TTAND Lends a Hand, agents donate $1,250 to charity

TTAND Lends a Hand, the latest campaign launched by The Travel Agent Next Door to encourage TTAND agents to give back to their community saw $1,250 donated. 

The campaign invited TTAND agents to share their stories on how they have contributed to their community to make it a better place during a four-week campaign.

Agents posted a short story describing their initiative on the dedicated section of the Hub – the TTAND intranet. There were five random draws from all entries and the winner was able to make a $250 donated to the charity of their choice.

“I am so very proud of our partners and how even during the toughest time ever seen in the travel industry, they still found a way to give back,” said Flemming Friisdahl, founder of TTAND. “And I also know there were many other acts of kindness where the agent did not want to be recognized, one of the stories I heard was a partner buying 3 waterproof blankets and donating them to a homeless person in their area.”

TTAND donated $250 to the charities nominated by the following agents and staff: Shelley Cota --Brothers and Sisters of Canada (AB); Elish Tait – The Brain Tumour Foundation; Yolande Castello – Salvation Army; Shelley Cota - Dominican Republic Ascension/Caraballo; Sharon Rushton – Viola’s Place local SPCA.

A total of 206 give-back activities were shared on the Hub from all across Canada.

Some examples of give back activities were:

• Somewhere in Canada there’s a life you can save! I donated today and it was only an hour of my time! Just a small way to help someone in need in my community, province or even my country. My next scheduled appointment is Dec 23, which will be my 25th lifetime donation on record.
• Today, I donated 20 pairs of shoes to Soles4Souls.org. This year I did not have the opportunity to do a bigger shoe drive. My largest collection has been 1001 pairs.
• I participated in a virtual version of BRA (Breast Cancer Reconstruction Awareness) Day and volunteered in the Show n Tell Room for the Canadian Cancer Society
• I saw a gentleman walking around my local Safeway that was eating food. I thought he needs some food. I walked up to him and asked if I could buy him lunch. He proceeded to tell me his story how he is out of work (construction) and he had ended up in the hospital a couple of weeks ago with a seizure. First time I have ever walked up to someone that needed help.
• Had my kids gather together all their stuffed animals and take out the ones they can do without now. We are donating them to a pet rescue society as the animals love to have these toys. We had over 40 to donate. Nice to see the kids giving their stuff for a good cause.

The campaign is just the latest in a number of initiatives by TTAND over the past few months to recognize and reward its agents and keep them engaged.

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