We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.
Sir Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965)
Having a successful and demanding career while heading a household can be time consuming enough, but add in thousands of volunteer hours and you begin to wonder how someone could accomplish this without becoming sleep-deprived.
REALTOR® Laura-Leah Shaw makes it work. She has been involved with charities for most of her life and spends a lot of her free time bettering the world around her. She helps the homeless, animals, the environment, and those working for basic human rights.
“I contribute to charity because I can,” says Shaw. “I feel very fortunate that I can work and provide for my family. I want to share my good fortune with others.”
Shaw contributes time and money to charities like the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre, YWCA’s Crab-tree Corner, Vancouver Persons with Aids, the Living Room, Home Start, Dress for Success, and Earthsave Canada, Amnesty International, and more.
Most of her time is spent collecting and distributing goods such as food, clothing, blankets, and household items. Shaw also collects and distributes fresh food to the soup kitchens and the homeless of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. So far this year, she has arranged for the distribution of more than 135 boxes of fresh fruit and veggies donated by Choices Market.
“I see people sleeping in the streets and I believe that if we each work toward finding a solution, we would greatly reduce the number of those in need,” said Shaw. “That’s why I do what I do.”
Shaw also provides financial support for animal charities like the Vancouver Humane Society, Wildlife Res-cue and others. Each month, she sponsors a pet adoption ad in the Georgia Straight. Within her profession, she sits on the REALTORS® Care Task Force, a group of member representatives who help guide the Board’s cha-ritable initiatives, and is a coordinator for the REALTORS® Care Blanket Drive.
“My greatest motivation to give comes from there being a need. If I make a difference in someone or some-thing’s life, for me, that’s a good thing.”