|
News & Announcements4/21/2010 | Toronto staff climb one of the world’s tallest for WWF Andrew Petts says he experienced a “bittersweet” moment as he neared the top of the CN Tower. “I ran up what I thought was the last three or four flights of stairs and as soon as I got to the top they told me I did a good job, and that there were seven more flights of stairs to get to the observation deck,” recalls Petts, a BLJC MAC co-ordinator. After the initial sting of more stairs, Petts completed the climb, and refers to the event as “probably one of funnest things I’ve done.” At 23, Petts was the youngest of 13 BLJC staff member to participate in the event, which benefits the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Canada. Each BLJC team member was asked to raise $150 for the cause and join more than 6,000 climbers in the ascent of 144 floors or 1,776 steps. BLJC executive vice-president Mark Marquis was the fastest of the group, climbing one of the world’s tallest buildings in approximately 17 minutes. He says the race quickly turned into a friendly competition between himself, Jeremy Gonsalves, customer service representative II, and Linda Hicks, wife of BLJC president Gordon. Marquis credits the BLJC logo, which was easy to spot in the crowd, traffic management — weaving in and out of the crowds — and his Type A personality as major contributors to his winning time. Brian Fellows, senior vice-president of client business groups, and Michael Schirmer, director of continuous improvement and strategic initiatives, also completed the climb in less than 20 minutes. Overall, BLJC’s participation raised $3,200 towards WWF, an accomplishment that makes Ved Singal proud. The lease auditor for Advisum Corp., a subsidiary of BLJC, co-ordinated the event, having participated in the climb for the past three years. He says WWF’s goal to tackle climate change is in line with BLJC’s vision and values of sustainable business practices, which motivated him to organize the event as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility activities. According to Singal, the response from staff was positive, with many commenting that they would like to do the event next year. Having more people participate in next year’s race is something Arpita Patel would like to see. The accounting reporting assistant says anyone can do the climb as long as they pace themselves, and the event is an “amazing experience” that builds self esteem. “Just join and you will feel great,” says Patel. Marquis agrees, adding the milestone is well worth the workout. “You get an incredible feeling of accomplishment when you come out of the stairwell at the top and soak in that beautiful view," he says. "People are huffing and puffing but absolutely everyone is smiling and giving each other high fives.” According to the WWF website, this year’s climb raised more than $1.2 million to fight climate change. |
