COMMUNITY ACTION
The Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB) has a long history of giving back to the community. Each year, VIREB members volunteer time, energy, and resources to charities, service groups, sports organizations, and community events right across Vancouver Island.
VIREB donates funds to a wide range of groups and institutions. In 2011, VIREB and the Real Estate Foundation of BC (REFBC) established an endowment fund to commemorate VIREB’s 60th anniversary. The two organizations donated $60,000 to Vancouver Island University (VIU) and North Island College (NIC), and these awards continue to grow over time. Students at VIU and NIC receive bursaries from the endowment fund.
VIREB also distributes $30,000 annually among our six zones for charitable organizations selected by the zone directors. We have also conducted several local fundraising events, the most successful of which were the Driven to Give events that we ran in 2015, 2016, and 2017. VIREB partnered with Steve Marshall Ford Lincoln on Driven to Give, raising $10,000 for Haven Society in 2015, $7,500 for the Nanaimo SPCA in 2016, and $7,500 for Nanaimo Crime Stoppers and Nanaimo RCMP Victim Services in 2017.
All of VIREB’s charitable initiatives fall under the REALTORS Care® umbrella. This guiding principle and brand celebrate the philanthropic work done by Canadian REALTORS®, real estate boards and associations, and broker offices.
VIREB has donated to many charitable causes throughout its years of operation. Organizations that have benefited from our members’ generosity include but are not limited to the Salvation Army, Secret Santa, Nanaimo Toy Drive, Cowichan Valley Basket Society, Y.A.N.A, Campbell River Head Injury Society, and a long list of food banks, women’s shelters, and hospice societies.
The pandemic-related difficulties that charitable organizations faced in 2020 inspired VIREB members to donate over $70,000 to various charities in VIREB’s six primary zones, such as the John Howard Society, RCMP Victim Services, Arrowsmith Search and Rescue, BC SPCA, and the Red Cross. Several students throughout the VIREB area also received $500 and $1,000 bursaries.
For REALTORS Care® Week in 2020, VIREB donated $500 each to several homeless shelters, including Campbell River and North Island Transition Society, The Salvation Army (Comox Valley), Warmland House (Duncan), Samaritan House Emergency Women’s Shelter (Nanaimo), Society of Organized Services (Parksville), and Port Alberni Shelter Society.
Over and above the regular charitable donations VIREB made in 2021 and 2022, the association donated $10,000 for B.C. flood relief and $10,000 to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
COMMUNITY DONATIONS
VIREB members are committed to good citizenship and community action. Through the association’s Community REALTORS Care® Program, members contribute to the wellbeing of the communities in which they work and live. If you would like to apply for funding, please fill out the application form and email the completed form to communications@vireb.com.
ANNUAL DONATIONS
VIREB sets aside $30,000 annually, disbursed among our six primary zones. Countless organizations have benefitted from our members’ generosity for several years, but here are a few highlights.
