Whopping donations prove Calgary likes to share wealth
Calgarian Max Reboh is a fascinating fellow by any measure, as he tells how he can trace his family jewelry business back at least four generations to his great-grandfather in Spain and how he served in the Israeli army for three years.
Reboh, with his Jewels by Maxime’s stores in Chinook Centre and Market Mall, also tells many anecdotes about his friend Stephen Wynn, who is credited with spurring the dramatic resurgence of Las Vegas in the 1990s.
If you want an introduction into our community’s truly high society, you get it through Max Reboh.
But I’m getting a bit ahead of myself.
The Lib-Left thrives on the despair of others, just as it doesn’t like to see entrepreneurial success, or the corporate world pouring money into charitable or community endeavours.
For a society of despondency makes for good fishing grounds for the Lib-Left.
Successful entrepreneurs, no matter how small their businesses, demonstrate with ingenuity you can still compete with the multinationals. When the corporate world donates millions of dollars to worthy causes, it undermines the charges of greed and selfishness.
Back in pioneering days, neighbours would get together and physically build a school house—or even a house—and when someone in the community fell on hard times they’d get together and help pull that individual through.
But the Lib-Left believes charitable jobs can best be done by big government with taxpayers footing the bills, whether they want to do so or not.
Yet, within communities all across North America, are individuals who still carry the spirit of the pioneering age. Individuals who work hard to make a living, look after their families and then look after other people’s families.
Max Reboh is one of those individuals.
Just a week ago, Reboh pulled off a coup that staggered Sheryl Barlage, director of development for Ronald McDonald House in southern Alberta, and Marla Cohen, co-chair of fund development. Well, Max’s coup staggered everyone connected with this group, which is currently building a new $11 million Ronald McDonald House just by the Alberta Children’s Hospital in Calgary.
Reboh hosted a golf tournament at the stylish Country Club of the Hamptons, invited his most influential friends there, and raised $500,000 for Ronald McDonald House in a single day.
What’s more, not only was this Reboh’s first attempt at such a venture, he raised that $500,000 without charging entry fees, having a regular or silent auction, or any other costs to participants.
“I didn’t want to do it like that. I don’t like to nickel and dime players all down the line. That’s not my way. I just asked my guests to make a personal donation of whatever they could afford or thought appropriate.”
Three of his guests actually felt it so appropriate they tossed in $100,000 each!
Barlage, who has been in the fundraising business for 20 years, and is still overwhelmed as more cheques arrive daily, believes Ronald McDonald House found a ‘goldmine’ in meeting up with Reboh and his associates “because it’s an exclusive group of people and not an easy group for us to get to.”
And Max hasn’t finished, yet.
At 50, he is married to wife Patricia, and has three children: David, 22, Matthew, 20, and daughter Dalia, 17.
And he’s now “bequeathing” his Ronald McDonald House cause in future years to his children.
“It’s a cause they want to be involved in. They’ve been fortunate in life.
Now they have a vehicle to start giving back themselves.”
Could any government agency pull off an event like that—and with so much heart?
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