Ottawa, Ontario March 22, 2016 – The Ottawa Gatineau International Auto Show has made a generous donation to Ottawa East Habitat for Humanity ReStore. At the conclusion of the four day show which brought close to 300 cars and thousands of visitors to the Shaw Centre, almost 20,000 square feet of gently-used carpeting from the Auto Show was donated to the store, which sells a wide range of new and used building materials. Proceeds from the store help finance the important work being done by the local Habitat for Humanity office.
“People can expect to see more donations like this being facilitated by our team at the Shaw Centre,” explained the Centre’s President, Nina Kressler. “This is a new program the Shaw Centre is offering to clients. It’s quite simple: host your event here and leave a legacy for the community. After your event is over, if you choose, Shaw Centre colleagues will ensure whatever salvageable materials you leave behind are delivered to your charity of choice. It’s a perfect complement to our comprehensive waste management and recycling programs which have been in place since the Centre opened.”
The Donation Program stems from the success of the recent Loblaw national conference. At its conclusion, Shaw Centre staff members packaged up over 100,000 pounds of perishable and non-perishable food which was donated to Ottawa and Gatineau Food Banks. “These opportunities to help out in our community are important to everyone at the Shaw Centre and we are delighted to help our clients make a positive impact in the Ottawa area as well,” added Kressler.
“We are pleased to donate this briefly-used carpeting to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore as part of our commitment to incorporate eco-friendly features into the Ottawa-Gatineau International Auto Show,” said show producer Peter Ginsberg. “Not only does this help raise money to support the good work being done by Habitat for Humanity, it also means that the carpet will be useful to whomever purchases it and at the same time it will keep a huge amount of material out of the landfill.”
“Donations such as this one from the Ottawa-Gatineau International Auto Show are vital to the success of our ReStores,” said Myrna Beattie, manager of the Ottawa East ReStore. “Donors who provide quality building and finishing materials for us to sell enable us to help support our local Habitat for Humanity office as they work to finance and plan local home building projects. It takes a vast network of donors and volunteers to provide more families in our community with safe, decent and affordable housing so we are very grateful for the support of the Auto Show and the Shaw Centre.”
The donation was coordinated by the Shaw Centre and facilitated by one of its official suppliers, Freeman Expositions, Inc. Freeman supplied the labour to remove the carpet from the venue, then packaged and delivered it to one of its warehouses where it will be picked up by the Habitat for Humanity ReStore.
About Shaw Centre
The Shaw Centre was founded as the Ottawa Congress Centre in 1983. With project funding from the Province of
Ontario, the City of Ottawa and the Government of Canada, the Ottawa Congress Centre was redeveloped into a new
larger facility, which opened in April 2011 as the Ottawa Convention Centre (OCC). In October 2014, the OCC and Shaw
Communications entered into a 10 year partnership, rebranding the facility as the Shaw Centre. The Shaw Centre is a
state-of-the-art convention centre that generates economic impact by hosting conventions, trade shows, meetings,
consumer shows and events. The Shaw Centre was recently named runner-up as the world’s best convention centre by
the International Association of Convention Centres (AIPC). Since opening our doors in 2011, the Shaw Centre has
hosted over 2000 events and has added approximately $300M to the Ottawa-Gatineau area and Province of Ontario.
The Ottawa Convention Centre® Corporation is an agency of the Government of Ontario.
About the Ottawa-Gatineau International Auto Show
The Ottawa-Gatineau International Auto show transforms the Shaw Centre into a car-lovers paradise for four days
every March. In 2016, the Cruising in the Capital show displayed cars and trucks from 30 automotive brands that
ranged from the everyday to the aspirational. It also featured a motorcycle showcase and automotive accessories
marketplace.
About Habitat for Humanity Canada
Habitat for Humanity Canada is committed to helping low-income families caught in the vicious cycle of poverty. We
believe that every Canadian deserves a safe, decent and affordable place to call home, yet today more than 1.3 million
Canadian families struggle without access to adequate housing. Habitat for Humanity Canada’s mission is to eradicate
this crisis by mobilizing volunteers and community partners to build affordable housing and promoting homeownership
as a means to breaking the cycle of poverty.
About Freeman Expositions, Inc.
The events planning company stages thousands of conventions, corporate meetings, expositions, and trade shows
every year and prepares exhibits for its clients. Its operations include event design and production, stage rigging,
market research analysis, social media branding strategy, translations services, and electrical services. The company’s
Concierge Elite application allows clients to track and update their freight deliveries from their mobile device or PC.
Freeman was founded by D.S. “Buck” Freeman in 1927; the company is owned by the Freeman family (including
chairman Donald Freeman) and company employees.
For additional information, please contact:
Sylvie Carbonneau
Director of Marketing and Communications
Centre Shaw Centre
613.668.8220
scarbonneau@rogers-centre.ca
