With the Canada Post strike dragging on toward a third week, a local courier company is stepping up to deliver cheques to charities and non-profits at a critical time of the year.
Al Hasham, owner of Maximum Express Courier and Freight, said Wednesday his company will pick up cheques from donors and deliver them to charitable organizations that so desperately need the funds as the Christmas season and year-end approaches. All for free.
“We have the infrastructure. We have the trucks and the drivers who want to do this,” said Hasham. “It really builds a lot of morale with our employees who are happy to do this service.
“The community has been so good to us over our 20 years and this is an opportunity for us to give back to the community that has supported us.”
Hasham said donors can contact Maximum Express by phone or email, and drivers will pick up the donations and deliver them to the charity of choice, either the same day or within two or three days, depending on the volume.
The company has 20 trucks and drivers and five other staff who will all be working on the initiative, along with handling their regular deliveries over the next several weeks. Additional drivers will be coming on to work weekends, Hasham said.
Avery Brohman, chief executive of the Victoria Hospitals Foundation, said the postal strike is challenging for the foundation — and all charities — because a large number of donations usually roll in at this time of year. People typically make decisions to donate closer to year end for financial planning and tax benefits, she said.
Brohman said the strike has the potential to erode year-end revenue and affect the choices the foundation makes when it invests in hospital equipment.
The foundation’s most recent event, Visions Gala, raised more than $2.75 million for its surgical innovations campaign.
Although most charities have online portals for credit-card donations, Brohman said many donors still prefer to send a cheque in the mail. “We have a certain demographic that prefers the cheque and envelope to make their contribution,” she said. “They may not feel comfortable online.
“So that’s why Al Hasham’s initiative for free pickup and delivery is so valuable here.”
Brohman says Hasham’s efforts are “like a Christmas miracle” for charitable organizations in the region. “He’s really a community champion and we are so grateful,” she said. “We would all be at a loss if we didn’t have Al step up and do this for free.”
Hasham said he’s already doing the work for the hospitals foundation and Victoria Hospice Foundation, and has been providing free services to CHEK TV for its drive-through toy event, set for Dec. 6, as well as a recent Power to Be charity auction.
He said he will also start picking up cheques for the Times Colonist Christmas Fund, which works with volunteers from the local chapter of the Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitaller, to distribute money to dozens of community organizations, including food banks and societies providing support to all demographics.
“It’s a great thing for Al to do,” said Times Colonist publisher and editor Dave Obee. “This is a critical time for fundraising, and local charities cannot afford to lose money because of the strike.”
The fund had received $290,465.27 from 729 donors as of Wednesday afternoon.
Obee said Maximum Express Courier’s efforts are especially important as Giving Tuesday approaches next week. The global effort on Dec. 3 sees millions of dollars donated for worthwhile causes.
Hasham invited all charities and non-profits to get in touch, saying the sooner cheques are delivered, the sooner organizations from Sooke to Sidney can put the money to work helping those most in need.
“I find, as a business, you can’t just take and not give back,” said Hasham. “If we support people, it will come back tenfold.”
To reach Maximum Express for pickups and deliveries, call dispatch at 250-721-3278 or email [email protected].
HOW TO DONATE TO THE TIMES COLONIST CHRISTMAS FUND
• Go to the Times Colonist Christmas Fund web page, tcchristmasfund.com, which links to CanadaHelps. That site, which handles online donations, is open 24 hours a day and provides an immediate tax receipt.
• You could drop off a cheque, made out to the Times Colonist Christmas Fund, at the Times Colonist office, 201-655 Tyee Rd. in Vic West. (It’s the first building on your left as you cross the Bay Street bridge.)
• Or, you can use your credit card by phoning 250-995-4438 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Your donations matter. The money we raise goes to help people in need throughout our circulation area.
