Supporting good causes leads to good feelings

Earlier this month we attended a fundraiser for Matthew House at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema. They screened the Reese Witherspoon film, the Good Lie, a story about a group of Sudanese refugees who settle in Kansas City. Matthew House has been providing accommodation and settlement services for newly arrived refugees to Toronto since 1998.
Actor Emmanuel Jal, having been a child soldier himself, lent his support to Matthew House. Unable to attend the event, he sent his representatives to the screening to raise awareness and posted info about this special screening on his personal media sites encouraging Torontonians to support Matthew House.
We became involved last year when we sponsored a family for the Holidays, a single mom and her teenage daughter who fled the Congo under excruciating circumstances.
We’ve been fortunate over the years to help causes and organizations either by writing a cheque or donating our work to help them raise money but this was a different experience altogether.
We were privileged to meet the family when we delivered the gifts. They were not expecting to be sponsored, so it was a big surprise! Seeing the impact that this simple gesture had on them was truly one of the most humbling and rewarding experiences of our lives. Let’s just say there were a lot of hugs and tears!
The screening of the movie about the Sudanese refugees was a great idea for their fundraiser—it was entertaining while raising awareness and raising funds. What are other great fundraising ideas? Share them with us here or on our Facebook and Twitter pages.