A Month of Celebration and Gratitude – Anderson Connect

This month we celebrate our extraordinary community – teams at every campus across Ontario, students, their families, our business partners and all who showed up in support. Wow, just wow! In honour and celebration of Anderson’s Anniversary and 140 years of making dreams come true, you dazzled us with your creative ideas and talents, compassion and special verve to make it all a wild success.

From your fundraising talent shows, bake and art sales, games, karaoke and pizza parties to video submissions sharing your heartfelt stories for our contest – your efforts blew us away. Because of you, we exceeded our goal of raising $10,000 in support of Make-a-Wish Canada!
Drum roll please … you raised $15,395!!

We are awed, humbled, and deeply grateful. You truly make what we do possible and ensure that every day on the job is one with purpose. A special thank you as well to Make-a-Wish senior manager, Tyler Mercer, for attending our London event, and to Premier Doug Ford for his letter of commemoration.

This month’s Connect highlights teamwork and the magic that happens when we create together!

Today’s read is approximately 4 minutes.

Inside this Edition:

• A Thought to Ponder
• A Short Story to Inspire
• A Short Video to Motivate

A Thought to Ponder

“Teamwork makes the dream work” ~ John C. Maxwell

For 140 years we’ve had the distinct privilege of serving over 100,000 students as they transform their lives, but none of this would be possible without a dream team. From our faculty and admin staff, community and business partners, to our students and families, you amaze us with your dedication and make our work feel like passionate play, as we build this dream together.

A Short Story to Inspire

The Mosaic of Us

“Just one tile?” Jiya tilted her head, holding the tiny square of glazed blue ceramic.

“That’s all we’re asking,” said Mr. Tran with a warm smile. “You, and everyone else.”

Jiya looked around the sunlit atrium. Tables were set up with paints, brushes, and baskets full of tiles. A sign hung above: Piece by Piece, We Create Beauty.

Still, she didn’t quite get it. A communal mosaic? One tile per person? She shrugged, knelt by the growing wall of colour, and placed hers among the others.

It clicked. Not just into the mortar, but into something deeper. She stepped back. People were laughing, pausing in amazement as the image began to form. A wing.
A hand. A spark. A heart. Each tile different, yet part of a bigger whole, something majestic.

“I added a swirl for my sister,” said a classmate beside her. “She taught me to paint.”

“I used my dad’s favourite color,” said another. “He never got to finish school.”

“I added one for my dream.”

“Mine’s for the people who believed in me.”

Jiya felt a warm glow spread over her. Her one little tile was part of a story now, a living picture that was growing, brightening, expanding with every hand that joined in.

Later that evening she walked past the finished mosaic and was awe struck; the vibrant wall was filled with hopes, visions, ideas, memories, splashes of colour honouring life – and she was an eternal part of that now.

Moral: When passion and purpose come together, small, heartfelt contributions have the power to shape something bigger, more beautiful, than we could ever create on our own.

A Takeaway for You:
You made possible the moments and memories surrounding Anderson College’s historic anniversary; you are part of the brilliant mosaic we call family, splashes of hope, dreams made real, and lives forever changed. And you are part of the wishes that we made possible in contributing to children in need of care and hope and the families who love them through Make-a-Wish. Thank you for adding your tile to a dream that has taken on a wondrous life of its own.

1 Short Video to Motivate

The Magic of Teamwork | Creative360 |

Thank you for being part of our Anderson family, for your smiles, your contributions, your tile! To another 140 years of rippling hope and service as we work to make our country an ever more incredible place to live, work, serve and celebrate!

~ Your Anderson College Family

Anderson College acknowledges that the places in which our 10 campuses reside across Ontario are in the traditional territories of a diverse range of Indigenous peoples, the first peoples, who have been stewards of this land since time immemorial. We are deeply honoured and privileged to study, work and educate on these lands. For a full acknowledgement for each campus region, please visit staging21.andersoncollege.com/newsite/landacknowledgements.