Thousands came out to the 5th Annual National Garage Sale for Shelter, raising more than $364,000 to provide safety and hope to women and children

#GarageSale4Shelter @RLPShelterFdn @Royal_LePage

Every dollar raised supports local women's shelters and programs to end family violence

TORONTO, June 4, 2013 /CNW/ - While temperatures may have been low in many parts of the country, spirits were high at the 5^th Annual National Garage Sale for Shelter held on May 11 in support of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. Since 2009, Royal LePage agents, brokers and staff, along with thousands of community members across Canada, have come together on Mother's Day weekend to raise much needed funds in support of women's shelters and violence prevention programs.

This year's event raised more than $364,000 which will enable the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation to fund 200 shelters and assist more than 30,000 women and children escape abuse this year. Royal LePage offices held 155 Garage Sales across the country as part of their commitment to help put an end to family violence in Canada. Royal LePage REALTORS® help people find their dream homes, but they recognize that home is not a safe place for the thousands of women and children who experience domestic violence. That's why the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation was established in 1998 and since then, through fundraising events like the National Garage Sale for Shelter and donations from Royal LePage brokers and agents, it has raised more than $16 million to fund women's shelters, programs that help abused women and children rebuild their lives, and youth anti-violence education.

Since Royal LePage underwrites the administrative costs of the Shelter Foundation and sponsors cover event expenses, every dollar raised goes directly to the cause. Since 2009, the National Garage Sale for Shelter - believed to be the largest, one-day charity garage sale in Canada - has generated $1.6 million in financial support for women's shelters and violence prevention programs.

"Royal LePage professionals are incredibly committed to making a difference through the Shelter Foundation. With the funds raised at the National Garage Sale for Shelter, women's shelters across Canada can offer a range of services for women and children seeking a refuge from violence," said Shanan Spencer-Brown, Executive Director of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. "In addition to providing a safe place to stay, shelters offer women and children the chance for a new beginning."

A special thank you goes out to the event's national sponsors: TD Canada Trust Mobile Mortgage Specialists, Atlas Van Lines Canada, Your Commission Today, Kaiser Lachance Communications, Xerox and Enbridge, along with dozens of sponsors at the local level. Their generous support and unparalleled commitment to the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation made this event possible.

"Helping You Is What We Do™ is not just a tagline, it is our corporate philosophy and it translates into a collective commitment to giving back to the community," said Phil Soper, President and CEO of Royal LePage. "Royal LePage professionals are tireless in their efforts to create safer homes and safer communities through the Shelter Foundation and the National Garage Sale for Shelter."

About the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation

The Royal LePage Shelter Foundation is Canada's largest public foundation dedicated exclusively to funding women's shelters and ending violence against women and children. Through agent commission donations and the fundraising activities of the Royal LePage network, we have raised more than $16 million to help provide a safe haven and new beginnings for more than 30,000 women and children each year. To break the cycle of violence, the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation also supports long-term violence prevention and education programs. All funds raised by Royal LePage offices remain in their local community and because Royal LePage pays all administrative costs, 100 percent of all money and effort goes toward this important cause.

For more information, visit: www.royallepage.ca/shelter

About Royal LePage

Serving Canadians since 1913, Royal LePage is the country's leading provider of services to real estate brokerages, with a network of 14,500 real estate professionals in over 600 locations nationwide. Royal LePage is the only Canadian real estate company to have its own charitable foundation, the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, dedicated to funding women's shelters and prevention and education programs aimed at ending family violence. To commemorate the 100^th Anniversary of Royal LePage in 2013, a series of celebrations and fundraising events are taking place, including 100 Days for Shelter, a campaign to raise funds and awareness for the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, launching on Royal LePage's official "birthday" (July 2, 2013).

Royal LePage is a Brookfield Real Estate Services Inc. company, a TSX-listed corporation trading under the symbol TSX:BRE.

For more information, visit www.royallepage.ca.

SOURCE: Royal LePage Shelter Foundation