Tag: charity

I passed! Now I’m passing it on

Since my last post I’ve been studying like mad. Last Saturday I wrote the final exam for the Canadian Securities Course and yesterday I found out I passed. That’s it, it’s over – the brilliant idea I had in Spring 2016, started working on that May, wrote the first exam last December – tout fini.

(I really need better hobbies . Say, crystal meth. )

My friend Renée gave me this treat to celebrate.

Just kidding. Actually, I learned stuff. I worked my brain in different ways. Studying during my lunch breaks and on weekends kept me off the streets and out of trouble, which is important for a punk like me.

(Obviously I’m giddy from the Christmas sugar cookies. Bear with me.)

I’ve already started putting the knowledge to good use. I do a lot of volunteering, and this year for the first time I joined a finance committee for one of the organizations. Not only do I understand everything at the meetings, but I was able to productively participate in a discussion that led to a better asset allocation for its contingency funds – the money the organization depends on in emergencies.

That’s right – by learning about money, I was able to help people who really need it. I know it’s just a start, but it got real.

(Aside 1: Speaking of good causes, Interval House of Ottawa is building an animal housing area so that women and children can bring their pets when they flee. We know that many abusers also hurt the animals. We know that many women stay behind because they don’t want to leave their pets. We know there’s a strong connection between pets and mental health. Click here to find out more.)

(Aside 2: Also this year, my Breakfast Club Retro Dance raised $3500, bringing the three-year total to $10,700 to help kids start their school day with a nutritious meal through the school breakfast program. And the Food Bank drive I organized at the office brought in $425, which the organization can turn into $2125 worth of food through its partnerships with food industry donors. This raising money is pretty addictive – maybe I don’t need crystal meth after all!)

After the holidays (anyone else find it the season of obligation, stress and debt?) I’ll start thinking of other ways to use my new money powers for good.

See you in 2018!

Life, math and chapters in between

There I was, making slow but steady progress, then wham! Life happened, as it does. My last post was about the Breakfast Club Retro Dance, which I’m happy to say was a success. More than 100 people came out and we raised $3300, so in two years the event has raised $7100 for the Ottawa School Breakfast Program. That’s a whole lot of tummys we’re filling, many futures we’re helping.

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Delivering the cheque to Alison Sheepway at the Ottawa Network for Education

Back to the Canadian Securities Course. For people who are working full time while studying it does usually take an entire year to complete. Over the summer I got bogged down by Chapter 7 – Fixed-Income Securities: Pricing and Trading. Or more specifically, by the mathematical formulas in the chapter. I took the math tutorial and thought I had it figured out, then took the online quiz, which explained everything differently, and just got confused. Math panic swelled up in my gut.

Then Adult Me kicked in. (I didn’t even know my brain had an Adult Me function.) I realized that if I were to use this information in daily practice, I could always pull out the book again to refer back to the formulas. This was wonderful, especially since I still have math nightmares. (Seriously. It’s a day before the final exam, I’ve spent the entire year doing nothing but English and history, and if I don’t get my math credit I don’t graduate. Shudder.)

So I moved on, knowing that I wasn’t going to do well on one particular part and that was ok. I sped through Chapter 8 – Equity Securities: Common and Preferred Shares and Chapter 9 – Equity Securities: Equity Transactions, both in one weekend. I took a little more time with Chapter 10 – Derivatives and Chapter 11 – Financing and Listing Securities.

Now I’m on Chapter 12 – Corporations and their Financial Statements. Apparently all the terms I learned in Grade 13 Accounting have changed. (The bastards! How dare they!) Once I’m done, I’ll study Chapters 1-12 and sign up for the first exam.

Yikes.

Shake your ass, save the world

Time after time it’s been shown grown-up boys and girls just want to have fun. Express yourself and get footloose with the Breakfast Club Retro Dance fundraiser. You’ll be dancing in the dark to raise money for the Ottawa School Breakfast Program.

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Rocking teased hair and blue eyeliner for BCRD 2015

Until Aug. 31 tickets are only $20 and that feeds a child for an entire month of school days. Sure, right now school’s out for summer but soon everyone will be hot for teacher again. Show some sweet emotion so kids can dream on and start their day with a full tummy.

Because love is a battlefield but getting through a school day shouldn’t be.

Get tickets & more info here

More Details, Fewer Earworms

The Ottawa School Breakfast Program provides over 2 million breakfasts a year. It’s in 177 schools across town, in all school boards and districts. That’s a lot of hungry kids. Surviving school is hard enough without being distracted by hunger.

The Breakfast Club Retro Dance is a high school dance for grownups to raise money for the Program and you’re invited. All of the fun, none of the mean girls!

You remember school. Maybe you had feathered hair and jeans so tight you needed a coat hanger to zip them up. Maybe you teased your hair and destroyed the ozone layer with all the hairspray you used. Maybe you didn’t use makeup because it clashed with your anti-establishment checkered shirt and torn jeans. Whatever your groove, this is the event for you.

We raised almost $4000 last year and *all* of the money goes to the Ottawa School Breakfast Program. Dressing up from your favourite era is encouraged. It’s a cash bar so the punch is already spiked and there are no chaperones.

The Program can provide a meal for $1/day, so each $20 ticket to the dance feeds a child for a month of school days. (Tickets go up to $25 on Sept. 1!)

It’s a good time for a great cause. On Sept. 24 shake your ass, save the world.

Get tickets & more info here

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