*photo courtesy of Winnipeg Free Press.com
Winnipeg, MB –Westcorp believes in giving back to the communities we live, work and play in. After many years of operating as a hotel, Place Louis Riel has been transitioning into an exciting new rental community in order to keep up with the changing needs of the downtown Winnipeg market. The residential building, now called “Antares Luxury Suites”, was recently renovated and now features many new amenities, such as a state-of-the-art fitness center, a cozy internet cafe and a well-equipped teaching kitchen for residents to use. Surplus hotel furniture and household items, while still in near-perfect condition, needed to be removed from the property in order to accommodate new residents moving into the building. General Manager John Saad, contacted a number of non-profit organizations in Winnipeg who were assisting Syrian refugees and offered to donate the gently used items. “We know that these furnishings will help out many new refugee families as they start their lives in Manitoba as Canadian citizens. We hope that with this donation to our community, families can start the process of rebuilding their lives here in Winnipeg.” The donations were greeted with appreciation and surprise by Diane O’Neil of the Canadian Muslim Women’s Institute (CMWI). These donations will help over 50 Syrian refugee families get settled in Canada.