Provigo and P.K. Subban of the Montreal Canadiens helped make children's dreams come true at the 17th annual Ball for the Children's

The 2016 Ball for the Children's raises $1.2 million as the community rallies around sick children

MONTREAL, May 27, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Montreal's business and philanthropic leaders, along with some of Quebec's hottest celebrities, attended the Ball for the Children's, held on May 19 at the historic Windsor Station. Montreal Children Foundation board member and spokesman, Montreal Canadiens defenseman P.K. Subban personally greeted each of the 695 guests on the red carpet. The sold-out event's theme Argentina paid tribute to the food and culture of renowned chef and Chopped Canada judge, Antonio Park.

Under the leadership of Patron of Honour, Pierre Dandoy, Senior Vice President, Provigo, Loblaw Companies Limited, the Ball raised $1,200,000.

"It was very moving to see the community come together to support the important and innovative initiatives of the Montreal Children's Hospital," said Mr. Dandoy. "The Children's is renowned for the expertise and devotion of its staff as well as their desire to give sick children and their families comfort, care and precious hope. That's why our Provigo and Loblaw colleagues in Quebec and I are honored to partner with this cause which echoes our values by helping our children in need and enabling them to project themselves in the future."

Putting the cause front and center

One of the highlights of the evening was a video and testimonial by a grateful family whose son, six-year-old Stefano, has been treated at the hospital since birth. There wasn't a dry eye in the house while Mr. Ruvo shared his family's struggles and Stefano took the stage which was followed by a well-deserved standing ovation. Following that, a live auction co-hosted by P.K. Subban and his former hockey coach, Martin Ross, electrified the crowd and raised over $160,000. Half of this went to support the Beads of Courage program at the hospital.

"Stefano's illness has brought our family many challenges but it was incredible to feel the compassion from so many people in attendance tonight," said Mr. Ruvo. "On behalf of my family, I want to thank everyone, the Hospital, the donors, the Foundation, and P.K. for all that they do to help sick children have the chance they deserve at life."

"We are thrilled to have so much support from members of the business, philanthropic and sports communities," says Marie-Josée Gariépy, President of the Montreal Children's Hospital Foundation. "They are the reason the Children's has such a strong tradition of offering state-of-the-art equipment and cutting-edge services. We owe a debt of gratitude to our Patron of honour, Pierre Dandoy, P.K. and Martin Ross, our Award of Excellence sponsors, the Gustav Levinschi Foundation, National Bank, Provigo, Sub-Zero and Wolf, TransForce and TD Bank Group, as well as our other sponsors Pfizer, Bell and Fiera Capital along with our Platinum and Gold sponsors, our many volunteers, guests, partners and donors. " 

It was also an opportunity for the Children's community to congratulate its 2016 Awards of Excellence recipients, seven dedicated staff and volunteers who, through their work, have greatly contributed to maintaining the Children's reputation of cutting-edge and family-centred pediatric care.

Funds raised at this year's Ball for the Children's go to the Healthy Kids Fund to meet the patient's most urgent needs with innovative programs and services throughout the hospital, including 70 ambulatory clinics with 120,000 patient visits, the busiest pediatric Emergency Department in North America with 85,000 visits and 6,500 children who are admitted each year. The Healthy Kids Fund also supports the Children's world-renowned researchers, who have made internationally-recognized breakthroughs in areas as diverse as childhood brain tumours, cancer, diabetes and blindness.

ABOUT THE MONTREAL CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
The Montreal Children's Hospital is the pediatric teaching hospital of the McGill University Faculty of Medicine. The Children's is a leader in providing a broad spectrum of highly specialized care to newborns, children, and adolescents from all across Quebec. The Montreal Children's Hospital Foundation raises funds to help The Children's remain on the cutting edge of teaching, research and care. The foundation completed its Best Care for Children campaign to build the new state-of-the-art hospital on the Glen site, which opened in 2015. For more information, please visit childrenfoundation.com.

ABOUT PROVIGO, A MEMBER OF THE LOBLAW GROUP
Provigo is a member of the Loblaw group, one of the largest private sector employers in Québec and Canada's largest food retailer. The Loblaw group employs nearly 40,000 people in the province of Québec through its almost 400 corporate, franchised and affiliated stores operated mainly under the Provigo®, Provigo Le MarchéTM, Maxi®, Maxi & Cie®, Loblaws®, Club Entrepôt Provigo® and Les Entrepôts Presto® banners. The Loblaw group also offers Canada's strongest control (private) label program, including the President's Choice®, no name® and Joe Fresh® brands. It also offers President's Choice Financial® services and the PC® points loyalty program.

SOURCE The Montreal Children's Hospital Foundation

For further information: Séverine Defouni, Assistant Director of Communications, Montreal Children's Hospital Foundation, Tel. [phone] ext. 29238, [email protected]