Media release

Communitech and partners raise more than $200,000 for communities in need

‘This, Too, Will Pass’ campaign brings much-needed funds to seven Waterloo Region charities

KITCHENER, ONT., June 25, 2020 — In just one short month, Communitech and partners raised a total of $208,858.03 with assistance from Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation as part of its “This, Too, Will Pass” campaign. Seven charities in Waterloo Region will receive funds from this campaign to allow them to continue supporting vulnerable people in our community. These charities and non-profit organizations include: 

  • Women’s Crisis Services of Waterloo Region
  • Sexual Assault Support Centre of Waterloo Region
  • Sanguen Health Centre (in support of Inner City Health Alliance, shelter care)
  • Carizon Family and Community Services
  • African, Carribean and Black Network of Waterloo Region
  • The Working Centre (in support of St. John’s Kitchen)
  • YW Kitchener-Waterloo (in support of emergency shelters)

"Communitech is a big part of the Waterloo Region community and we have a responsibility to help where we can – pandemic or not,” said Iain Klugman, CEO and president at Communitech. "We are proud to have had so many partners who share these values, including FairVentures, Interac, Rogers Communications, Sonova, TD, Thomson Reuters and Vidyard. Their participation means we were able to triple all donations and triple the impact across the community.”

Early in May 2020, it became clear that a number of Waterloo Region residents were struggling with mental health, homelessness and other crisis situations made worse by COVID-19, which put additional strain on the charities tasked with helping them. So, Communitech jumped into action and established the Communitech COVID-19 Response Fund at Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation.

“As our community continues to adjust to the effects of COVID-19, charitable organizations across Waterloo Region are being challenged to adapt while keeping up with increasing need for their services,” said Elizabeth Heald, President & CEO, Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation. “We are pleased that we have been able to assist Communitech as they brought people together from the tech sector, and beyond, to support our community.” 

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the world and in our community, Communitech and partners are well aware that more help will be needed. This is just the beginning; further initiatives will follow. 

For more information or to make a donation to any of the above listed charitable institutions, please visit Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation’s website: https://www.kwcf.ca/.

Interested to learn more? View the full 'This, Too, Will Pass' campaign results

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For media inquiries, please contact:

Kevin Crowley
Director, Communications and Editorial
kevin.crowley@communitech.ca

About Communitech

Communitech was founded in 1997 by a group of entrepreneurs committed to making Waterloo Region a global innovation leader. At the time it was just a wild idea, but somehow this community managed to pull it off. Today, Communitech is a public-private innovation hub that supports a community of more than 1,600 companies — from startups to scale-ups to large global players.

Communitech helps tech companies start, grow and succeed in three distinct ways.

  • Communitech is a place – the centre of gravity for entrepreneurs and innovators. A clubhouse for building cool tech and great companies.
  • Communitech delivers programs – helping companies at all stages with access to capital, customers and talent. We are here to help them grow and innovate.
  • Communitech partners in building a world-leading ecosystem – making sure we have all the ingredients (and the brand) to help companies go from a small startup to a global giant.