Ottawa EMC: ACORN gets help from OPSEU
Posted March 24, 2011
EMC News – For the third year in a row, Ottawa’s branch of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, Canada (ACORN Canada) was given a helping hand from the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU).
OPSEU gave a donation of $5,000 for ACORN, a collection of community-based organizations that fights for the rights of the impoverished in cities across Canada.
Most recently, ACORN [Canada] provided free tax-return services and has been fighting for living wages and special diet allowances in government-based assistance programs.
” OPSEU’s members provide a lot of services that ACORNs members rely on,” said David Lundy, regional vice president for OPSEU. “We look at ACORN and see a group of like-minded community people who believe, as we do, people should come before profits and communities should come before corporations.
“We definitely put our support 100 per cent behind ACORN’s drive to have a living wage in the City of Ottawa.”
ACORN, on their behalf, was very appreciative of the donation.
“The donation was presented to us by OPSEU, which was deeply appreciated,” said Wayne Mahoney, a volunteer with Ottawa ACORN.
EMC News – For the third year in a row, Ottawa’s branch of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, Canada (ACORN Canada) was given a helping hand from the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU).
OPSEU gave a donation of $5,000 for ACORN, a collection of community-based organizations that fights for the rights of the impoverished in cities across Canada.
Most recently, ACORN [Canada] provided free tax-return services and has been fighting for living wages and special diet allowances in government-based assistance programs.
” OPSEU’s members provide a lot of services that ACORNs members rely on,” said David Lundy, regional vice president for OPSEU. “We look at ACORN and see a group of like-minded community people who believe, as we do, people should come before profits and communities should come before corporations.
“We definitely put our support 100 per cent behind ACORN’s drive to have a living wage in the City of Ottawa.”
ACORN, on their behalf, was very appreciative of the donation.
“The donation was presented to us by OPSEU, which was deeply appreciated,” said Wayne Mahoney, a volunteer with Ottawa ACORN.
“It will help us continue our work in the community and with some of our overhead costs.”
According to Lundy, the members of OPSEU are happy to be donating to ACORN’s causes.
“Their work parallels a lot of what our members do, providing assistance to those who are struggling to make ends meet,” he said. “An increasingly large percentage of the population are stuck, even if they’re working two or three jobs, not bringing enough income to cover the costs of rent, utilities, and food, let alone putting gas in a car to get somewhere. 20 per cent of our members make less than $20,000 a year, and many of those members work closely with ACORN. “
ACORN’s is now setting their sights on tenants’ rights. They are hosting tenants meetings in Ottawa South in Alta Vista towers and the Heron communities.
They are also having committee-planning meetings for provincial campaigns like improving social assistance and the aforementioned special diet allowances.
You can read the original article at: http://www.emcottawasouth.ca/20110324/news/ACORN+gets+help+from+OPSEU