As education costs continue to rise, the dream of achieving post-secondary schooling is becoming more and more difficult for young people in communities across Canada. In Durham Region, Ontario, the idea of providing a financial leg up to help those in need further their education was something that really hit home for Dealer Principal Greg Mason and his staff at Ontario Hyundai in Whitby.
Mason and his wife Anita got in touch with their financial advisors at ScotiaMcLeod, put aside seed money and worked with a legal team to get the process rolling. “I knew it was going to take a little while,” Mason says “but it really was something we could do.” Having contacted the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to obtain status as a registered charity, by the end of summer 2013, Ontario Hyundai Scholarships was officially up and running.
Mason says that “the meat and potatoes” was defining who qualified for the scholarship program and how much funding could be provided to those that did.
Mason says a huge part of making it all happen were those that volunteered their time, everybody from his advisors at ScotiaMcLeod, to the accountants handling the tax returns, to the printer (who created all the signs and posters) to the scholarship committee members that ultimately selected the winners.
Applications for the first round of Ontario Hyundai Scholarships came thick and fast. The quality of each application was so high that selecting each winner proved extremely difficult. Ultimately, the committee was able to select 15 finalists out of more than 90 applicants and from that, award 10 scholarships to the students pictured on this page.
“When we started, we had no idea just how dedicated and focused these young people were,” says Mason. Each of the winners directly receives the scholarship funds allocated to them, which cover $1000 per year for up to four years for full-time studies at an accredited Ontario college or university. “Every single dollar is going to each winner at their particular centre of education,” says Mason “so there is no money being tied up in administrative costs or other fees.”
Ontario Hyundai Scholarships plans to raise an additional $500,000 to add to the current total of $700,000, with the goal of increasing the amount each winning student receives to $1500 per year for four years. All of the funding is raised through the Gregory and Anita Mason Family Foundation.
“We will be awarding another 10 students scholarships next May,” says Mason and “another 10 the year after. Our goal is to ensure we always have 40 kids in the program, for as 10 graduate their final year, another 10 will be starting their first.”
Mason says both he and his team have been amazed at the response so far to Ontario Hyundai Scholarships and encourages other dealers to get involved with similar programs to help invest in both Ontario and Canada’s future.
For more information about Ontario Hyundai Scholarships visit: http://www.ontariohyundaischolarships.ca/
