Cathy and Michelle's Blog - Inspiring Change in the Marketplace

Local Bottles for Wells Project Raises over $20,000 in 10 Months

Building Wells in Developing Countries!

Nanaimo B.C. moms Cathy Aniceto & Michelle Bigg and the Ryan’s Well Foundation are elated with the success of the Project that has sold over 2500 high grade stainless steel bottles in less than a year with 40% of proceeds benefitting the Foundation. 

On Oct 14^th, Michelle and Cathy will present Ryan’s Well Foundation Board Member, Moyra Van Nus with a cheque for $5684 for funds raised in the past 6 months.  “I am so impressed with the world-wide interest in this Project and that even during the global economic crisis where the retail sector being hit so hard that such a significant amount of money can be raised in such a short period of time”, says Bigg. “The Project has been so well received by schools, business, organizations and individuals not just because it helps build wells but also because it is a healthy, eco-bottle that is more environmentally friendly than drinking out of plastic water bottles.”

Aniceto & Bigg Co. is a small company that worked with the Foundation to create the Project because they were committed to giving back and making a difference. They launched their business and this Project in what turned out to be some of the hardest economic times in 60 years.  “We have learned a lot and have worked extremely hard on the Project.”  Cathy says, “There have been so many rewards including being able to meet Ryan Hreljac, his family and the entire Ryan’s Well Foundation last March to present the first cheque.”

“Ryan’s Well is delighted to have the support of Aniceto & Bigg. Michelle and Cathy’s determination and creativity is making an important difference to the work of the Foundation to bring clean water to all. We are so fortunate to have such committed volunteers”, said Moyra Van Nus.

The Project will wrap up in 2010 when all bottles are gone and we want to maximize the funds going to the Foundation and ultimately to help people who don’t have the basic necessity of water.  The Foundation has now built 518 wells, up 47 wells from last year, in part due to funds raised in the Project.  “Ryan’s Well is an amazing Canadian charity, so dedicated, modest, hard working and they have great supporters,” says Michelle.  “We have thoroughly enjoyed working together and helping Ryan’s Well help others in need around the world.” 

This year, Aniceto & Bigg Co. is now offering special group discounts for those participating in the Project. To contact Michelle and Cathy for an interview, please call 1-888-739-1119 or email michelle@abcorp.ca and cathy@abcorp.ca .  Their new website (and whole new look) is http://www.abcorp.ca

About Ryan’s Well Foundation:  The Ryan’s Well Foundation has three primary goals: BUILD, EDUCATE and MOTIVATE – building water and sanitation projects in developing countries; educating students about the need for clean water and the possibility of making a difference in their world; and motivating  people, especially youth, to take action and make a positive change in our world.  Founded in 2001, Ryan’s Well is a registered Canadian charity. www.ryanswell.ca

Thousands of parents, grandparents, kids and mom’s-to-be visited the widely successful Vancouver Island Baby Fair during the weekend of Sept 26 & 27th.  Aniceto & Bigg was there – and the Identakey was the most popular item at our table with 50 new parents and grandparents investing in their family’s safety and owning an Identakey. 

We had so many positive comments, one from a Principal of a middle school who said the Identakey is a must have for all families.  A business owner of a new Victoria children’s store said that this should be a gift given to every mom/parent at baby showers.  We had a mother of 6 purchase 3 Identakeys and several other large families purchase 2 each.  They said that it is the best tool to keep their family’s vital information organized in a place that also allows it to be easily updated.  We had a grandparent of a family that was travelling to Thailand and she purchased it for them so that she could have the peace of mind to know that all their information, digital profile pictures, medical information, emergency contact information, immunization history and other essential vital information was digitally stored and could be sent instantly to authorities, or others in the event of an emergency while they were travelling. 

We would like to extend the great price we offered to those attending the baby fair and purchasing Identakeys – it is $25!    Just use promotional code 0311  in our shopping cartfor the entire month of October.  

The Identakey child identification system is the best of its kind.  The IdentaKey child id software is the ultimate in family protection. Identakey is safe, secure, an affordable.

Identakey is great as a Christmas gift and is essential for any family planning a trip.

Drop us a line and give us some feedback.

If you haven’t heard the recent news about Sigg, the Swiss Manufacturer of aluminum water bottles – read about it at this link

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health/sigg-bottles-made-before-2008-contain-trace-amounts-of-bpa/article1274799/.

The Globe and Mail has reported that their aluminum bottles that were made before Aug. 2008 have a liner that contains trace amounts of BPA’s – a plastic hardener that can mimic the hormone estrogen and is considered a potentially harmful chemical by the Government of Canada.

The government of Canada has dedicated much research and attention to BPA’s and is moving to ban BPA’s in baby bottles and liners. Go to their website to learn all about how Canada is protecting families from BPA’s through regulation.

http://www.chemicalsubstanceschimiques.gc.ca/challenge-defi/bisphenol-a_e.html

Why is Aniceto & Bigg providing this information to you? The answer is simply to empower families through education and information. We have extensively studied the water bottle issue for 2 years with regard to environmental impacts and health impacts of all types of bottles made of many materials.

We concluded that the safest, most environmentally friendly bottle to drink water from is high grade stainless steel (i.e. 18/8 or 304 grade). For the following reasons:

- It is the same steel used in high grade cook ware, in the dairy industry, in commercial kitchens and other food based industries and it is a proven safe material.

- Stainless steel bottles don’t have ANY liners. Therefore no epoxy or BPA’s to worry about!

- It is more corrosion resistant that lower grades of stainless steel i.e. 201 Grade. There are many of bottles on the market made of this low grade stainless steel and you won’t initially be able to tell the difference but over time this grade is more susceptible to rust. Also, at the end of its life – this grade cannot be recycle with other high grade stainless steel products because of the presence of Manganese.

- Manufacture of high grade stainless steel water bottles, when compared to aluminum water bottles are much less carbon intensive, meaning stainless steel bottles are more environmentally friendly to manufacture.

This is a great opportunity to let you know that the Ryan’s Well Foundation water bottle offered by Aniceto & Bigg is the highest grade stainless steel (18/8) as stated on each bottle. We researched for several months the best manufacturer and supplier to provide us with the best product. We looked at the full life cycle of this bottle and were even able to source the manufacturer of the steel to the manufacturer of the bottle. We made sure that it was made in a socially responsible facility ( this is confirmed), and the facility has ISO 9001 certification for quality and the product has been tested by SGS – the leading organization for verifying quality, composition and integrity of thousands of products used world-wide.

Please feel free to contact us about this story, it is one that we are very passionate about.

Thank you for visiting Aniceto & Bigg Co. We hope that you take time to look at our products, including our newest line – Gumboot Books. We currently carry 13 titles with more on the way this fall! Join other educators and parents in bringing these great family titles into your home or school library.

We are excited to be attending the Victoria Baby Fair Sept 26 (10:00 AM – 5:00 PM) and Sept 27 (10:00 AM to 4:00 PM) at Pearkes Recreation Center at 3100 Tillicum Road. If you are in Victoria, B.C. drop by and visit us. Tell us you read our blog and we will give you 10% off your purchase. Visit their Vancouver Island Baby Fair at http://www.vancouverislandbabyfair.com/index1.cfm

We enjoy hearing from you, drop us a line and visit our blog to learn about our promotions, helpful links, and our input on issues that affect families. See you soon.

Warm Wishes Cathy and Michelle