Views (April 01, 2005)

The board of directors of the Insurance Brokers Association of Canada (IBAC) met earlier this year with a number of insurance company CEOs, and on a suggestion from IBAC vice president Danny Craig, the group raised over $5,000 in individual pledges towards the Canadian Red Cross Tsunami Relief Fund.

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The 2nd Annual “Night at the Races” to support the Women in Insurance Cancer Crusade (WICC) is set for Wednesday, September 7 at Toronto’s Woobdbine Racetrack. Hosts Bill Blakeney and Fred DeFrancesco expect the evening of fine food and thoroughbred racing will sell out early. For more information, contact Bill at 416-408-4225, Fred at 905-278-4727 or Isabel Santos at 416-371-6863.

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CARSTAR Automotive Canada celebrated its 10th anniversary with “Inspiration Symposium 2005” in conjunction with the Canadian International Auto Show at Toronto’s Skydome. “A decade ago, CARSTAR in Canada had no brand name, no network, no national insurance partnerships, no systems and consistency – but it did have a vision, a mission and a value statement,” says CEO and founder Sam Mercanti. “Ten years later CARSTAR Canada repairs over 6,000 vehicles a month at 105 locations in ten provinces, has dozens of insurance company partners and vendor partners, an industry leading average repair cost and cycle-time, nationwide CSI of 4.82 out of 5.0, repairing one in every 20 cars, 16% consumer brand awareness and a dedicated and quality network of CARSTAR franchisees nationally.”

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The Toronto Insurance Women’s Association (TIWA) held its annual Wine & Cheese Reception at Toronto’s Metro Convention Center recently, with hundreds of industry professionals gathering for this always popular evening. TIWA is also inviting everyone to their 2nd Annual Pub Night, set for June 29 at Montana’s in downtown Toronto. For more on TIWA events, visit www.tiwa.org.

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The Honorable Order of the Blue Goose, Ontario Pond hosted a St. Patrick’s Day party raising $6,000 to help industry veteran Mike Yang. The money is to help Yang, who is recovering following a viral infection which has left him in a wheelchair, so that he can purchase a wheelchair-enabled vehicle. The event, held at the Canadian Bar Association offices in Toronto, featured Irish recording artists Spraoi and was sponsored by Miller & Associates and Blakeney Henneberry Murphy. For more on Mike Yang and to make a donation, visit www.bluegooseontario.org.

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The CIP Society – Ontario celebrated its newest group of graduates with its annual “Pub Night”. Dozens of 2004 graduates and their supporters enjoyed an evening of socializing at Montana’s Mustang Lounge in Toronto.