Fund raising Projects
The day you don’t do something top someone who can never repay you is day wasted
In addition to maintaining a full-time professional career, spending time with and coaching my 6 year old boy to reach his potential, consistently keeping up with my yearly cycling target of 5000Km, training and participating in a handful of half marathon’s and cycling races, I have devoted my life to helping disabled and underprivileged children - helping children remains my true priority, focus, and hope.
Since losing my younger brother in 2002 to drugs and alcohol, I saw and approached life in a completely alternative way. Initially I was involved in running awareness workshops, organizing youth camps and motivational speaking engagements. Then eventually I started focusing on fundraising campaigns. The vast majority of my fundraising activities were executed in Canada. I was one of the founding members of the CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Committee of Accenture Canada and received the “leadership award for outstanding contribution to community” five years in a row. In recognition of my efforts on pioneering fund raising projects, in 2010 The Japan Foundation invited me to join a panel for public discussion of Charity Fund Raising Challenges in Japan.
In 2009, with the help of handful of my colleagues, I designed, planned and executed a 12 day long fundraising cycling tour from Tokyo to Sapporo under the banner of “Ride for A Dream” to raise funds to build an extension to a school for deaf children (Meisei Gakkuin) in Tokyo and raised over $24,000. In 2010 I organized a 7 days long “Second Annual Ride for A Dream” from Tokyo to Osaka. About 50 cyclists including half of the board of directors and the CEO of AXA joined the first day of the ride and four of us continued from Tokyo to Osaka, again to raise funds to upgrade facilities at Meisei Gakkuin. I continued to lead the annual Ride for A Dream until 2012.
Note: All of my charity fundraising cycling expeditions and events are self-supported and self-funded, with the exception of some individuals, hotels and restaurants which have provided me with food and lodgings in support of my charity efforts. Typically I asked people, organizations and sponsors to donate money directly to the charities I work with through their existing fund raising infrastructure. Consequently, every single penny goes directly to the charity organizations. I take great care when choosing charity organizations to work with and I don’t raise funds for charity organizations with paid management layers.
Ride for A Dream - 2009 Fundraising Ride
Tokyo to Sapporo 12-day 1250km
(Organized, led and participated)
Knights in White Lycra - 2015 Friendship Ride
Tokyo to Ichinoseki 4-Day 550km
(Co-organized and participated)
Ride for A Dream - 2010 Fundraising Ride
Tokyo to Osaka 6-day 720km
(Organized, led and participated)
In Memory of 3/11 Awareness Ride - 2012
Tokyo to Minamisanriku 620km
(Organized, led and participated)
Terry Fox Fundraisng Campaign and Run
2005 & 2006
(Organized and participated)
Around The Pearl Fundraisng Ride - 2015
Around Sri Lanka10-day 1400km
(Participated)
Don, you have a rare and admirable ability to design, develop and execute unique community related projects. It is delightful to see your radiant energy. Thank you for the enthusiasm you add to the team (Accenture Canada). You are a great contributor and a leader.
-Dennis Melnbardis,
Managing Partner (Retired),
Accenture Canada.
“The 12-day bike ride that began April 24 and finished on May 5 was headed by Give A Dream A Chance Charity’s founder, Don Kalubowila, a Sri Lankan-born Canadian national who initiated the project three months ago with the help of his coworkers.”