ALDO Group renovates Moisson Montreal!

Tuesday, 17 August 2010 20:40 |

Written by Melanie Clark |

b-Living

font size: decrease font size increase font size
Bookmark this page

click to see full-size image

Do you ever find that you may be focusing on things that aren’t of great importance to the world? I know I sometimes do. Oh, it may be just a passing thought as I struggle over which shoes to put on in the morning, but I wonder nonetheless. Well, I just found a way to combine a fashionable world with good etiquette. On August 12, for a 4th consecutive year, close to 300 ALDO employees chose to leave the designer shoes at home in favour of denim overalls – if only for a very, very brief, incognito moment – all in the name of a good cause: the complete overhaul of Moisson Montreal's headquarters.

The project:

- Revamp the exterior of the building by adding flowers and greenery and a oh-so-beautiful rock garden, and an outdoor patio with picnic tables, umbrellas and chairs
- Create a stylish and functional cafeteria and lounge area, even bringing in new tables, chairs, a couch and a TV (wonder if they do ladies’ night now?)
- Build a functional pressroom to encourage a proactive approach for media outreaches, as well as create a well-designed space for all employees and volunteers
- Install functional and relaxing spaces for employees and volunteers (we just know how much they need the RnR!), including a meeting room and a training room
- Set up administrative areas so that, well, some kind of work can get done (it’s not all fun and games, people)

Overall, there were architects, designers, marketing professionals, event planning specialists and experts in construction taking part in 8 projects during the day, in addition to one team whose task it was to sort through and distribute food to various organizations.

Aldo 1

The most amazing part of this event is not that it took place at all, but that it wasn’t the first event of the kind for this group. In the past years, the ALDO Group has indeed contributed to helping thousands of people through similar projects at Welcome Hall Mission, Place Benoît, Assistance d’enfants en difficulté (A.E.D.), Dans la Rue, Logifem, À Deux Mains, and a lot more.

This year, they picked this specific unfolding of greening and sustainable development renovations in the spirit of the International Year of Biodiversity. With a big focus on planting trees to reduce urban heat islands, re-using old materials, recycling new ones and choosing supplies that are ecologically-friendly, they aimed to mirror the values of sustainable development in every aspect of their project.

Moisson Montréal is our country’s largest food bank. It helps more than 115,000 Montrealers (including 36,000 children) every month, and supplies over 210 community organizations! This is no small feat, people. And to run it all, only 2,413 people are occasional and regular volunteers. That’s not a whole lot. We should be thankful to have Aldo Group step out of its 5” comfort zone to lend a hand. What did YOU do last August 12?

Aldo 1