Find out what our employees have been doing to give back to their local communities during the holiday season

What is red, has two wheels, fits in a shoebox and provides shelter?

‘Tis the season for giving back, and while at Intact our mission year-round is to help others, we wanted to share some heart-warming stories of the creative ways our people have seized the chance to make a difference and help people, together. 

Operation Red Nose lights up the night

In St-Hyacinthe, Quebec, 12 IT colleagues took to the streets to spread joy and responsible rides as designated drivers this holiday season.

On December 8 and 9, the team embarked on a volunteer voyage with Operation Red Nose service available in over 100 communities across Canada throughout the month of December. Their mission is to keep the streets safe from impaired drivers during the celebratory hustle and bustle of the holidays.

Now in its 40^th year, Operation Red Nose is well-known for its commitment to holiday road safety and volunteer drivers are always in high demand.

Helping people drives everything we do at Intact and we’re so proud of our employees for donating time to be a force for good in their community. Together, they made 26 trips (travelling 918 kilometres!), mostly escorting partygoers who were unfit to drive their vehicle home, protecting them from potential (and avoidable) accidents, and raising more than $500 in donations.

“Good humour and mutual aid were the order of the day, and the team members involved in this good deed filled their news boxes with anecdotes for the holiday season,” said Jonathan Leclerc, IT Technical Advisor Senior. “We are very pleased to have been able to donate, thanks to the sponsorship of Intact's volunteer hours, an additional amount of nearly $1300 to the site of the Maison des Jeunes de St-Hyacinthe.”

Operation Christmas Child packs tiny shoeboxes with a big impact

Over in the Century office in Mississauga, the Commercial Lines team have been as busy as Santa’s elves with Operation Christmas Child (Samaritan’s Purse Canada). Going strong for several years, the team collects gift items and packs them in shoe boxes to go to children in need. This year, they dropped off 37 boxes at a local church for distribution. It’s an ongoing tradition that the team says is a way to have fun while giving back. 

“It’s a great feeling of camaraderie,” said Sharon Braganza, Senior Underwriter, Commercial Lines and the organizer. “We’re all getting together to do the same thing, and we want to teach our kids and grandkids the lesson of sharing with those less fortunate. We’re doing something for kids that probably wouldn’t get anything, and to get their giftbox, it can feel like winning the lottery.”

Giving children the gift of…bikes!

Last September, more than 85 leaders within our technology and Intact Labs teams gathered for the annual Tech+Labs Leadership offsite and took part in a unique team building activity – building bicycles for kids! Designed to allow the development of interpersonal growth within each team, the activity “Bikes for Kids” also made it possible to have a positive impact within the community. After working as a team to assemble a kids’ bicycle, participating colleagues were then invited to write a letter of encouragement for the child who will receive it.

The bikes were donated to the Montreal-based “Charity Collectif Bienvenue” which helps immigrants start their new life in Canada. A representative from the charity came to say a few words and explained their mission and actions.

“Our leaders were very moved to know that the bikes they had just built would be the first real gift a kid in need would receive upon their arrival in Montreal, giving them the chance to live an experience that all children should be able to have, and that we often take for granted,” said Isabelle Girard, Senior Vice President Data Lab and Chief Data Officer.

BrokerLink employees roll up their sleeves to build homes in our communities

This year, our employees at BrokerLink teamed up with Habitat for Humanity to help build homes in the communities where BrokerLink operates. Teams put on their hard hats and lived our value of generosity by volunteering at three Build Days in 2023, in Calgary, AB, Hamilton, ON and Oxford, NS. BrokerLink has entered a two-year national partnership with Habitat for Humanity with a commitment to invest in the communities where we live and help make them more resilient.

“This was such a heartwarming experience and a great opportunity to give back while learning new skills!” said Chris Fenton, Commercial Account Manager, BrokerLink. “I had such a good feeling after seeing people of different backgrounds come together to help a young family they had not met.”

Did you know 1.7 million Canadian families need housing? Habitat for Humanity has helped thousands of families obtain an affordable mortgage, buy a safe and decent home, and make a fresh start in life. Learn more about Habitat for Humanity on their website.