Helping Those in Need

PHRI’s home is Hamilton, Canada, where we believe in giving back wherever we can, especially to those Hamiltonians most in need.

For years now, PHRI employees help grow vegetables in the community garden in front of PHRI’s building. This produce is donated to feed 800 people at city-wide food banks/kitchens each year.

Also in Hamilton, PHRI sponsors reading and math literacy programs for local elementary and middle school children in poorer neighbourhoods, through our involvement with the non-profit organization, Neighbour to Neighbour Centre.

When the pandemic meant we had to cancel our annual business meeting where we provide a buffet luncheon for the 300+ employees at PHRI, we decided to put that money into a matching donation program for Wesley, one of our region’s longest standing nonprofits serving vulnerable and marginalized people in our community. All in we raised more than $6000 to help our neighbours in need.

Nationally and Internationally

In February 2023, after only a couple of weeks, PHRI employees have contributed $8000 to the appeal for victims of the massive earthquake in Turkiye and Syria, which is being quadrupled with matching funds from PHRI and the Canadian government.

In September 2022, PHRI staff donated more than $13,000 to help victims of flooding in Pakistan.

In March 2022, PHRI staff donated a total of $15,000 for Unicef’s Ukrainian Humanitarian Crisis effort, which PHRI matched – bringing the total given to $30,000.

In 2021, working with Unicef Canada, PHRI employees contributed to a fund to support India during its COVID-19 crisis.

PHRI contributed generously to help our fellow Canadians recover from the devastating forest fires in 2016 in Fort McMurray, Alberta.

Internationally, PHRI has supported several countries ravaged by national disasters over the years, working with UNICEF – as an organization and as individuals – to help survivors of the 2010 Haiti earthquake; 2013 typhoon in the Philippines; 2015 major Nepal earthquakes; 2016 Caribbean’s hurricane; and the 2019 cyclone that ravaged Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi.

Following the typhoons in the Philippines, PHRI contributed to the establishment of a boat building factory in Tacloaban, owned and operated by local fisher-folk. This restored their livelihoods and created sustainable employment.

Of the 70 boats supported by PHRI, six of them were named after our studies (including INTERSTROKE, PURE, TIPS-3, HOPE-3 and more) – most of those boats given to Filipino fisherwomen.