Sears In Your Community
The Sears In Your Community program features the ability for local stores to better report Sears support of their local and national charity partners to our customers. Our stores are encouraged to create and foster strong community links with their charity partner, as well local community groups, providing a place for charities to come in-store and publicize their programs. Sears has a strong tradition of caring for our communities and for our children and youth.
Sears Canada remains actively committed to the dual causes of children’s cancer charities and after-school programming for children and youth.
‘GOLD WEEKS’ FOR KIDS CANCER
SHOW YOUR FACE. MAKE A DIFFERENCE. FIGHT CHILDHOOD CANCER
Sears holds quarterly Gold Week with events at Sears stores to raise funds and awareness for local and regional children’s oncology hospital projects and research initiatives across Canada. Gold is the colour identified with the cause of children’s cancer. Through Gold Week and other fund-raising and community initiatives throughout the year, Sears is dedicated to the cause of providing support for children living with and beyond cancer. We invite all Canadians to SHOW YOUR FACE and MAKE A DIFFERENCE. Just like little kids make a face in defiance of things they don’t like, you too can step up, take a stand and ‘show your face’ in the fight against kid’s cancer. Watch for fun ‘show your face’ viral campaigns on the web and in cities near you, as well as at the Facebook page for Ben, the Sears Charity Bear!
Gold Weeks include a special ‘Round Up Your Bill’ campaign at our Customer Service Desks as well as at our catalogue call centres. Stores will also hold local events such as BBQ’s, bake sales and the like, involving local children’s cancer oncology centres and cancer care program providers, where you can learn more about children’s cancer.
Drop by your local Sears retail store for more details.
Sears Children’s Cancer Charities
Sears Children’s Cancer Charities initiatives are committed to helping children with cancer and their families across Canada. Sears is working with children’s oncology centres and organizations such as The Hospital for Sick Children, Operation Enfant Soleil, BC Children’s Hospital, IWK Health Centre and Stollery Children’s Hospital to raise funds and awareness for research and treatment initiatives which will fund programs that improve the lives of children living with cancer, as well as those recovering from the physical and emotional scars that can be part of survivorship. Donations to Sears Children’s Cancer Charities are administered and distributed through The Sears Canada Charitable Foundation.
Childhood cancer is an often overlooked fact of life for thousands of Canadian Children. Did you know?...
- In 2010, Sears Canada Charitable Foundation made a multi-year, $5 million commitment to fight childhood cancer. Half is being directed towards the completion of Sears Cancer Clinic - a state-of-the-art cancer clinic in Toronto that sees 25 per cent of all new cases of pediatric cancer in Canada and 60 per cent of all cases in Ontario. The remainder is being directed to support The Sears Childhood Cancer Fellowship.
- SickKids provides a full range of treatments for children requiring the most complex cancer treatments: chemotherapy, surgery, radiation, bone marrow transplantation and palliative care. It is the only children’s hospital in Ontario that provides bone marrow transplantation.
- Children and families across British Columbia continue to benefit from the generosity of Sears Canada. Sears’ contributions to childhood cancer care and research are helping to make cancer treatments safer, minimizing the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation, and supporting families through programs that provide the absolute best care for children.
Sears After-School Programming
Sears After-School Programming initiatives provide funding to quality, supervised after school programs that inspire young Canadians to believe in themselves so they can grow up to be healthy, confident adults. By investing in our young people today, we'll be making our communities better in the future. Through the years, we have supported leading programs such as the Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada, the Canadian 4-H Council, Scouts Canada, Sears I CAN SWIM and the Sears Ontario Drama Festival, among others.
The need for quality childcare outside the school day continues to be a major concern for Canadian families. Did you know?...
- Two-thirds of Canadian children are not sufficiently active for optimal physical and mental development. Recreation and physical activity are proven to reduce depression, stress, loneliness and self-destructive behaviour and crime in youth.
- Recent studies have shown that youth who are not involved in after-school programs are almost 50% more likely to use drugs and one-third more likely to be involved in an unintended pregnancy as a teen.
- Children from low-income families are three times less likely to participate in extracurricular learning opportunities than children from high-income families due to cost barriers.
We also respond to specific community needs through our nationwide network of stores and support facilities.
Sears Canada is a company who cares. We go beyond the traditional chequebook when it comes to helping our communities and Canada's youth.
For specific information about Sears In Your Community, please contact your local Sears store.
Sears In Your Community initiatives support partners such as:
Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada
Working with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada to expand and enrich after school programming for young people across Canada.
The Sears Great Canadian Chill – Stopping Kids Cancer Cold
The second Sears Great Canadian Chill comes to Toronto and Ottawa on January 1, 2012. Start the New Year with a splash by taking a dip into the icy-crisp waters of Ashbridges Bay in Toronto and Britannia Beach in Ottawa in support Canada's 16 pediatric oncology centers across the country that conduct research and support programs for children battling cancer. Bring family and friends out to “The Coolest Event on Earth” for a day filled with prizes, entertainment and fun!
Visit www.thesearsgreatcanadianchill.ca to find out more, register, and give kids with cancer and their families the support they deserve!
The Sears Great Canadian Run – The Relay To End Kids Cancer
The Sears Great Canadian Run is an exciting, fun, interactive and rewarding relay run and event. You, your family and friends can get involved and help us fight back against childhood cancer. For 2011, there will be three runs: West Vancouver to Whistler in September, Toronto to Collingwood/Blue Mountain in September and Ottawa to Montebello in October. Funds raised will help support pediatric oncology centres and organizations across the country that conduct research and support programs for children battling cancer. The latest GPS technology will help friends and family track runners’ progress along the route in a fun interactive way! At route’s end, celebrate with prizes, entertainment and good times!
Visit www.thesearsgreatcanadianrun.ca to find out more, register, and give kids with cancer and their families the support they deserve!
Sears Drama Festival ®
More than 10,000 students and teachers from more than 400 secondary schools, throughout Ontario and British Columbia respectively, participate each year in one of the largest student drama festivals in the world-the Sears Drama Festival!
Sears I CAN SWIM
Recognizing that physical activity and family interaction plays a significant role in a child's growth and development, Sears has teamed up with I CAN SWIM Inc., Swimming/Natation Canada and its provincial sections, to provide the I CAN SWIM program across Canada. For people of all ages and levels, this program teaches the essential skills at a pace that's right for everyone - even future Olympians!
Sears National Kids Cancer Ride
Sears Canada is proud to partner with Coast to Coast Against Cancer Foundation, a Canadian charitable organization which has raised over $2,500,000.00 through many varied cycling events to benefit children living with and beyond cancer and their families. As a major part of this on-going support initiative, cyclists from across Canada are be able to register for an annual trans-Canada summer cycling adventure, traveling 7000 km in an epic trek from Vancouver to Halifax in the Sears National Kids Cancer Ride. Funds raised from the ride and in-store events benefit Canadian children’s cancer charities.
Canadian 4- H Council
For over 50 years, Sears Canada has been a proud sponsor of the Canadian 4-H Council. The 4-H Council administers a variety of programs which are designed to encourage the growth and development of Canada's rural youth.
Opération Enfant Soleil (Québec only)
Help Operation Enfant Soleil ensure that sick children receive the best care through Sears support initiatives in Quebec, such as raffle ticket sales for the annual ‘Maison Enfant Soleil’ and sales proceeds from selected merchandise in-store.
The Design Exchange Canadian High School Design Competition
Sears backs the Design Exchange's educational mission with our strong support of the annual Sears Canadian High School Design Competition. This national annual competition brings design into high school classrooms and challenges students to re-examine their worlds, and through a clear process of design, endeavor to make them better. This exercise helps to deliver the message that design touches everything.
Scouts Canada
Sears is proud to sponsor Scouts Canada’s SCOUTS about program. SCOUTSabout is everything Scouting knows about programming for children ages 5-10, but packaged differently. Offered in 3-month modules, SCOUTSabout is run after-school in schools or community centres, or sometimes during school breaks and summer vacation. SCOUTSabout is of particular application in urban centres and rural areas with children in non-tradtional family settings. Sears also supports the Scouts nationwide eco-friendly tree-planting program Scoutrees, through in-store events each spring.
Girl Guides of Canada
Sears is a proud supporter of the Girl Guides of Canada and their development of young women and youth. Guiding today is a unique blend of the old and the new. It’s fun, active and relevant. It addresses the pressures that modern girls face by teaching them exciting skills in a safe environment.
In addition, each Sears retail store is partnered with a local charity group for in-store fund-raising events such as our Collectible Plush sales and popular “Round Up Your Bill” days.
Sears Operation Wish
Bringing Military Families Together over the Holiday Season
Sears launched Operation Wish in 2006 in coordination with the Canadian Forces Personnel and Family Support Services (CFPFSS). The program allows Canadian Troops stationed abroad to place online orders for their loved ones from the Sears Wish Book® catalogue and sears.ca. Copies of the catalogue are sent to Canadian Soldiers, Sailors and Air Force personnel posted to operational missions overseas, including Afghanistan where Canada has its largest contingency of troops stationed outside of their home bases. Each Holiday season, in cooperation with the Canadian Forces Personel and Family Support Services and the Military Family Resource Centres, Sears also hosts in-store events in areas with military bases to show and send family messages of support to servicepeople deployed overseas.
Donation Requests
Sears Canada limits its charitable partnerships to registered Canadian organizations that support our national mandate of supporting children’s and youth after-school programming and children’s cancer charities. Sears has selected its charitable partners for this year and is not seeking new applications for charitable partnerships. While we know there are many deserving organizations, we are unable to honour all of the requests we receive each year. By maintaining our focus on the few organizations with which we have a history, we are able to make our contributions more meaningful.
Thank you for your interest in Sears Canada's community investment.
