Sacha's Park In The Lead For $100,000 Aviva Community Fund Grant
L'Orignal,Ont - Sacha's Park got off to a strong lead in the Aviva Community Fund contest which began on October 6th. After almost a week, the universally accessible playground project, slated to be built in L'Orignal, is in first place over all. With a commanding lead of over a thousand votes from its closets competitor, Sacha's Park sits ahead of every other project submitted from across the country . Online voting, continues through to October 23rd to determine which five community projects from across Canada will move on to the final round where a $100,000 grand prize is up for grabs.
Jason Chenier, Sacha's father and park organizer, is thrilled with the results so far. "We went into this with a plan to win it, and things are going extremely well so far. We are so grateful to the entire community. They have really gotten on board with voting every single day".
Chenier explains that the success so far can be attributed to preparation and hard work. "We did a lot in the lead up to the vote to get the word out on social media. We also partnered up with Théorêt & Martel Insurance Brokers and Willow Creek Company to come up with an advertising campaign that saw us distribute thousands of voting information cards in the community. Local schools and businesses have been supportive in helping us get the cards into peoples hands. It's been a real community effort".
With two weeks remaining, Chenier cautions that it's too early to be celebrating victory quite yet. "there's still lots of time for other projects to catch up, so we need to maintain the steady pace of daily voting that we've been doing so far. I'm confident if we can keep this up, we will come out on top".
Although finishing the vote in first place won't guarantee a win, Chenier explains that it will be a factor in the score that the judges assign each project in the final round. "where we place certainly matters as the votes count for fifteen percent of the score in the final round. Each vote has a direct impact on our chances of winning the $100,000 prize. So please keep voting".
Supporters are reminded to vote daily for Sacha's Park until October 23rd by logging on to: avivacommunityfund.org/ideas/acf32171
The finalists for the Aviva Community Fund will be announced on November 3rd, and the grand prize awarded on December 2nd.
About the Aviva Community Fund
Since 2009, Aviva Canada has provided $5.5 million to 192 winning projects from coast to coast. With over 10,000 ideas submitted so far, the Aviva Community Fund has more than one million registered participants, who cast approximately nine million votes.
Aviva Canada is one of the leading property and casualty insurance groups in Canada providing home, auto and business insurance to more than three million customers. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of UK-based Aviva plc and has more than 3,000 employees, 25 locations and 1,700 independent broker partners. For more information visit avivacanada.com
A playground, to be known as Sacha's Park, is being proposed for the new Place La Seigneurie development in L'Orignal. The playground, once built, will be different than a typical playground in that it will be universally accessible allowing children of all abilities to fully enjoy the park and its equipment. The goal for Sacha's Park is to create a playground that is inclusive and where the equipment works for everyone, including children with disabilities. A playground where EVERYONE can play. The Chenier family have purchased property for the park to be built on and are working with the Township of Champlain, who are supportive of the project, to secure funding for the equipment, which will cost several hundred thousand dollars.
Sacha Chenier was an 11 year old boy who lived in L'Orignal, Ontario. He was severely affected by cerebral palsy and required the use of a wheelchair for most of his life. He was also born blind, epileptic, and with severe cognitive delays. Sacha required assistance for his daily care, as he was unable to do the most basic of tasks without help. He was lovingly cared for at home where he lived with his parents Jason and Jacquelyn and his older brother Sebastien. Despite his many challenges, Sacha was a happy little boy who loved to be around other children. He attended school in Hawkesbury at École Paul VI where he was loved by his many friends. Sacha always had a smile on his face and his infectious laughter could brighten up a room. Sacha passed away suddenly on June 9th 2014 due to epilepsy related complications.
More information about Sacha’s Park:
GoFundMe.com/EveryoneCanPlay
Tumblr:sachaspark.tumblr.com
