United Way Fundraising Swim Set For September

A chance work assignment for a United Way partner organization a decade ago inspired Parmélie Savaria to take the plunge into full-fledged fundraising for the community network.

Savaria was introduced to the work of the United Way when she was a chargée de dossier at the firm Petrie Raymond in Montreal.

“I used to audit a lot of organizations that got money from the United Way, and I could see first-hand the impact. I could see what they achieved with the donations.”

She joined the OAG-United Way team a year or two after starting with the office in Halifax in 2016.

“Not only are we raising money for people in need, but there’s the team bonding aspect to it. I enjoy the fact that it brings us all together for annual events, so we can get together and laugh together.”

Last year, the United Way Swim brought in $2,525 – a big fundraiser for the office that was second only to payroll pledges ($3,897).

The swimming event is a good fit for Savaria, who spent most of her teenaged summers lifeguarding in her hometown of Mirabel, a 40-minute drive from Downtown Montreal.

“I’m actually more comfortable in the water than I am on my own two feet.”

The kilometre swim takes about half an hour, and Savaria (swimming freestyle) will be joined by veteran swimmer/retired auditor Dianne Chiasson and her husband Roy Hopkins (logging their lengths in Chester), and Pamela Wilson, jumping into her second swim.

Wilson chaired the successful Grant Thornton United Way Team for three years (an effort that raised over $100,000) and continued her volunteer work when she joined OAG in April 2021.

“I love finding fun ways to give back to my community,” says Pamela Wilson.

The Bronze Medallion-level swimmer didn’t get the chance to swim for GT, but planned many in-house and off-site events and raffles, like Gift Card Survivor.

New on the swim team this year is Janet Burt-Gerrans, a lifelong swimmer who always wanted to take part in the United Way event.

A credited National Lifeguard, Burt-Gerrans got her certification around the same time she got her driver’s license and it turned out to be “a great and portable part time gig as a student.”

The Georgian Bay, Ont. community where she grew up was so small that she taught at the only pool in town; the maximum-security facility for people found not criminally responsible for violent crimes.

“We were kept quite separate from the people housed there,” says Burt-Gerrans, who went on to get her law degree at Dalhousie University's Schulich School of Law.

The swim safety team will see a reprisal role for Devaney Williams, who last year kept pace with the swimmers by paddleboard, and new recruit Brendon Campbell, who will transfer the surfing and water safety knowledge he gained in Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia, to the calmer waters of Grand Lake.

Interested in making a donation to this United Way fundraiser? Click on the links below:

Help Janet Burt-Gerrans raise money Race Roster — Registration, Marketing, Fundraising

Help Parmelie Savaria raise money Race Roster — Registration, Marketing, Fundraising

Help Pamela Wilson raise money Race Roster — Registration, Marketing, Fundraising