An $8,220 donation to the Fondation des caisses populaires acadiennes with Legs for Literacy

More than 200 employees of the Mouvement des caisses populaires acadiennes have responded to the invitation to Legs for Literacy which took place in Moncton on October 21. For a fourth consecutive year, the Fédération des caisses populaires acadiennes encouraged employees of the Mouvement to take part in this footrace by paying the registration fees. In addition, the Fédération also committed to donate $5 per kilometer covered by the runners of the Mouvement, to the Fondation des caisses populaires acadiennes.

Thanks to the participation of the employees of the Mouvement, who have covered a total of 1,644 kilometers, a donation of $8,220 was made to the Fondation, which is responsible for the Caisses populaires acadiennes’ literacy program, Lire, découvrir et grandir. Since 2009, the Fondation has been inviting employees of the Mouvement to take part in this footrace, and a total of $31,280 has since been donated through the Fédération.

This confirms once again the desire of the Mouvement to contribute to the health of its employees and also to promote literacy, a cause that is very important to the Caisses populaires acadiennes.

More than 2,400 runners and walkers took off in the event last Sunday in Moncton, which means that nearly 8% of participants were employees of the Mouvement. In fact, the Mouvement is the employer with the most participants registered in this race; with 208 runners and walkers, nearly 19% of the employees of the Mouvement had registered. Next year will mark the fifth anniversary of the participation of the employees of the Caisses populaires acadiennes, and we hope to surpass the record participation of 2011, as 230 employees had registered in the Legs for Literacy footrace.

About the Fondation des caisses populaires acadiennes

For the last 25 years, the Fondation has been committed to support New Brunswick’s education sector, through scholarships or educational programs.

The Fondation has kept its word, having given postsecondary education scholarships to more than 2,200 students, and having made major donations to colleges and universities over the years.

The Fondation is also bearer of the literacy program Lire, découvrir et grandir, which aims to allow children from kindergarten to second grade to reach an acceptable reading level at the end of their second year of schooling.

More than half a million dollars have been given in the form of donations of books in schools and in activities to raise awareness and to encourage reading since the program was launched in 2005.

About Legs for Literacy

Since 2000, AstraZeneca Legs for Literacy has grown into the largest running event in New Brunswick.

This footrace was founded by Kevin Robart, a local runner, and a dynamic team of volunteers in order to support literacy programs in local schools. In its first year, the footrace featured races of 5 km and 10 km. Over the years, a half marathon was added and in 2005, the marathon was also added.

Thanks to the outstanding support of the community, the runners and the sponsors, the race has had tremendous success: in 2005, a total of 268 took part in the race (only 46 having crossed the finish line). In 2006, nearly 800 runners crossed the finish line.

In 2011, charitable donations to literacy projects totalled $53,000. To this day, a total of $237,000 has been collected.