National Volunteer week was April 24th to 30th and Bell’s April InTouch highlighted stories of Bell’s volunteers. BPG members, please send us your stories so we can showcase your volunteer experiences!
International Volunteer Day is December 5th and it is celebrated worldwide. Volunteering has become a very rewarding experience for many people.
My Mother instilled volunteering early on in our family. I have volunteered my entire life and have continued this tradition with my daughters. No matter how busy you are, you can always find a few minutes to volunteer. The key to volunteering is to find something that you are passionate about or something you truly care about so you can enjoy the experience.
My previous volunteering experiences involved mentoring and improving the skillsets of youth and young women and serving meals to seniors. Now I volunteer for the Bell Pensioners Group (BPG) to protect our pensions. Even though Bell is a great sponsor and our pension solvency is well over 100%, it is important to ensure the legislation for bankruptcy and insolvency are in place in case this situation changes as it did for a number of companies including Sears and Nortel. No pensioner should lose their pension! Right now, we are asking pensioners to send an email to their MP to support pension protection with Bill C-228. Click on this link and it will direct you to this article and the link for your MP. Protect our pensions.
BPG has over 100 volunteers helping out at the National and Chapter levels. There are always opportunities to volunteer and the commitment level can be whatever you can manage. We have no paid personnel and everyone volunteers their time for a common goal – protecting our pensions. Check out the BPG websites , BPG Facebook and BPG chapter newsletters for Volunteer opps or contact your chapter.
As an added bonus to volunteering for BPG, you can now track your BPG hours in the Bell Giving online tool at https://bell.benevity.org/ and be eligible for monthly prizes and team grants to the charities of your choice.
If you’re not a BPG member, why not? It seems like a win-win situation to me. BPG proactively protects your pension, keeps you informed about pension issues and legislative changes, as well as other important issues such as fraud, investments, retirement concerns and government benefits. BPG is the organization to contact if you need help with an issue regarding Bell or your pension. Additionally, BPG offers partner discounts!
All this for $20 per year. Join now at: Become a member and receive a free year. Why a free year? We had extra funds as we did not have our member meetings during COVID so we chose to give back. Any existing member in good standing in 2021 received a free year in 2022 and any new member joining before August 31st, 2022 will receive one year of free membership. In addition, if you are recruited by an existing member, their name will be entered into a draw for a cash prize. Draw ends June 30th. Check your chapter website for further details. BPG is open to anyone who has a Defined Benefit (DB) pension, whether you are still actively employed or retired. There has never been a better time to join!
Karen Lawson, BPG National Communications Director