TORONTO – Exactly how much did Air Canada Foundation raise at its annual golf tournament for Canadian children in need? Over $1 million, a staggering amount that will undoubtedly help countless kids across the country.

The tournament, now in its seventh year, took place on July 9 at the Saint Raphaël Golf Club in Ile-Bizard, Quebec and featured close to 350 attendees from around the world. It included a full day of golf followed by a cocktail-style dinner and silent and live auctions of items donated by tournament partners.

Attendees were particularly touched by the fundraising efforts of two young boys – Justin and Kaleb – who manned the highly coveted lemonade stand. Together, they helped raise a record amount of $11,713.50 for the Foundation.

“The overwhelming generosity of Air Canada’s partners and friends has once again made the Air Canada Foundation’s golf tournament a huge success with over $1 million raised,” said Priscille LeBlanc, Chair of the Air Canada Foundation. “We also appreciate the tireless work of Air Canada employee volunteers who helped organize and facilitate the event, which was once again a sellout, allowing the majority of the funds raised to directly benefit children in need.”

AMADEUS served a Presenting-Partner of this year’s event, which was supported by more than 100 Canadian, American and international corporations and organizations.

This year’s Patrons of Honour included: AAR; Air Canada; Air Georgian; SAP Ariba; Bell Canada; Bombardier; CIBC Capital Markets; Citi; Jazz Aviation LP; Exxon Mobil; GA Telesis; GE Aviation; HSBC; Airbase Canada; KPMG; Macquarie Bank; Rockwell Collins; Sky Regional Airlines; and Visa Canada.

As a registered not-for-profit organization, the Air Canada Foundation’s mission is to help connect sick children to the medical care they need, grant children’s wishes and alleviate child poverty. In 2017, it granted over $5.4 million to support Canadian registered charities, which included over $1.5 million to Reach (formerly known as Reach for the Rainbow), the Sainte-Justine Hospital, the Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada, and the Breakfast Club of Canada.

The Foundation also provided in-kind support that included eight Dreams Take Flight trips from across Canada for a day at Disney, 1,348 roundtrip airline tickets to more than 350 charitable organizations, and a partnership with the RCMP Child Recovery Program to ensure the safe return of missing children.

The Air Canada Foundation Hospital Transportation Program also donated over 6.65 million Aeroplan Miles to 15 pediatric hospitals across Canada, while the Air Canada Foundation Volunteer Involvement Program, which was designed to recognize the active involvement of employees in their own communities, awarded a pair of airline tickets to 80 charitable organizations for their fundraising events.

“On behalf of all the children and their families whose lives are touched by the Foundation, I thank our loyal sponsors, participants and volunteers for their ongoing generosity and support,” added LeBlanc.