As part of its promise to engage in the communities where its people live and work, ABB in Canada made a $10,000 donation to Habitat for Humanity and participated in a Build Day on November 9.
This cause is important to ABB, as each year the number of people facing homelessness continuously rises. With the top five barriers to finding housing being high rent, low income, limited social assistance, poor housing conditions and discrimination, organizations like Hamilton for Humanity are stepping in to provide solutions to those in need.
“For over a century, ABB has been a proud partner and supporter of Canadian communities across the country, and we believe that together we are stronger,” said Rob MacPherson, Commercial Director and Senior Vice President of Sales, Electrification Business at ABB Canada. “What Habitat for Humanity is doing for the community of Hamilton is admirable, and I’m pleased that we could be a part of it,” he added.
On Build Day, thirteen employees donated their time and labor to help build homes in Hamilton, Ontario, and ABB donated an additional $10,000 to the organization’s Indigenous Housing Partnership. Habitat for Humanity launched the initiative with the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation in 2007 to ensure that First Nations communities are the beneficiaries of and are involved in build projects.
The additional donation to the Indigenous Housing Partnership will help support Indigenous families in need of safe and affordable housing and will help them towards long-term financial stability. Thanks to the security of a home, families benefiting from the program have more to spend on food, medicine, childcare, education, and other essentials. “The waiting list for subsidized housing in Hamilton is over 6,000 families long”, said Elaine Hunter, Volunteer and Home Partner Services at Habitat for Humanity in Hamilton. “So we are trying to do whatever we can do to support those families. What we do collectively contributes to our overall vision, our objective, and our mission,” she added.
The Build Day had dual benefits: in addition to giving back to the community, employees discovered a unique teambuilding experience that helped them cultivate a unified workforce. ABB employee and local resident Todd Ferguson, Regional Manager for the Installation products division, also rolled up his sleeves to help. “Along with making a difference for families, employees bring that teambuilding energy back to work with them—fostering a culture of care and collaboration,” he said.
Ferguson’s sentiment was also felt by Devin Whittaker, Inside Sales Specialist at ABB Canada who was also on site: “I jumped at the opportunity to participate in the Build Day and was excited to work on a project with my colleagues and get to know them better while supporting our community," said Whittaker. "Learning about how this work helps families in need across Canada, including in Indigenous communities, made the work even more rewarding," she added.
Support for Habitat for Humanity including the Indigenous Housing Partnership are in line with ABB Canada’s goals to stand behind the communities in which it works. Through this contribution, Habitat for Humanity will support families build strength, stability, and self-reliance through home ownership.
