On March 26, over 300 young professionals came together at the first ever Serving for Sinai, an all-day co-ed "Battle of the Business" volleyball tournament in support of Sinai Health System’s Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute (LTRI). The inaugural event was a smashing success, raising over $220,000 for the LTRI.
Throughout the day, players from top corporations competed in three divisions: RioCan Real Estate Division, Vice Media Technology Division and Torys LLP Professional Services Division. Corporate team sponsors came from a range of companies including Google, Facebook, MaRS Discovery District, Linkedin, MLSE, KPMG, dentalcorp, Metropia, amongst many others. The event also featured several VIP attendees, including nine former and future Canadian Beach Volleyball Olympians who competed in a friendly yet intense feature match. Director of Research at the LTRI, Dr. Jim Woodgett graciously score kept for the Olympian match. After 90 games and nearly eight hours of competitive playing, Facebook Canada’s team came out victorious against Google Canada in the recreational division while CMCC/Centrecourt won in the competitive division against Northmont.
The event was led by Zack Belzberg, Jesse Abrams, Carly Bardikoff and a dedicated committee. They are committed to continuing this event for another four years with the goal of raising $1 million for the LTRI.
“It was great to see the fantastic enthusiasm and real effort and imagination from everyone involved in the event,” said Dr. Jim Woodgett, Director of Research at the LTRI. “It’s the first fundraising event I’ve attended where the joy in being there was clear among all the participants. The energy, fun and competitive spirit was amazing!”
The LTRI's groundbreaking discoveries are made possible by the generous support of our philanthropic community who are dedicated to propelling medical research. Thank you to all participants, from players to volunteers to sponsors, for making this inaugural event such a success and for helping fuel life-changing discoveries.