Social Responsibility
Business is about more than making a profit – it’s about making a difference. Inside and outside the classroom, Asper students lead annual fundraising drives and raise awareness for charitable causes in their community and across the country.
5 Days for the Homeless
Driven by the need to shine a light on youth homelessness, six Asper students slept outside on the U of M’s Fort Garry campus for five cold nights in March 2014.
The Winnipeg 5 Days for the Homeless campaign, organized by the Commerce Students’ Association, raised over $27,350 for Resource Assistance for Youth (RaY), a local organization supporting homeless youth.
5 Days for the Homeless began at the University of Alberta and became a national initiative in 2008.To date, the campaign has raised over $985,000 for charitable organizations across the country and has spread its message from coast to coast.
Participant Justin Monton says, “Finding out there are still people out there who want to make even the smallest difference through their donations is what kept me warm those five freezing nights.”
Shinerama
In September 2013, hundreds of university students donned bright orange t-shirts and hit the streets of Winnipeg to shine shoes for a great cause. Shinerama is the national student fundraising campaign for the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Organized by Asper students, the U of M’s 2013 campaign raised over $35,000.
Campaign co-chair Dorian Rourke, a fourth-year BComm student, says, “Many of the young people that helped on this campaign are going to be future business leaders. Initiatives like Shinerama shape their values and change the corporate world for years to come.”
Chillin’ for Charity
At the Chillin’ for Charity fundraiser in November 2013, over 50 Asper students took turns leaping into an outdoor pool of icy water to raise money for the United Way of Winnipeg. They raised over $17,500 – and countless goose bumps – for their bravery. Each year, business schools across Western Canada host their own Chillin’ for Charity event as the charitable component of the Jeux de Commerce (JDC) West undergraduate business school competition.
Team co-captain André Cadieux says, “JDC West highlights the ‘holistic business professional’ and Chillin’ for Charity is a fantastic way for our team members to take their student experience to the next level while creating a positive impact in our community. This event brought us closer together as a team and closer together as a community.”