My fondest memory at a playground was from Grade 1.  I got stuck on top of the monkey bars after being dared to climb to the very top, then realized I couldn’t find a way back down.  It wasn’t the getting stuck I remember with fondness, it is of the playground supervisor who came and helped me get down.  Thank you so much Mrs. Gibson, you basically saved my life back then.

So when a co-worker informed me of a local school here in Saskatoon working hard to raise funds to build a new playground I knew I had to share it with our readers.

Let me tell you about it.

Prince Phillip School, in the neighborhood of Nutana Park, needs new playground equipment.  This is one of the only schools in the city with old wooden playground equipment, which is slowly deteriorating.

Why do they need a new playground?

Aside from making children happy, the Prince Phillip School would like to ensure their playground is wheelchair accessible and also includes equipment that is sensory stimulating for children with Autism.

Prince Phillip School has Junior and Intermediate Autism Support Programs which assist children who are diagnosed with Autism or Pervasive Developmental Disorder and who are unable to function in a mainstream classroom.

Having playground equipment that is safe and accessible for all children at the school is a priority and a cause we most definitely want to support – and I am sure they would love the support of all our Canadian readers to help with this cause.

Due to lack of funding in the budgets for a new playground, the school has had to turn to fundraising efforts to make this playground a reality.  So far the school has attempted to raise their own funds to help with the building of the new playground.  With all our help, this could become a reality even sooner.

Playground equipment does not come cheap and the school is trying to raise $140,000 for this project.  They’ve already raised $36,000.

In order to help with this cause, they’ve submitted their fundraising efforts to the Pepsi Refresh Everything project in order to receive a $25,000 injection towards the new playground.

The Pepsi Refresh Everything project is a vote-based system whereby people can vote on submitted projects they think should receive the funding.  There are different funding brackets.  In the $25,000 bracket, the top 2 projects with the highest votes by October 31 will receive funding.

So far, thanks to the tremendous community support and some local media attention they’re now in 2nd place.  We want to see them secure their position in 2nd place, or even move into 1st place, and we’re confident they can do that with your support.

How can you help?  You can vote for the Prince Phillip School playground project on Pepsi’s Refresh Everything site here.  You’re able to vote once per day until October 31.

(Please note, only Canadians can vote, but comments and well-wishes on their Pepsi page are still appreciated if you’re not Canadian!)

You’ll need to create an account the first time you vote, and that takes just a few quick seconds.

So come on fellow Canadians.  Let’s take the lead from the Prince Phillip School motto ‘Do Your Best’ and do our best to support this cause and help Prince Phillip School get their playground!

Every year, Devon McGeary, a Business Analyst here at Point2 Technologies, registers herself in the annual MS Society of Canada Walk for Multiple Sclerosis.  This year, rather than simply registering herself and asking her co-workers for donations, she’s enlisted them to help her raise the donations.  This is the first time Point2 has entered a team to particpate in the walk!

Point2 is proud of our community spirit and we are pleased to see 22 of our employees (although some are camera shy) rising to the challenge to raise money for multiple sclerosis research.  Hats off to the Point2 team!  Currently the goal is to raise $1200 by our team.  You can help!  Donate here.

Show your support for the Point2 Team and for furthering critical research for multiple sclerosis by donating today.  Every little bit counts and you can make a difference!

Join us on Sunday, April 25th as we walk for MS!

Just one week after being honored as one of Saskatchewan’s Top 20 Businesses, Point2 has the distinct pleasure of announcing that we have been awarded the Achievement for Business Excellence (ABEX) award by the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce in the category of job creation.

This award, which is given to the company that “demonstrates exceptional performance in the creation of new permanent jobs” is in recognition of Point2’s sustained growth between March 2008 and March 2009. During this period, we increased our staff count by nearly 50%, in support of our rapidly expanding business.

To put it in perspective, that is an additional 30 developers whose sole job is to provide our customers with the best software in the world, or an additional 20 Customer Care representatives to help make sure that our members squeeze every last drop of value out of our products.

But this award doesn’t mean we are going to lose steam or rest on our laurels.  Oh no.  In the words of Charles Dickens, we’ve got “great expectations” for Point2 – all of which require additional manpower.

Speaking of which – do you want to work for Point2?  If you think you’ve got the chops, head on over to our careers page and see what’s available.

If this post post is any indication, we are probably hiring.

Point2 was pleased to be a sponsor of the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® Annual Golf Tournament which was held on Thursday, June 11 at The Willows Golf & Country Club. 

We sent along four of our finest golf experts (Shane Baillargeon, Chris O’Neill, Quentin Karmark, and Allison Stakiw) to spend the afternoon and hand out some prizes at the end of the day.

There were four lucky recipients of our awesome Point2 prizes.

Men’s Long Drive Winner: Ryan Bamford

Men’s Runner-up: Sean Wilson

Women’s Long Drive Winner: Linda Brown

Women’s Runner-up: Barb Wilson

First place winners each received a full year subscription to the Point2 Agent Professional membership and a water bottle.  Runners-up were awarded with Point2-emblazoned windbreakers and a coffee mug.

Congratulations to the winners!  Everyone really enjoyed themselves and Point2 was pleased to be able to have a share in this event.

So, I decided it was time to make an escape.  And I have found just the place where I am going to run to.

Yep, that’s right, I’m going to Los Cabos, baby!  I found this listing on Point2 Homes and fell in love.  It’s just $7.9 million, and what a view. 

Because I am so generous I might be willing to go half-ers on the property with anyone who is interested.  There’s one condition though - I get dibs on what months of the year I get the place.

Ah nuts, I just checked my bank account.  I’m a few million dollars shy of the asking price.

Guess it’s onto Plan B – I hear the forecast calls for warmer weather on the weekend and into next week.  Finally!  That’ll do. 

There are some beautiful properties for sale closer to home too.  Maybe instead of going south, I’ll find myself up north at one of the many Saskatchewan lakes.