The St. George’s Society of Toronto
Annual Report 2009-2010
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Yvonne Jerred
During the past year, we continued our celebration of the Society’s 175th anniversary with many highlights and accomplishments. As Toronto’s oldest charitable organization, we have contributed to the growth of the city in small ways as well as large, helping transform it from ‘muddy York’ to a truly vibrant and caring city. Our accomplishments have not gone unnoticed, as evidenced by the wonderful reception hosted by His Honour, The Lieutenant Governor, last fall, in honour of our 175th anniversary.
As you have read in the Treasurer’s report and the various committee reports included in this Annual Report, over the past year our Society has fared well financially. In particular, you will have noted that our investment portfolios recovered a significant amount of the value they had lost during the previous year’s market decline. We thank Gary Shaw, our Treasurer, and Clive Coombs, Chair of the Investment Committee, and all the members of the Investment Committee for guiding us through this difficult period.
At this year’s annual Red Rose Ball, our largest fundraising event, we honoured Mitchell Cohen, President of the Daniels Corporation. Because of Mr. Cohen’s popularity, we were able to raise the second highest gross receipts ever. As a result of this and because of your support of the Society’s other fundraising efforts, we were able to increase our donations and support of worthy causes by a significant amount over last year. Our thanks go to Diane Bailey, Chair of the Red Rose Ball Committee, Brian Ranson, Chair of the Charitable Trust Committee, Glen Carter, Chair of the Education Committee, and all the members of their committees for their hard work in these areas.
Over the past year, our membership has grown, but more importantly, many of those new members are younger than in the past. This increase in younger members is critical to the Society as the older members start to find it more difficult to attend events or to continue their membership. Alysone Will, Chair of the Membership Committee, and the other members of that committee along with Stephen Johnson, our Executive Director, have been working diligently to update our membership database and to produce a “new members’ welcome package”. We thank them for their efforts.
One of the hardest working committee Chairs is Sandra Comisarow, who works tirelessly to pull together all the wonderful events we all take pleasure in attending. We extend a very special “thank you” to Sandra and the members of the Events Committee.
Unfortunately, this year saw the passing of several of our members, including Jeannie Butler, a Past President and long-time member of the Committee of Management. Those of us who attended Jeannie’s scattering of ashes in the Society’s burial plot at the St. James cemetery can attest to the hard work done by Tom Pam and the members of the Heritage Committee towards the upkeep of the plot. They have our heartfelt thanks as their work can be particularly hard on the back.
This year the Society initiated a “Good Citizen’s Award”. This annual award is intended to acknowledge an “unsung hero” who quietly and with no fanfare makes a difference to our city, particularly to those less fortunate. The winner will be recognized at an appropriate St. George’s event and will receive a monetary contribution towards his or her charity of choice. While the winner of this year’s award has not yet been decided, we thank Peter Moon for proposing this initiative and for steering it through its inaugural year.
Effective this annual general meeting, Allison Hardisty and Heather Ferguson will not be running for re-election to the Committee of Management and I would like to wish them well and thank them both for their efforts on behalf of the Society. In addition, after several years as Treasurer and a member of the Committee of Management, Gary Shaw will not be seeking re-election. I would like to thank Gary for the incredible contribution he has made to the Society over the years and wish him all the best in the future. Regretfully, for personal reasons I will not be running for re-election to the Committee of Management this year and will therefore not be serving a second term as President. It has been my privilege, over the past nine years on the Committee of Management and over the past year as President, to represent the Society and serve in some small way. I wish the new Committee of Management, the incoming President and the Society continued success.
SECRETARY’S REPORT
Alysone Will
This year, The St George's Society was guided by our President, Yvonne Jerred and business has proceeded in a timely manner. COM fully researched, discussed and deliberated all matters brought before it during the year. Nine COM meetings were held throughout the year and the Standing Committees met to achieve their goals, in particular, the Red Rose Ball Committee.
During the course of the year six deaths were duly noted, namely Bernard Buckle, Jeannie Butler, Michael Clafton, Albert Roy Hems, John Greey and Robert Woadden. An appropriate moment of silence was held by the COM in their memory.
On the membership side, over fifty new members were welcomed into the Society. That is double last year, which was more than double the year before! With 2010 closing out our 175th Anniversary year, there has been an increase in membership and renewed interest in the Society as a result of new and innovative marketing initiatives.
Finally, I have to report that four members of COM are retiring this year: Yvonne Jerred, President; Gary Shaw, Treasurer; Heather Ferguson and Allison Hardisty. We thank them for their hard work during the past year.
TREASURER’S REPORT
Gary Shaw
The Society’s financial results for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2010 included a small surplus of revenue over expenses in the General Fund and a somewhat larger surplus in the Charitable Trust Fund. The General Fund, which covers the operating expenses of the Society, excluding Red Rose Ball expenses, showed a surplus of $6,920 compared to a shortfall of $1,632 last year. Its sources of revenue include investment income which covered approximately three-quarters of our expenses this past year, fundraisers other than the Red Rose Ball and membership fees. Our various fundraisers produced net revenues of $11,454, a record high, while our membership fees were only slightly higher than a year ago. These fees covered only about 6.5% of our expenses in the 2010 fiscal year and have remained unchanged for three years, despite rising costs. Accordingly, your Committee of Management recently voted small increases in certain categories and these will take effect in the current year.
Our General Fund budget for the 2011 fiscal year foresees expenses and revenue balanced at $142,600 which in the case of expenses represents an increase of just 1.5% over the comparable 2010 figure. We do not set a budget for the Charitable Trust Fund whose revenue is almost entirely dependent upon the Red Rose Ball and its donations are based on the remaining surplus after Ball expenses are met. However, the continuing success of the Ball has allowed the Society over the years to provide increased donations to needy organizations within the community of Toronto.
The 2010 Red Rose Ball realized gross receipts of $627,721 (the second highest on record). After expenses, we made provision for donations totalling $470,535, some $113,000 greater than last year. These are discussed in detail in the Report of the Charitable Trust. While Ball expenses were also considerably higher than last year, the increase reflected the 2010 Ball’s record attendance; Ball expenses are almost totally a function of attendance. A surplus of $29,725 remained after the provision for donations and payment of expenses and will be available for donations in the 2011 fiscal year.
Net assets of the Society as at May 31, 2010 totalled $2,081,230, an increase of $105,559 over the previous year-end’s total. This increase was largely due to better performance of our investments which are discussed herein in the report of the Investment Committee.
INVESTMENT COMMITTEE REPORT
Clive Coombs
It is the mandate of the Investment Committee to manage the investments of the Society as set out by the Committee of Management. The Investment Committee has positioned the portfolios to meet two fundamental objectives: to maintain a prudently high income stream and to structure the portfolios for longer term growth to mitigate capital decay over time. To help achieve this, the Investment Committee has slowly raised the proportion of common shares in the larger of the two portfolios, the General Fund portfolio. At fiscal year-end, these holdings constituted 21.5% of total compared with 10.8% at the end of the previous fiscal year.
In the year ended May 31, 2010 the Society’s portfolios recovered a significant amount of the value they had lost during the severe market decline in the previous fiscal year. While interest rates rose slightly over the year, and bond prices therefore declined modestly, equity markets responded positively to an improvement in economic conditions and the combined value of our two portfolios rose to $2,081,230 by May 31, 2010 from $1,975,671 a year earlier.
Over the course of the year, the Committee sold some low-yielding Government of Canada bonds and redeployed the funds into higher yielding investment grade bonds and dividend-paying stocks. It is the intention in the 2011 fiscal year to continue to focus on a rebalancing of the portfolios consistent with a cautious outlook for markets and a need to grow our asset base over time.
CHARITABLE TRUST COMMITTEE REPORT
Brian Ranson
During our financial year ended May 31, 2010, the Charitable Trust of your Society made or pledged donations totaling $470,740. In addition, The Society’s Endowment Trust at the University of Toronto presented bursaries totaling $44,.418.
The major donation for the year arises from the continued success of the Red Rose ball. This year we were very grateful to our honoree, Mitchell Cohen who not only picked an excellent organization in habitat for Humanity, but also worked tirelessly to help make the Ball a success. As a result we were able to donate $375,000 to Habitat for work in Toronto.
The Red Rose Ball and our events were together able to provide a further $85,970 for other causes and the Committee met during the year to review many requests from organizations both previously supported and new. We focus on four areas: Heritage, Education, Health and Community with the proviso that the cause should in most cases be directly linked to our city and environs.
Each year our President’s Appeal gives our members further opportunities to demonstrate their generosity and all the funds collected are then disbursed to charities chosen by the President. The 2009 donations of $7,540 were given to St. Michael’s Hospital and to the St. Vincent de Paul Society in Toronto.
In some instances we make a commitment for a sum to be paid over a number of years. In others we find a particularly interesting and worthy idea that we determine to help with the possibility of continued support in future years. A full listing of all the donations made or pending for 2009-2010 is at the back of the Annual Report. From this list the following represent new donations:
§ $5,000 to Dr. Clown
§ $4,000 to Street Health Community Nursing
§ $3,000 to Casey House
§ $3,000 to Common Ground Cooperative
§ $1,500 to English Speaking Union
§ $1,000 to Metropolitan United Church
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the following Trustees of the Charitable Trust for their dedicated work over the past year: Glenn Carter, Ken Foxcroft, Yvonne Jerred and Gary Shaw.
EDUCATION COMMITTEE REPORT
Glenn H. Carter
The Society has four major endowments established to provide financial assistance to students in need.
A] The Society’s $1 million dollar endowment at the University of Toronto provided funds to some 40 students. Individual awards ranged from $250 to a maximum of $2,500 and were available in the following areas:
(i) students enrolled in the Faculty of Physical Education & Health with preference given to student-athletes participating in the sports of rowing, cricket, rugby, soccer and field hockey;
(ii) students meeting the requisite academic standards in a programme of study in Trinity College, St. Michael's College, Victoria College, Massey College, the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, and the Ontario Institute for Child Studies [OISE] with preference to students involved in extra curricular activities such as athletics, community participation or cultural programmes, which by definition included study in the UK; and
(iii) students of any other college or faculty studying in the UK.
The Society continued to receive excellent verbal and written reports from students and from their respective colleges and faculties.
B] The Society’s $320,000 endowment at the Ontario College of Art and Design came on line to produce awards in the forthcoming year. In terms of preference, the Society wishes bursary recipients: studying on exchange at universities situate in the United Kingdom; in the graduate programme; and having a mature classification with a demonstrated interest in British art and design.
C] The Society’s $500,000 endowment at York University fostered a detailed review of programmes to determine where best awards would be made to students for the forthcoming academic year. Areas at both the graduate and undergraduate levels under consideration include British studies, Nursing, Health Sciences, and exchange study arrangements with universities in the United Kingdom.
D] The Society’s $200,000 endowment at the University of Toronto in the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing provided funding for one graduate student fellowship in the Nurse Practioner course.
In addition to its endowment programme, the Society continued discussions with Ryerson University regarding academic prizes and awards for students in financial need.
RED ROSE BALL COMMITTEE REPORT
Diane Bailey
A history-making ball was the perfect way to conclude the Society’s historic 175th anniversary year. The 2010 Red Rose Ball – which honoured developer and philanthropist Mitchell Cohen (President of The Daniels Corporation) with our Award of Merit – sold out an unprecedented six weeks in advance. Over 500 people jammed the Ball Room at the Four Seasons Hotel, celebrating the historic anniversary until the stroke of midnight on April 22 (12:01 marked the beginning of our 176th year).
The Ball netted $ 465,780 for charity, of which $375,000 is being donated to Mr. Cohen’s charity of choice, Habitat for Humanity Toronto. The rest is being donated to our own giving programmes. We are grateful to: the indefatigable team at The Daniels Corporation for pulling out all the stops to sell corporate tables; Patrons Council co-chair Susan Hawkins; Mary Heinmaa, Neil Hetherington and everyone at Habitat; and all the corporations and individuals who donated both money and terrific prizes.
Although Jeannie Butler – the former doyenne of our Red Rose Balls – died suddenly in December, she helped lay the groundwork for the success of the event. She would have been smiling at the sold-out success.
Mr. Cohen’s passionate speech about philanthropy and his warm words of thanks to St. Georgians can be found in the Society’s Summer Newsletter (on-line under About Us).
MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE REPORT
Alysone Will
The Society welcomed over 50 new members in 2009- 2010.That is double last year, which was more than double the year before.
To further promote membership, The Duke pub chain again promoted the Society and St. George’s Day in a two-week promotion in its six central Toronto pubs. We wish to thank the Duke for so generously supporting the Society. We promoted memberships to such sister organizations as the British Canadian Chamber of Trade and Commerce, the Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners and the Royal Canadian Legion.
It is you, our members, who are the Society’s best ambassadors and we encourage you to tell your friends about St. George’s and ask them to visit our website.
EVENTS COMMITTEE REPORT
Sandra Comisarow
From Valentine’s Afternoon Tea in the Royal Suite of the Royal York Hotel to the 25th Anniversary of the St. George’s Cricket Cup, St. Georgian’s got together to enjoy a wide range of events and activities.
2009 – 2010 saw an increase in membership and a vast increase in attendance at events from both new and old members. Many of our events sold out, including the Red Rose Ball, which was not only sold out six weeks in advance, but also sold the largest number of tickets to date.
New members got involved at all levels. Some offered ideas for events and many invited their friends as guests and got involved with the planning and execution.
An exclusive behind the scenes rehearsal of “The Nutcracker” at The National Ballet School delighted many, as did an evening at the home and Art Gallery of Charlie Pachter.
St. George’s Heritage Events took us from the story behind Cadbury chocolate at the Elmwood Spa to intrigue and the 1837 Rebellion. Dr. Carl Benn, Chair of the Department of History at Ryerson University gave a fascinating talk in one of Toronto’s oldest churches that was the parish of such notable St. Georgians as the Pellet, Gooderham and Jarvis families. The series of music and lunch continued at St. George’s Hall, and Eating the Empire series continued with lunch at Spadina Garden.
And we didn’t hesitate to celebrate - from our very traditional Christmas Dinner complete with flaming pudding to St. George’s Day at the Duke of Westminster. Thanks to the generosity of the Duke, that event was a fundraiser.
The Lieutenant Governor celebrated us as well, with a special reception for our major donors 175 years and 175 days after we were founded.
Thank you to all who came out and supported this year’s events, and especially to those who helped making them a reality. A special thank you to Ken and Linda Foxcroft who hosted the last in a long series of marvelous garden parties at their home last August. And thank you to Maureen Milne who graciously hosted a wine tasting in her home. We look forward to another exciting year ahead and the opportunity to raise funds for those less fortunate while sharing the camaraderie of all things British.
HERITAGE COMMITTEE REPORT
Tom Pam
Cemetery
Our site in the St. James Cemetery is in fine shape thanks to the continuing maintenance work of John and Eileen Archer and the help and advice of Shelia Cann and Joan Maggisano on new plantings. Improvements include a rock boarder put in place by Ken Foxcroft to better hold the soil around the flower planted bed at the base of the monument. On May 20th the annual planting was done in time for a St. George's St. James Cemetery tour event and the 'Open Doors' weekend.
Last October a marker for the scattering garden was installed in memory of Fred Burnard our esteemed past President. Also last Fall our Site was once again used for the St. George's fifth annual Remembrance Day ceremony on November 11, 2009. We had the largest turn out to date and then went for lunch at Cranberries Restaurant, just a short walk from the Cemetery, afterwards.
In the past year a review was done by The St. James's Cemetery of their records of those who have been interred at The St. George's Site in the Cemetery. We were surprised to find out that the research conducted by Bill Britnell and Robert Turvey showed that there were more than twice as many people interred as our records indicated. The first burial was on April 18, 1859 and since then, including the interment this year of members Bernard Buckle and Jeannie Butler, there are 483 people interred in our plot.
Legacy Fund
The St. George's Legacy Fund was launched last fall as most members now know. A pamphlet is available about this perpetual fund from our office for those who would be interested. We hope that you are in favour of what has been set up and will consider a contribution here in your future plans.
List of donations (excluding bursaries) 2009-2010
Habitat for Humanity Toronto 375,000
St Michael’s Hospital 13,770
Toronto Friendship Centre 10,000
Broad Reach Foundation 5,000
Sunnybrook Hospital 5,000
Canada’s National Ballet School 5,000
Dr. Clown 5,000
Wycliffe College 5,000
Street Health Community Nursing 4,000
The Stop Community Food Centre 4,000
St. Vincent de Paul 3,770
Casey House 3,000
Royal Canadian Legion Poppy Fund 3,000
Good Neighbours Club 3,000
Common Ground Cooperative 3,000
Centre for Diversity 3,770
Regent Park School of Music 2,500
Dictionary of Old English 2,500
Perram House 2,500
Jane Tweed Centre 2,000
Pathways 2,000
St. James’s Cathedral 2,000
Ovarian Cancer Tumor Bank 2,000
English Speaking Union 1500
Kid’s Help Phone 1,000
Metropolitan United Church 1,000
Pegasus 1,000
ALS Society 700
Total Donations 470,740
Funds disbursed from the University of Toronto
St. George’s Society Endowment Fund 44,418
