Skyjack kicked off its holiday celebrations this year with a tree lighting event and donation to Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis, a local organization providing services to women and children who face abuse or sexual violence. The donation was made through Skyjack's 30 FOR 30 PARTNERS anniversary campaign, which celebrates the company's 30th business anniversary through supporting charitable causes around the world.
The event started with the first lighting of Skyjack's holiday tree. Skyjack employees and a representative from the Women in Crisis center joined together outside Skyjack's headquarters in Guelph to see the large tree light up for the festive season.
“Skyjack's first tree lighting was extra special since we had a representative from the Woman in Crisis organization with us,” said Megan Johnston, administrative assistant at Skyjack. “I am very proud to work for a company that gives back to its community, and I am excited to see how many toys we can collect for the children in the organizations shelters.”
Sharing smiles
During the tree lighting ceremony, Skyjack President Brad Boehler presented a check for $2,500 to Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis. The donation will go towards toys for children in the shelters. These toys will not only serve as gifts during the holiday season, but will also be offered to families when they first come to a shelter after leaving everything behind. The toys help bring a smile to children's' faces during difficult situations and provide a little normalcy to their lives.
Skyjack will continue collecting toys at its plants for the remainder of the year. This is the first time the company is hosting a toy drive for the Women in Crisis organization, but it hopes to make the drive an annual event.
“The toy drive is a great cause to include in our 30th anniversary,” Boehler said. “Skyjack's focus this year has been on giving back to the communities that have supported us for the past 30 years – from Singapore to Germany to Texas – and now we get to give back to an important organization within the local community here in Guelph.”
Local support
Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis is a community-based organization providing services to women and their children who face abuse and sexual violence since 1977. Services from the organization, which are free of charge, include shelters, housing support, family court support, rural women's support, a sexual assault center and a 24-hour crisis line.
“I am personally so proud of our team, who has worked so hard and excelled this year to make this donation, and the others we have made throughout the year, possible,” Boehler said. “I couldn't think of a better way of kicking off the season than honoring our partnership with the Wellington Guelph Women in Crisis shelter.”
