Corporate Social Responsibility Press Release
provided by 
11.28.2008 - 09:51am ET
News from:
Duracell Canada
Watching Kids Open Holiday Gifts is Among the Best Reasons to Smile, Canadians say in Survey
Spending time with family considered the No. 1 way to power a smile
McMaster Children’s Hospital patient, Keaton Millar, age 5, gets help from Child Life Specialist, Kristyn Grabko, to power his toy during playtime. The Hamilton hospital is among nine Canadian hospitals to receive a donation of batteries for playroom to
(CSRwire) TORONTO, ONTARIO. - Nov. 28, 2008 - What puts a smile on the faces of
Canadians during the holiday season? According to a new survey, Canadians
say the top two reasons to smile over the holidays are spending time with
the family and seeing children open gifts.
Spending time with family members was chosen as the leading reason to
smile by 61% of participants in the survey, commissioned by Duracell,
while 46% of survey participants also said watching children open gifts is
sure to put a smile on their face.
In an effort to power more smiles than ever for Canadian families this
holiday season and throughout the next year, Duracell will again be
donating thousands of batteries to the playrooms of nine hospitals across
the country as part of its Power a SmileTM campaign. The program has
expanded to include four more Canadian hospitals in this its second
year.
Hospitals in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Toronto,
Ottawa, Montreal and Halifax will share more than $51,000*
worth of batteries being distributed by Duracell to power hospital
playroom toys and the smiles of young patients receiving medical care over
the holidays.
"We know that the power of play and laughter can help to speed up the
healing process and having working toys in our playrooms for the patients
receiving care is an important part in achieving this," said Dr. Jeremy
Friedman, Head of Pediatric Medicine at Hospital for Sick Children in
Toronto. "Duracell's Power A Smile initiative is a welcomed and much
appreciated gesture that fills a gap in helping bring a smile to children
who are in the hospital."
Hospitals will receive nearly 30,000 Duracell batteries in total during
the second annual Power a Smile campaign, with hospitals in Calgary,
Winnipeg, Hamilton and Halifax being included in the program for the first
time this year.
"Most Canadians are welcoming the holiday season as a special time to
gather with friends and family at home, but for many children and youth,
the holiday season will be spent in hospitals. Duracell's efforts to make
those young patients smile at this time of year are to be highly
commended," said Alida Bowman, program manager, McMaster Children's
Hospital.
According to Alan Rego, external relations manager for Duracell, "We are
thrilled to be involved in this special holiday season initiative for the
second year in a row. Duracell has added more hospitals and cities to our
donation list and our dedicated efforts to Power a Smile will include even
more Canadian children and their families."
While Duracell helps to bring smiles to kids who will be in the hospital
this holiday, they are also reminding all Canadians to include batteries
when giving battery-powered gifts to family and friends at this time of
year. More than a third of Canadians (36%) polled in the 2008 Power a
Smile survey admitted that they have forgotten to include batteries with
gifts they have given out in the past.
The survey also shows that: - More than two in five (42%) of those
surveyed have received a battery-powered gift with out the batteries and
were unable to use it right away;
- Almost half (49%) of Canadians surveyed said they have witnessed the
disappointment of an adult or child being unable to use a gift right away
because the right batteries were not on hand;
- In addition, 30% said they have witnessed someone lose interest in a
gift over time because they didn't have enough batteries to power the
gift.
"There are so many products available today that run on
batteries and, at this time of year in particular, it makes sense for
Canadians to include batteries on their shopping lists, to avoid
disappointment on that special morning," said Rego.
Duracell suggests that families stock up on batteries of various sizes to
ensure they are well-equipped to power up gifts that come without the
necessary batteries, from remote control toys to video game remotes,
computer equipment, music and entertainment gadgets and beyond. For
high-drain devices, such as digital cameras, it's a good idea to have
suitable long-lasting batteries specifically designed for these items,
such as Duracell PowerPix(TM) or their New Low Self Discharge Rechargeable
batteries. Just in time for the holidays, Duracell is also offering a
special AA 8 pack with a bonus mini screwdriver which is great for toys
and other gadgets, available at participating retailers, while supplies
last.
Finally, Duracell reminds us to never remove the batteries from emergency
devices such as smoke alarms and flashlights to use in gifts. Safety comes
first. For additional information, please visit www.duracell.com/ca. For
more information on the Power a Smile campaign, visit www.powerasmile.ca.
From October 29 to October 30, 2008, Angus Reid Strategies conducted an
online survey among a randomly selected, representative sample of 1,005
adult Canadians through the Angus Reid Forum. The margin of error for the
total sample is +/- 3.1%, 19 times out of 20. The results have been
statistically weighted according to Statistics Canada's most current
education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a representative
sample of the entire adult population of Canada. Discrepancies in or
between totals are due to rounding.
*Based on average retail prices of 8,959 packages of five Duracell
battery types.
About Duracell
Part of Procter & Gamble, Duracell is the world's leading manufacturer of
high-performance alkaline batteries. Duracell also sells various other
types of batteries including lithium and zinc air batteries, as well as
rechargeable Nickel-Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries and chargers. The
company also markets general purpose flashlights. Visit www.duracell.com for more information
about Duracell batteries.
About Procter & Gamble
Three billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the
world. The company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality,
leadership brands, including Pampers(R), Tide(R), Always(R), Pantene(R),
Mach3(R), Bounty(R), Pringles(R), Charmin(R), Downy(R), Iams(R), Crest(R),
Oral-B(R), Actonel(R), Duracell(R), Olay(R), Head & Shoulders(R), Wella,
Gillette(R), and Braun. The P&G community consists of over 135,000
employees working in over 80 countries worldwide. P&G is the leading
consumer products company in Canada with over $2.9 billion in annual
sales. Please visit www.pg.ca for the latest news and in-depth
information about P&G and its brands.
For more information please contact:
Andrea Farnell
Porter Novelli for Duracell
416.422.7162
416.423.6605
www.powerasmile.ca
Janie Mercky
Porter Novelli Montreal for Duracell
514.846.5607
www.unepuissancequifaitsourire.ca
News Categories:
Philanthropy/Corporate Contributions and Health & Wellness
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