RSM Richter Chamberland Summer Interns

Sandra Judge: Cycle-Thon for the Foundation of Stars

I volunteered to be a cyclist in our cycle-thon at the tour de l’île, benefiting the Foundation of Stars. I started the day at 6:00 am in order to join the other interns at the starting line of the 52 km route. As I rode my bicycle up Parc avenue, I joined with the already hundreds of cyclists headed up towards Mount-Royal.

Somehow, I found other interns in the crowd of thousands of participants.  At the starting line the atmosphere was really upbeat, there was music, clowns and all different types of people— from more competitive cyclists to families. The real excitement began when the tour started. The city looked so different bicycling down the main streets blocked to traffic. Riding with hundreds of other cyclists I really felt as though I was part of something larger than myself.

As we passed through the different neighborhoods, people stood on the sidewalks and cheered us on. With the support of everyone at RSM Richter Chamberland we raised hundreds of dollars for the Foundation of Stars. It was a great day to get outside, get some exercise and help a good cause.

Merlène Gladys Akamba: My first client assignment!

During our training, the firm gave us as much information as possible regarding external work. It was a great confidence-builder, and on the day preceding my first assignment, instead of being stressed, I was actually excited about the idea of having this experience so early. My integration with my colleagues on the assignment is going really well. They are friendly and open-minded and I already feel like I have been working with them forever. They are always available to answer my questions, whatever they may be, and they even encourage me to ask more. They make sure to explain me why I need to do each task, and then they show me how to proceed. I really appreciate this approach because I understand what I do, and I get the opportunity to appreciate my work.

At the client’s site, the staff is also great, always available to provide us with what we need  ̶  which made me feel quickly comfortable in their office.

I learned a lot during my first two days, working on various tasks, and I know that my next five days at the client’s site will be unbelievable and will provide with even more depth of knowledge.

And finally, Community Day is coming, and YES, I can’t wait to paint for the first time… It’s going to be a great day!

Daniel Kwong : My first 2 weeks at RSM Richter Chamberland

The orientation process that I went through on my first two weeks at RSM Richter Chamberland made me feel shockingly at ease. Different staff members came in everyday to help us learn about their computer software as well as their company policies. There was a lot of information given, however the way that it was presented made it easy for me to grasp the concepts. My worries quickly went away on my very first day and my excitement about having the opportunity to put my new knowledge into practice grew even more.

One of the things that I enjoy the most about being part of RSM Richter Chamberland is that I get the chance to fundraise with the firm's full support. This year, the funds that I will help raise will go towards The Foundation of Stars which is an organization that dedicates its research to curing child diseases. By collaborating with the other interns to make the fundraising campaign happen, I also got to know them much better. Despite only having known the other interns for a brief period of time, it feels as though we've always known each other.

Sara Liang: How we took on our fundraising challenge this summer

Besides the mandates and training sessions that are the core of our internship, there is a tradition at RSM Richter Chamberland for all summer students to organize different fundraising activities for a good cause. This year, our mission has been to raise money for the Foundation of Stars. The firm pushed us to be creative and dynamic and as a result, we came up with so many original ideas; so far, we had a club night with our friends, we brought home-made baked goods to sell, we even shined shoes and offered manicures!  We also collected recipes from our colleagues and printed a fun cookbook with over 100 recipes, which was a huge success.

 

We are all working together on our fundraising campaign and are trying to accomplish as much as possible over the course of our summer here.  Not  only have we raised a lot of money, the various events we organized were also a great opportunity to meet  our future coworkers and let them to get to know us as well

Louis-Philippe Jarry: Community Day: Priceless!

Nice weather, tons of energy and lots of smiles: the perfect setting for an amazing Community day! No question about it, I was part of an exceptional team on Wednesday, June 2^nd 2010 for Community Day. Our mission was to repaint 5 rooms in a youth center located on Fleury Street. Jonathan, another summer student, and I were assigned to repaint Alex’s room. We had to work no later than 4:00 PM when Alex came back from school. We gave it all that we had and finished around 3:58…! When Alex came in, he was all smiles and told us: “Wow, it looks great! Thanks!”Jonathan couldn’t stop smiling either. I’ll never forget that moment.

 

I am very proud to have been a part of such a great initiative as Community Day. I’m looking forward to participating for many years to come!

Catherine Poissant-Mercier: A valuable day!

Thursday, May 28, 5 am. I wake up after a short night of sleep, having returned only a few hours before from a special assignment in Toronto. Today is Community Day and we have to be on site at 8 am. Eyes drooping from lack of sleep, I took the public transit to "Dans la rue", the organization created by Pops: our assignment was to reorganize the warehouse. Upon my arrival, people welcomed me warmly, clearly happy to get help. We are rapidly told what to do and everyone goes to work to make a difference. The day passes like a gust of wind and ends. Our goal is reached. Everyone was smiling and was proud of having given a good hand.

This day was my first real experience of volunteering, and I already know that it will not be the last! People were motivated, determined and pleasant, making it even more exciting! I loved this day. Thank you all

Josie Bentivegna : Community Day

Before I began my internship at RSM Richter Chamberland, I had imagined my summer would be a certain way. However once I started to work, it was much better than I expected.

Everyone I worked with was very nice and helpful. It was wonderful working with such a great team that taught me a lot about accounting. Not only did I get the chance to work on mandates, do assignments and external/internal stages but I also got to do some teambuilding and participate in Community Day.

I really enjoyed Community Day. It gave the entire firm the opportunity to help out various organizations for one day. I went to “Aux Quatres Poches” and painted a room for 3 little girls. I have never painted before in my life. I never thought that it could be so much work, yet so much fun at the same time. Best of all, it was nice to see how everyone at “Aux Quatres Poches” appreciated all the work that we did for them.

After the community day, there was a 5 à 7, where everyone had the chance to relax and talk about their day, and dance to celebrate our hard work

Community Day was a very different and interesting experience for me since I have never worked for a company that actually closed for an entire day to do volunteer work. Different RSM Richter Chamberland employees were able to work together as a team and help out others at the same time.

Caroline Triot : A day helping out "Dans La Rue".

For Community Day I worked alongside RSM Richter Chamberland employees of all levels at the “Dans la Rue” site. We helped this local charity, which shelters, feeds and clothes Montreal’s homeless teens, by cleaning and organizing their warehouse. The organization’s leaders told us that what we had accomplished in one day with a crew of 25 people would have taken them weeks to do alone.

In addition, this Community Day activity enabled us to interact with RSM Richter Chamberland employees that we would not have otherwise gotten the opportunity to engage with. Summer students had a chance to relate on a more personal level to staff accountants, managers and partners. By volunteering for “Dans la Rue” we helped to strengthen both the local Montreal and RSM Richter Chamberland community.

Anand Shastri : Community Day

Everyone at the Firm, from partners to interns, took part in Community Day on the 28th of May. I really enjoyed my experience because I felt we really had a positive impact for the people we were helping.

I spent the day at a facility called “Aux Quatres Poches” which helps kids with mental and physical disabilities. It was great to see everyone so motivated and energized to do good for the community regardless of how early in the morning it was! Different tasks were assigned to each person in our group of volunteers and then we got to work. I had a lot of fun with my job because I got to use a power drill! I teamed up with another intern, Eric, and we installed new door stoppers for all the doors in the building. Others were repainting rooms, landscaping or preparing meals that would be enjoyed later by the kids. After three hours of hearty physical labour, we took a lunch break and feasted on pizza, veggies and drinks. By the end of the day I was exhausted but I couldn’t stop smiling! As a team, we accomplished a great deal and that felt great.

After leaving the facility, everyone headed over to the Just for Laughs Museum to enjoy a drink and share their experiences. Although every person has their own take on things, I noticed one commonality between all the people I talked to: they loved Community Day!

Émilie Lussier-Carrière: Fundraising

During the very first week with the Firm, we, the summer interns, were given the task of raising funds for The Foundation of Stars, an organization for pediatric research in Québec. We were free to get organized as we wished and to pick our own fund raising activities. Surprisingly, I really enjoyed the experience. It was  great to know that our combined efforts would help children, but it was also a good way to get to know the other students through preparation and activities. In addition, we had to get in touch with employees from various departments of the Firm, whom we got to know while we raised awareness for our cause.

Personally, I was able to show leadership at certain times and I really enjoyed the experience, because I felt it was appreciated. For example, during a cocktail, I sold raffle tickets and organized the draw. The atmosphere was festive, everything went smoothly, and the winner even handed his prize money over to the Foundation. After that, I organized a bake sale of goodies made by students and employees. The staff’s response was incredible. We also sold a “pass” allowing employees to wear jeans on Fridays. Since some of us were at clients, meetings were difficult to organize, and Internet communications were essential. With everyone’s cooperation, we were able to collect a substantial amount of money for the Foundation. In the end, everybody came out a winner!