Dear Reader,

In last week’s newsletter, I posed a question rooted in my own feelings of ineptitude and powerlessness around the war on Ukraine. How can I/we, as individual Atlantic Canadians, do something to actively and immediately help the people of Ukraine?

Not surprisingly, Dianne Kelderman came back with an answer. For those who don’t know her, Dianne is President & CEO of both Atlantic Economics and the Nova Scotia Cooperative Council. She is also one of this year’s 25 Most Powerful Women in Business and a member of Atlantic Business Magazine’s Top 50 CEO Hall of Fame—a designation earned only after winning five Top 50 CEO awards for corporate leadership excellence. Most importantly, she is a person known for making things happen.

Here's Dianne’s powerful Call to Action:

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March 22, 2022 was a typical start to my day. I read the news, check emails and see what is new on social media. This picture of a weeping young soldier haunted me.

That was followed by a heavy question from Dawn Chafe at Atlantic Business Magazine. How can we step up to support Ukraine in an immediately tangible way?

The two combined had me emotional and restless. My immediate thought was that there must be something I can do. But I’m so far away. What can I realistically do to help?

The war on Ukraine is a worldwide concern, much like COVID. It touches us all. But we, in our little corner of the world, have no power to stop Putin.

We do, however, have the power and ability to help the Ukrainian people. Atlantic Canada has a reputation as the kindest, most generous and caring region in the country.

So, as I sit restless, I thought of an idea that I would like to share with all of my Top 50 CEO colleagues, my Hall of Fame colleagues, and most recently my 25 Most Powerful Woman colleagues.

What if each one of us contributed $1,000 to an Atlantic Business Magazine Atlantic/Ukrainian Fund? We could use the fund to sponsor Ukrainian individuals and families to come to Atlantic Canada. It would be a wonderful humanitarian effort providing safe harbour for those in desperate need.

It costs approximately $40,000 to sponsor a family of four to Canada. Let’s aim to sponsor 12 families, three per Atlantic province.

I am happy to write the first cheque and challenge my colleagues to do the same (Atlantic Business is already on board). Together, we can do this! Thoughts and prayers are on thing; action is much more meaningful.

"True compassion means not only feeling another's pain, but also being moved to help relieve it" - Daniel Goleman

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For more information on how you can contribute, email Dianne directly or the Nova Scotia Co-op Council.

 

Dawn Chafe Executive editor & co-owner dchafe@atlanticbusinessmagazine.ca