Scholarships, tornado relief and biking for a cause

The Ontario Trucking Association (OTA) Education Foundation is offering general and endowed scholarships to Ontario students, regardless of their field of study, who have demonstrated their commitment to academic success, community service, and who have or plan to have an affiliation with the trucking industry. University students can apply for $1,500 scholarships and college students are eligible for $1,000. Applications are due by July 15, 2013.

High school students whose parents are Canadian International Freight Forwarders Association (CIFFA) members are eligible for a $3,000 scholarship if they plan on attending college or university and studying international trade, logistics or business. The application deadline is August 2, 2013.

The Halifax International Airport Authority (HIAA) has named the Parker Street Food & Furniture Bank as its latest signature partner. This means the HIAA has pledged $100,000 of financial support to Parker Street over the next three years. It will also donate surplus furniture and used computers to the organization. In addition, HIAA employees will participate in Parker Street’s fund-raising events and food drives. Even before the partnership, HIAA’s employees volunteered to help pack and deliver meals and packages through the holiday season. HIAA’s first signature partner, Habitat for Humanity Nova Scotia, received similar support between 2010 and 2012.

Pival International is sponsoring a team cycling riding in the CIBC 401 Bike Challenge. Participants will cycle 580km from the Toronto Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) to the Montreal Children’s Hospital (The Children’s) over the course of two-and-a-half days to raise money for cancer research. Pival has also offered to match all corporate sponsorships up to a maximum amount, and Pival president Mario La Barbera, along with his wife and their three children will be part of the Pival team.

The Food Shippers of America (FSA) donated $10,000 to the American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN) for tornado relief efforts. ALAN has divided the money in half and is spending $5,000 on immediate needs and has dedicated the remaining $5,000 for ongoing relief to be delivered over the coming months. The organization has been working with Feeding America (FA), a hunger-relief charity composed of American food banks, to deliver food and essential supplies to the disaster area. FA has arranged for the delivery of over 70 semi-trailer loads (or two million pounds) of food as a supplement to the relief supplies collected locally by the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma.