Advisors give back to PE

The PE riding club will be hosting the 4^th leg of the World cup Qualifier Show Jumping Competition 2011 from 15 – 17 July 2011. All the top South African riders will be competing in this event as they vie for the coveted title of the South African World cup qualifier champion who along with the winners from 17 different countries will compete at the final in 2012. Due to the success of the event held at the PE riding club in the past they have been selected to host once again.

Insurance giant, Liberty is the main sponsor of the event this year as part of their Giving Back sponsorship programme.

“It forms an important part of the community’s social and sport activities, and since we believe in supporting the unique needs of each community this is an excellent opportunity to show Liberty’s support for something that is so important to this community,” says Greg Thompson, Branch Manager for PE at Liberty.

“Our brand isn’t as well known in the Eastern Cape as it is in other provinces within the country. So we are hoping that through Giving Back by sponsoring premier events like the World Cup and bringing our FA’s to the event that they will get to meet the community in a relaxed environment and hopefully get more exposure for themselves and the brand.”

The Giving Back Sponsorship programme is run throughout South Africa at Liberty branches in each province. The programme aims to assist Liberty Financial advisers in making a difference in their communities. These sponsorships are all about Liberty giving their FA’s a platform to work from in their community – they apply for charitable causes / events to be sponsored and a panel chooses which FAs will receive the money needed for their cause / event. “It is about allowing the FA to show an active interest in their community while giving them the financial backing they need,” continues Thompson.

By uplifting a community the aim is to help people to own their lives by empowering them to take control of a better future. “Of course we do our own community projects, but it is great to get involved in helping advisors to empower their communities too,” continues Thompson. “We at Liberty know that our advisors feel as strongly as we do about uplifting people but we don’t just want to give money and leave. We often offer hands-on help too. Whether it’s assisting in organising and promoting an event, giving a seminar, or recruiting enthusiastic volunteers, we’ll try to help.”

Besides premier events, the advisors also look at underprivileged schools within the communities and sponsor their sporting activities such as derbies through branding, uniforms and equipment as education is a big part of Giving Back. Another ongoing project of the PE based advisors is helping a charity of their choice, and they have chosen the We-Care foundation, which is an all encompassing foundation focusing on woman abuse, children abuse, aids orphans and works directly with the SAPS. “This year alone our FA’s did their own fundraising and together with Liberty’s support raised close to R30000 for We-Care,” says Thompson.

The Giving Back campaign bases its sponsoring selections on the basis that the event will engage families and youth, benefit low-income families, focus on skills development and will encourage entrepreneurialism or education.