Monument To The Brave

Challenge & Goal In 2015, SickKids set the largest fundraising goal in Canadian healthcare history—$1.5 billion. Since then, the VS platform has been transformational for SickKids, making it the most top-of-mind charity in Toronto. However, its strength is also its weakness as would-be donors think the job of fundraising is done. Our challenge was to help the hospital secure the final 5,000 donors it needed to cross the one million monthly donor milestone.

INSIGHTS & STRATEGY Sick isn’t weak. It fights back. That’s why patients at SickKids earn Bravery Beads with every procedure they endure. Over the years, more than a million beads have been handed out, yet few outside the hospital have ever seen one. We set out to challenge the status quo by creating the world’s first public symbol to honour the strength of sick children. Our strategy? Use personal acts of bravery to inspire public acts of generosity.

EXECUTION We unveiled five larger-than-life Bravery Beads replicas in high-traffic areas across the city, each setting the stage for sharing patient stories and the need for new monthly donors with media and the public. Our call to action was two-fold: the first urged the public to become monthly donors, and the second asked patients to donate their precious beads for a monument to honour their fight. We then commissioned artist Nico Williams to use those very beads to build an everlasting symbol of strength. Monument to the Brave will go on display at the new SickKids.

RESULTS & IMPACT Monument to the Brave helped SickKids reach its goal of 5,000 new donors, crossing the one million donor milestone just halfway through the campaign. Real patients donated over 3,000 Bravery Beads. All are now permanently enshrined in a symbol that redefines how we see and honor strength.