CR Associates Load Coffers Of The Doc And Woody Fund For CHEO

It was another banner day for the Doc and Woody Fund for the Operating Rooms at CHEO on Friday with thanks in no small part to the incredible men and women from CR Associates and the many involved in the insurance industry. With the money still being counted, we are in the range of $12,000 raised from the Wint Rushton Memorial Golf Tournament (in memory of Director Mark Rushton's father and founder).

CR Associates, in the last three years, has raised over $30,000 for the Doc and Woody Fund alone and much more for many other Ottawa area charities since their creation in 1977, the same year CHEZ 106 was created.

I was first introduced to Mark Rushton through a great friend of mine, Tony Lackey, who is now related to Mark. Mark and his co-directors chose the Doc and Woody Fund as their golf tournament charity because of their strong belief in the services provide by the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario. Our relationship has been solid ever since, though I regret that their contribution to our fund far out-weighs anything that Doc and Woody could reciprocate. It's not like they need the business plugs on our airwaves. Still, I love to tell a good tale of an amazing corporate citizen and a model pillar in our community.

Last night, I was beside myself; again, the word shock comes to mind, just like the first time they blew me away with what was to be my strongest impression of what these individuals are actually made of.

Two years ago, the CR Associates tournament raked in close to $4,000 dollars for the Doc and Woody Fund. I was so appreciative of the generosity of the participants that I felt compelled to express to them that their dollars were going somewhere good, somewhere tangible, where the results are visualized. After, I had expressed my thanks, the directors huddled at the front of the room at the Canadian Golf and Country Club and broke from the huddle like The Renegades on first and goal. Mark Rushton took the microphone and proceeded to announce that the directors were going to match the money raised from the tournament and round it off to $8,000. Touchdown! My jaw dropped. It was humbling.

Last year, we were presented with a cheque for $10,000. This year, it's around $12,000 and I've been at a loss to articulate just what I feel about these people. Last night I tried to but, I confess, the sun and beer did as much to numb the senses as the impressive performance by these tremendous folks and I, after a couple of salient volleys, drifted at the mic. Thank god Mark stepped in and rescued the moment, much like I did once for him.

What you need to know about this group is that they are two industries that work together to help you when you suffer from a catastrophe; insurance and restoration. After witnessing devastation in the southern US by Hurricane Katrina, you must realize that victims need immediate assistance and, with the exception of New Orleans - a city not yet ready for the next step, the first people to get them back to some kind of forward progress are insurance adjusters. I golfed with these people many times and have often heard cell-phone conversations regarding the need for their assistance in Florida, The Caymans and wherever disaster has struck. They work long, tireless hours through those difficult times. Then there's CR Associates and their industry. They're the ones who help clean up. They're industrial strength and damned good at what they do.

Explaining it better than I can, here's a quote from their website:
CR Associates Ltd. has been serving the public, business, and insurance industry, in the fields of emergency services, cleaning, restoration, and renovation since 1977. From this backdrop CR Associates has developed a wide range of professional services and facilities which place CR in the vanguard of emergency restoration providers today. Many of our operations are unique, and take place in facilities specifically designed for our applications.

On top of all that, they raise a lot of money for good causes in the community. They're good people and I'm honoured to be associated with them.

I thank them. Doc thanks them. CHEO thanks them. And the tiny hearts will someday grow up healthy and strong enough to thank them all by themselves.