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Feb. 1, 2008
Approaching the goal
Donation brings fund-raising target in sight.
RHONDA SPIVAK
HudBay Minerals Inc. has contributed $1 million, in honor of its 80th anniversary, to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg.
A jubilant Gail Asper, national chair of the museum, who is spearheading its fund-raising efforts, said, "We are overwhelmed by the generosity of HudBay.... We hope this gift will help inspire other donors to join the campaign."
The seven-figure contribution from HudBay brings private sector donations up to $85 million for the $265 million project, which is now just $20 million short of its goal.
"I am very optimistic that we will be able to have the final $20 million committed in the next few months," said Asper. "Then the board of the museum, which the [federal] government will appoint, will have the assurance that it has the necessary funds to build the design that has been proposed."
Other funding comes from the federal government ($100 million), the province of Manitoba ($40 million) and the city of Winnipeg ($20 million).
The museum is poised to be Canada's first federal museum devoted to human rights and the first federal museum outside of the national capital area. It is envisioned to be the largest human rights museum in the world, with a special focus on equipping young people to become human rights leaders and advocates.
The Canadian Museum for Human Rights is envisioned as an international education centre dedicated to promoting understanding of and respect for human rights, including women's equality, the rights of the disabled, labor rights and others, and for ethnic, religious and racial diversity.
The museum will be built at the Forks, at the junction of the Red and Assiniboine rivers that has been a meeting place for thousands of years and is the place where First Nations peoples first assembled to settle disputes peacefully through negotiation.
Asper has previously said that April 2008 is her fund-raising deadline, otherwise the museum risks being downsized due to spiraling construction costs.
The $1 million dollar cheque from HudBay was presented to Asper on Jan. 21 at the Inn at the Forks in Winnipeg. At the presentation, Asper said that the museum has entered a "crucial point" in its campaign and it was important not to be complacent and to ensure every last gift gets collected.
She said that a meet and greet event that she co-hosted with Manitoba Premier Gary Doer in Toronto during Grey Cup Week in November had yielded some donations, which would soon be announced.
"We've been very busy and are thrilled with the national interest in the museum project. We've secured major gifts from other regions in the country outside of Manitoba," she said.
Peter Jones, chief executive officer of HudBay (who has since been replaced by Allen Palmiere), said, "The company made the contribution in recognition of its employees – past and present – who have been vital to HudBay's success."
Jones said that the $1 million cheque was "by far" the biggest one-time charitable contribution that the company has ever made.
HudBay is Canada's third largest producer of zinc and copper metal and the third largest producer in North America of zinc oxide. It is an integrated mining company, operating mines in northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan. It also owns a zinc oxide production facility in Ontario.
"Our company was built ... with a spirit of exploration and perseverance. The museum will honor the same spirit of perseverance for human rights.... We are thrilled to be part of this Canadian initiative," Jones added.
Asper, whose father, the late Israel Asper, first championed the idea of a human rights museum to be built in Winnipeg, said she has been receiving cheques of all sizes from Canadians of all walks of life in support of the project.
"We are getting gifts from people all across the country. More and more people are naming the museum as a charitable cause in honor of their birthday, their anniversary, their bar or bat mitzvah, or any other occasion," she said.
"On a personal level, I find it incredibly energizing and inspiring to sign all of the tax receipts for donations we receive on a weekly basis, be they for $10 or $10,000.... I love getting the $10 gifts just as much as the $10,000 gifts," Asper added.
Other speakers at the presentation on Jan. 21, included Doer, Manitoba's senior federal minister, Vic Toews, and former Liberal heavyweight Lloyd Axworthy, who sits on HudBay's board.
Rhonda Spivak is a Winnipeg freelance writer.
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