1/24/2019

Cossette staff rallies partners and community to support Toronto’s newest 24-Hour Respite Site for people experiencing homelessness

by Cossette

As the cold weather continues to threaten the city’s most vulnerable, employees at some of Canada’s leading communications agencies located in Liberty Village, rallied the community in support of those taking refuge at St. Felix Centre’s 24-Hour Respite site.

St. Felix Centre’s team reached out to local businesses just before they opened their second location in December, and a group of employees from the Vision 7 network of agencies including Cossette, V7 Media and Citizen Relations answered the call.

When we sat down to talk to St. Felix’s staff about their priorities, a community clothing drive just made sense. Clothing donations are often seen as a way to provide something new to wear, but extra layers during cold nights are far more important than most people realize. They can be the difference between life and death for many on the street.

Rachel Abrams, Associate Creative Director at Cossette

Westside Studio joined in and together, they drove clothing donations through a powerful creative campaign, which was shared on social media and posted in local bars and restaurants. The posters depict the life-saving function of clothing donations to shelters. To date, it has received an overwhelming response, with people donating over 3,000 pieces of warm clothing items to support St. Felix Centre’s respite site guests.

We feel very grateful for the amazing response we have received from many members of the Liberty Village community, but we feel especially moved by the support we have received from the Cossette team and their partners. They have not only offered their amazing support for our organization by creating this campaign, but have also shown a deep empathy and compassion for some of the most vulnerable and marginalized members of Toronto’s community.

Enrique Cochegrus, Manager, Business Development & Communications

Thanks to donated media from agency partners newad and Addictive Mobility, the campaign is live on 155 boards in bar and restaurant locations across the downtown core and has generated over 200,000 digital display impressions. The campaign will run till the end of January.

Credits

Cossette

Global Chief Creative Officer: Peter Ignazi Global Chief Creative Officer: Carlos Moreno Associate Creative Director/Writer: Rachel Abrams Associate Creative Director/Art Director: Jake Bundock Account Director: Daniel Dolan

Cossette Media

Luke Southern, Urooj Fatima

V7i: Faye Ly Citizen Relations: Skylar LeBel Photographer: Tyler Gray, Westside Studio