held in Thunder Bay this summer. Tents and canoes across Ontario now display the IBAO logo. Brokers also provide office facilities, land, transportation and even sit on Guides and Scouts boards as outside representatives.
Last fall, the Metro Toronto chapter of Scouts Canada worked with an insurance broker to organize a new twist on an old tradition - Apple Day. While Guides sell cookies, Scouts have been selling apples for about 60 years. For the first time, insurance brokers bought bushels of apples for $50 each. Scouts then donated the apples to local food banks, and the pilot project raised $1,000. "We presented the brokers with a tax receipt and most importantly, a certificate for them to hang up in their agencies to show their customers the kind of good work they're doing," says Georgeff. "I see this as a good start to a long-term relationship."
The IBAO Wigley sees the partnership as very appropriate for insurance brokers in terms of corporate image. "We want to identify ourselves with a worthy cause. Working with the Guides and Scouts gives us a chance to be good corporate citizens and make a commitment to the leaders of tomorrow."