Dec. 10, 2025
From donating blood and raising funds for cystic fibrosis research to helping families during the holidays, Wilfrid Laurier University students, faculty, staff and alumni spent 2025 making a difference in Waterloo Region, Brantford-Brant and Milton.
As the end of the year approaches, Laurier extends heartfelt thanks to faculty, staff, students and alumni for giving back this year. The following partnerships and initiatives are just a few of the meaningful collaborations that Laurier community members supported.
Laurier kicked off 2025 with the Giving is Golden blood drive at the Waterloo campus on Jan. 29. More than 100 faculty, staff and student donors attended, with over half giving blood for the first time.
The clinic was the first on-campus blood drive at Laurier’s Waterloo campus since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Laurier has partnered with Canadian Blood Services for 15 years, contributing more than 5,000 donations to Canada’s Lifeline.
The Giving is Golden blood drive returns Jan. 28, 2026. Details will be shared in early January.
Related Story: Laurier football coach Zach Scotto honours late mother’s cancer journey by giving blood.
In May, Laurier hosted the 27th annual Empty Bowls event in support of The Food Bank of Waterloo Region. Organized by the Robert Langen Art Gallery, the ticketed event welcomed hundreds of guests to Lazaridis Hall to enjoy soups prepared by local chefs in bowls crafted by Waterloo Potters’ Workshop members.
Ticket sales funded 83,565 meals for more than 70,000 individuals in Waterloo Region who rely on food assistance programs.
In 1961, student Paul Enns proposed a shoe-shining fundraiser to introduce first-year students to campus and inspire them to positively impact the community during Orientation Week. The event was a success and Shinerama, an annual fundraiser for Cystic Fibrosis Canada, was born.
Each September, more than 750 first-year students at Laurier’s Waterloo and Brantford campuses participate in Shinerama events, including barbeques, carnivals, craft nights and car washes. Shinerama has grown into Canada’s largest fundraiser on post-secondary campuses. Laurier Shiners have raised more than $3 million to date.
Throughout September, the Hawk Shop sold orange T-shirts designed by Laurier student Arrianna Carello to honour the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Orange shirts bearing the phrase “Every Child Matters” are a symbolic gesture to acknowledge the truths of Canada’s past and commemorate those harmed by the residential school system.
More than 100 orange shirts featuring Carello’s design were sold, with proceeds going to the Woodland Cultural Centre’s Indigenous Preservation Museum.
Laurier is among dozens of private and public organizations in Waterloo Region and Brantford-Brant that fundraise for United Way so they can extend social services and wrap-around support to community members in need.
Laurier’s 36th annual employee fundraiser for United Way raised more than $56,000 for United Way Waterloo Region Communities and Brant United Way. With the establishment of Laurier’s campus in Milton, Laurier’s United Way campaign committee will explore ways to support Halton-Hamilton United Way in 2026.
Related Story: Laurier Brantford student’s experiential learning placement a ‘game-changer’ for Brant United Way
Laurier’s Special Constable Service held its annual cold-weather item drive in November to support community partners assisting community members experiencing homelessness.
Laurier faculty, staff and students donated more than 700 items, including hats, gloves, blankets, hygiene items and gift cards for distribution by SOAR Community Services in Brantford, House of Friendship in Waterloo Region and Compassion Society of Halton in Milton.
Laurier’s Financial Resources team collected toys for children and youth as part of Sarah’s Holiday Toy Drive. The event honours the legacy of Laurier employee Sarah Wilkinson, who organized an annual university-wide toy drive to support the Salvation Army’s Toy Mountain before her passing in 2018.
This year, more than 300 were donated by faculty, staff and students at Laurier’s Waterloo, Brantford and Milton campuses.
Laurier’s Brantford “Soup Group” — staff members from across the campus who regularly meet for potluck lunches — have established a holiday tradition of giving to Nova Vita, a Brantford-based organization that supports individuals and families escaping domestic violence.
For the third consecutive year, the group pooled what they would've normally spent on secret Santa gifts to fulfill the wish lists of adults and children supported by Nova Vita, as well as additional items for the organization itself.
This year, that amounted to $700 in donations, which the group delivered to Nova Vita in early December.
In the last year, more than 70% of Laurier alumni over the age of 25 contributed to charity – a rate higher than the national average – totaling an estimated $160 million.
Additionally, more than half of Laurier alumni give back through volunteerism, donating an estimated 5 million hours annually to their communities.
