Event Project

Fundraising golf tournament for external and internal stakeholders

HIGHLIGHTS
Scope: I acted as event lead, managing sponsorships, silent auction, volunteer resourcing and promotion

Budget: $
60,000
Timeline: 6 months
Money Raised: $75,000
Attendees: 220

Resources:
- Volunteers: 30 (20 at the event, 10 supporting planning)
- Photographers (2)
- Silent Auction Suppliers (15)
- Charity recipients (3)
- Production houses (3)

Photos of employees, board members and leadership at the tournament event

Front cover, golf tournament program

Background
Elexicon Energy is an electrical distribution company, responsible for supporting over 171,000 customers in communities east of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). In 2019, the organization was formed through the merger of Veridian Connections and Whitby Hydro. The launch of Elexicon Energy occurred in April of 2019 and the annual golf tournament was scheduled for August, that same year. While many of the municipal stakeholders and community members were aware of the merger between the two former organizations, public awareness of the change remained low after launch. The organization chose to maintain all external-facing appearances that would typically occur for both former utilities, until public awareness reached a higher level, using these scheduled opportunities to build awareness for the new brand.

Objective
To host a charity golf tournament raising money for charities in the Elexicon Energy service territory, continuing the annual event tradition of the former legacy organization, Veridian Connections.

Execution
Created a communications plan, engaging former attendees, municipal contacts, vendors, suppliers and employees to participate in our event. I was responsible for leading and coordinating the event, a shotgun tournament for over 200 golfers and 50 additional attendees. The event included a silent auction, evening dinner and presentation along with on-course activities. I sold and coordinated all sponsorship for the event. Coordination of the charity component for the event included both an internal and external promotions plan to educate our audiences on our organization's commitment to social responsibility.

Result
The event raised a record amount of $75,000 for three food banks operating within Elexicon Energy service territories. The event was well attended by employees, board members, local politicians and stakeholders within the community, raising awareness for our new organization since the merger. The event demonstrated our commitment to the community and social good, while increasing collaboration across the employee base building a positive corporate culture.


"I’ve had the pleasure of working with Leshanne on a number of projects. She is level-headed under pressure, has a great work ethic and an approachable personality. Her ability to break things down for stakeholders and translate technical jargon into plain language was always valued."

Stacia Boss
Vice President, Human Resources and Corporate Services at Elexicon Energy
Managed Leshanne at Elexicon Energy for over 2 years, worked together for 5 years

"I worked closely with Leshanne on a number of production projects including events, employee branding and campaign work. What I enjoy about working with her is that she's open to collaboration and can be counted on from project brief through to payment. She is consistently positive in the face of challenges - and quick to provide updates so that we can anticipate her needs. She truly sees everyone involved in the process of production, installation and fulfilment as a partner rather than a vendor. Our team would love to work with her again."

Brittany Warrington
Production Specialist, Allegra Marketing and Print Solutions
Worked together over 3 years, for 3 clients