Raising Millions for the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation… One Step at a Time

In this episode Lisa Gibbs, the executive director of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, and Manny discuss their recent trek in Ecuador to raise funds for shelters and violence prevention programs. They reflect on the physical and emotional challenges of the trek, the beauty of Ecuador, and the importance of their cause.

They also discuss the progress made in addressing intimate partner violence over the past 50 years, but acknowledge there is still much work to be done.

The Royal LePage Shelter Foundation has raised over $41 million in its 25-year history and is the largest non-governmental funder of shelters in Canada. The trek in Ecuador raised nearly $1.7 million, surpassing their initial goal of $1.2 million.

Listen For
7:51 The Importance of Community Involvement and Fundraising
10:48 The Emotional Impact of the Ecuadorian Trek
20:06 The Role of Shelters in Providing Safety and Support
33:08 The Royal LePage Shelter Foundation

Guest: Lisa Gibbs, Exec Dir Royal LePage Shelter Foundation
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Transcript

Lisa Gibbs (00:00):

50 years ago, the issue that we now call intimate partner violence was called runaway wives. Where have we come in 50 years.

Manny Andrade (00:27):

So today we have a special guest, Lisa Gibbs. Now Lisa, you and I have a strong but brief history. You are the executive director of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. You and I both just came back from the Royal LePage trek for shelter in Ecuador. We crossed paths in Galapagos, all that wonderful stuff. We were just sharing how we're still a little off. What do you call it?

Lisa Gibbs (00:58):

My description best is I have pixie dust sprinkled in front of my eyes, and I know it needs to leave me because I need to get on with life, but I don't want it to because of the magic that was the Ecuador trek, the relationships that we had, the purpose, the reason why we were there, the country in and of itself, whether that is the mountains, the Andes, whether it was Galapagos, whether the capital city of Quito, there was so much richness. And all of that has a real strong case of pixie dust in front of my eyes. And I love the experience. I can't emphasize enough.

Manny Andrade (01:47):

I agree. It was a wonderful experience. I'm glad we did it, and I don't think it's sunk in yet, for me. I've come back to work, right the same day. Flew in at two o'clock in the morning back at work the same day, same morning, but it is still. But we're going to talk about the purpose as you mentioned, why we did it and some of the stuff, it's pretty serious. But I'm glad you joined us today.

Lisa Gibbs (02:14):

Pleasure and honor.

Manny Andrade (02:15):

This is the heavier side of things where we're going to talk about, and I'm very happy to talk about it with you. But this podcast is about, we started, we call it coffee beans and real estate, right? So what does one have to do with the other? One of the first conversations I have with new to the business is I sort of make him or her believe or understand that he or she is a business owner, a coffee shop owner. And as such, what is it that you do? What are your hours of operation? What do you do? What do you sell? To whom do you sell? And because realtors come into this business, oftentimes lost not having any guidance or direction and not understanding that this is a business. Additionally, Lisa, and I want to get this from you, and maybe I'll just put it out there and not ask yet. Maybe I'll get it in the end. I believe you have it. You have it, you have it. So the question is, what is it? What does Lisa Gibbs have? What is the it? So we were there on the trek with chairman winners. What is it that they have?

(03:21):

What is the one word, one adjective, noun, pronoun. So think about it, then maybe you come back in 20 minutes. So we're in the pursuit of it. We've had tenacity, fear, passion, desire, indefatigable. That was Sarah's word. I hope I pronounced that right. So we've had a series of one word answers. So I want you to think about what your it is. Maybe not... What do you think it is? So Lisa, you were there, you trekked, you got to the 4,200 meters altitude. Did you have any trouble with the altitude actually?

Lisa Gibbs (04:02):

You know what, Manny, that was one of my greatest fears, and we know why we were there. We can get into that. But when it all comes down to it, and I think when we're, first of all, I'm a huge fan of podcasting. I listen to podcasts all the time when I'm in the car, and I love that the personal piece. It's tough when you're hearing voices and telling stories to have a shroud of veneer. So I love it that it's so real. It's such a real method of communication. So back to the altitude and knowing that we can be fearless in this conversation, and real. Could I do it? Could I physically do it? And I understand that altitude is something that you don't know until you do it, whether you can achieve it or not. And maybe there's a theme there, I don't know.

(05:04):

But in this particular question you've asked, I tried to mitigate all the risks. So I tried to increase my fitness. I'm from a part of Ontario that is probably about two meters above sea level. So it was tough to condition myself for an ultimate 4,300 feet above sea level scenario. Meters. Thank you. Above sea level. So I took the medications, just like my travel doctor said, and I really put my faith in the leadership, the trail guides, the people who knew what they were doing. And we shuffled, right? We put one foot in front of another. And again, there's that analogy. And we did it. We did it together. It wasn't easy. But maybe that's part of the pixie dust thing too. It's just, it's that feeling of personal triumph. We all had a goal for ourselves. We all had a financial goal. I did it too. I wasn't going to see that everyone else could reach a financial goal if I couldn't reach it too, but I did it. So there's all of that euphoria, but...

Manny Andrade (06:31):

A lot of adrenaline flowing through in those days. A lot. I think I was telling you earlier, I feel a little off, a little let down, literally and figuratively coming off the altitude, but the emotional high as well. Not that my life here is mundane or boring, but step-by-step in altitude and struggling to breathe. It was exhilarating. It was a bit of a rush.

Lisa Gibbs (07:02):

And what about that view from the top? Was that sweet? Oh my God!

Manny Andrade (07:08):

Every step. You know what? A friend of mine, I'll mention her name, she did Sahara a couple of years ago. Her name is Natalie. She did the Sahara, and she just came back from canyoning in Vegas in the, what is it? Yeah, with her daughter. And she said, Manny, you know what? Just look around, take snapshots like every moment. Take a mental image, a photo of everything. And the landscapes there were, the volcano itself, the mountains, the valleys, the creeks, the rivers, the waterfalls. Everything was spectacular. The purpose. The purpose was what? We went there with ambitious goals of raising. How much? What was it initially?

Lisa Gibbs (07:51):

We were raising a million dollars for shelters, local shelters and violence prevention programs nationally. We adjusted those figures up when the trending was looking really positive, practically out of the gate to 1.2 million. And that's where we stayed in terms of our goal. And do we want to talk about what's been achieved in terms of fundraising today?

Manny Andrade (08:20):

If you can? Absolutely.

Lisa Gibbs (08:21):

Oh, absolutely. We are on this side, and I'm talking a hair away from 1.7 million raised. And we go until the end of December. In terms of fundraising,

Manny Andrade (08:38):

Who knows? We could possibly reach the 2 million, but the 1.7, let's call it 1.7, I'm sure we'll hit that and surpass it. Those are dollars that are raised and go entirely to the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation.

Lisa Gibbs (08:53):

Entirely. Yeah. I mean, it was raised by 120 people. 120 people raised 1.7 million in, we don't want to get into the small big word, but it's times are tough in different parts of the country for a number of Canadians. And yet we've got 120 people who were so tenacious with their goal in raising that goal.

Manny Andrade (09:24):

And you know what? I think coming out of this experience, and we're not going to mention names, but you know that each group had, so we have the stories from the victims. And I think everybody that went to that experience or went through that experience and heard some of the stories and lived and walked with these people, victims of violence, I think we're going to come out of it with greater tenacity and greater willingness to continue to raise funds. It is incredible, Lisa, I have two daughters and I have a granddaughter now. I cannot imagine the stuff when we summited on day two, we got to the top, one of our trekers asked for some, we're all celebrating, we're all sort of taking selfies and group hugs and everything. And she asked for some silence to reflect on everything. And a lot of people cried. I think everybody cried, present company included. And it was an opportunity for us to, what are we doing here? So, okay, this is what we're doing here and this is why we're doing it. And the money goes a long way, but the awareness goes even further, and it'll continue to foster more kindness, more benevolence, more generosity and more funds for the shelter.

Lisa Gibbs (10:48):

And what I found particularly poignant, we know that statistics tell us that two thirds of Canadians know someone who has been a victim of abuse. And we extrapolate that stat to the 120 people that were on the trek. And just for those who weren't in attendance, we read stories of people that were on the trek. So I think that that was just next level. We know, we all know someone who has been a victim of intimate partner violence, but we don't know their stories. On that trek, every day we read a story and experience a trauma of one of our colleagues that was on that trek. It took us to another level of awareness. We know it's there, but we saw it. We felt it. There was so much emotion there, so much reason for what we had done for what we were doing, our commitment to sheltering victims of intimate partner violence, countrywide. I've got goosebumps again, sorry.

Manny Andrade (12:13):

It was something I wasn't prepared for. I was not aware, or maybe I didn't, I'm guilty of maybe not reading my emails entirely. I wasn't aware that we're going to have a victim in our group or somebody who went through something as bad as it gets to be honest with you, and is living it still day to day. And so that was shocking. And I'm thinking, okay, this is 21st century. This is 2023. We're in Canada and it's happening. You say 66% know somebody. I met somebody. I have a name for you who is somebody who was in my group who was telling us their story. And it's like, wow, seriously. Lisa needs to know about this. And they were there for those purposes, for those reasons. And we did. We got to 1.7 million. Correct me if I'm wrong, Purcell was in the three quarter of a million. Purcell was during Covid. We didn't have a lot of time to prepare. Right?

Lisa Gibbs (13:21):

Right. And it was held in the Purcell Mountains in BC. It was just another spectacular trek. What we've just experienced, I believe was, I mean, the most successful ever, ever.

Manny Andrade (13:41):

Carly said, where do you go from here to meet and exceed in terms of, I'm sure you guys will do. Phil was already, Phil Soper was already brainstorming. I said, Phil, Phil, let's go to the Azores. Let's trek the Azores. And I said, no, no, that's where I go. So no, you guys, you need to go somewhere else.

Lisa Gibbs (14:00):

Yeah.Take me somewhere special and unique.

Manny Andrade (14:02):

So where do you go? I mean, $1.7 million. The landscapes, the people, the food, everything was spectacular. But I'm sure that you all will do

Lisa Gibbs (14:14):

Well. And did you have Ecuador on your Bingo card three years ago as a travel destination? I didn't either. No. No. And that's just so exciting that we don't know what we don't know. And put us in a place where, and I think it's really important too for listeners to know that all of the travel costs and lodging costs were born by the participants. There's no free ride there. So not only did participants to this challenge raise a minimum of $6,000 each, but all of the costs relative to getting to Ecuador, to staying in Ecuador, the costs of the trek and mounting something, the spectacular were born by those who participated. So that 100% of what was raised by 120 individuals went to the cause, which again, I love that about Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, is that 100% of what's raised goes to the intended location, the intended shelter, the intended shelter that you want it to go to in your community where it matters most.

Manny Andrade (15:36):

Yeah, a hundred percent. The 1.7 million, we're not subtracting any cost for equipment or whatever. It's all going in. And that's a good point. The equipment alone was expensive. And a couple of individuals in my group, it said, I prefer glamping. I think they call it glamping, which is because this is pretty raw. This is pretty rare stuff, right? Yeah. Taking a bath, I took, I don't want to be graphic, but I think I could say this, Doug. I took a bath on, so day three in the creek, and that was a scene out of Yellowstone. You have the mountain, the volcano, and you have this beautiful creek, but the water was like 10 degrees Celsius, and it was shocking.

Lisa Gibbs (16:24):

Easy, easy. When your listeners get to a point where they can safely look this up, check out images, Google images for Mount Cotopaxi, that's C-O-T-O-P-A-X-I. It is one of the most beautiful, beautiful spectacles of mother nature I think I've ever seen. And I can picture you there at that creek with Mount Cotopaxi in the background. What an experience. Oh my gosh.

Manny Andrade (16:59):

Check this out. I was sitting there when I got there. Again, back to the raw, no, I mean, we do our very best in terms of hygiene, whatever, but there's no hot shower at the end of the day. So I was actually shaving. So I asked the locals, how can I shave without polluting the waters or the grounds or whatever. So they told me how, and I was sitting on a rock facing the mountain, and my group were just wondering what I was doing. They couldn't see the hand movements. So Chris Keeler came up to me and said, what were you doing meditating? I said, no, dude. I was shaving. And I think that's my coolest shave story ever. It's the only cooling or shaving story that I have. I mean, shaving is not something that you guys like to do. But that was my most memorable shave.

Lisa Gibbs (17:48):

I hope someone got a photo of that, Manny. We'll have to look at our photographic archives and find Manny shaving shot.

Manny Andrade (17:57):

It was epic. It was epic too. So just to take all that in. But yeah, it was raw, it was uncomfortable. You're there with a bunch of strangers. But then we quickly, day one, day two, you start to see the bonding and the connection and then the team sort of coming together by day five.

Lisa Gibbs (18:18):

Yeah. No one's left behind. No, no one is more weak or more strong. We are a collective moving unit towards a goal and reminding ourselves every step of the way. I can't believe I'm here. I cannot believe we're all here. We are so strong together. And we're going back to that word, Manny. I had my word. Someone else obviously took it.

Manny Andrade (18:56):

You could repeat it. I mean, if it's your word,

Lisa Gibbs (18:59):

I am going to change it anyway, so I'm good. It's strong, it's strength. That's my word.

Manny Andrade (19:06):

Okay, Yeah.

Lisa Gibbs (19:07):

It's strong. And together we were that. We were strong for each other. We were strong for the cause. We are strong for women and children, we don't even know. But we met some of them too. We're strong for them. They were strong for us. Just that strength that we all experienced together.

Manny Andrade (19:34):

They were strong for us. They were strong for us. I cannot imagine, I cannot imagine being put in that position and having to relive it in front of the group. But I guess in addition to the funds, awareness is as equal or greater than the funds is the continuous awareness. So we can put this thing to rest and eventually, or at some point, eliminate this sort of, I dunno what it is, but it's..

Lisa Gibbs (20:06):

It's such a complex issue. Intimate partner violence. This year, the first shelter in Canada, Interval House, honored its 50th year that we've been moving towards that type of a bandaid. I can't call shelters anything more than a safety line. It's not getting at the issue, but it tends to be our shelter system is like the head office of the issue. They've taken all the weight of the issue onto themselves, 50 years old, the first one. There's now well over Royal LePage Shelter Foundation is supporting well over 250 shelters across Canada. But back to that first shelter, that's Interval House in Toronto. At that point, 50 years ago, the issue that we now call intimate partner violence was called runaway wives. Where have we come in 50 years. That we would use such a derogatory term, such a sexist term to describe the issue that 50 years later we now have called intimate partner violence in a very respectful, reflective way.

(21:36):

I guess my point is we're moving. We are moving. We can see how far we've come in 50 years. Then it takes me to the next really cool milestone is that the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation is 25 years old. So what a landmark decision in corporate philanthropy in and of itself is not that old of a phenomena of a corporate strategic plan planning, marketing tool. But Royal LePage was really at the lead of adopt that progressive way of making a statement of building a point of pride within the organization and aligning with an issue, a complex issue, being intimate partner violence at such a relatively early stage of what we now can identify. But back in the day, and you and I can probably recall this very well, there was almost that, well, that's a family matter. We'll leave that one and let them come to terms, right?

(22:54):

Yes. It just seems in our lifetime we can look at that and see the progression of the issue we've got. We now have, sorry. And Veronica's research has told us that the issue of intimate partner violence is now in Canada, the most important issue facing women. According to 87% of women polled and 80% of men polled. And that's up from 79% in the mid eighties. So again, you're seeing that people are becoming like, this is not okay anymore. We are progressing as a society, and we are meeting her needs head on more than we ever did before. So 25 years in Royal LePage Shelter Foundation is now the largest non-governmental funder of shelters in Canada. We've been doing that for 25 years. That makes me so proud.

Manny Andrade (23:57):

25 years and $41 million plus, right?

Lisa Gibbs (24:01):

Correct. We will change that number at the end of this year.

Manny Andrade (24:07):

Good for you. Good work. You and your predecessors. Yeah, and to have the vision to do something like this, because we work in the communities and it's that whole, it takes a village to raise, to have that sort of vision and to help shape the community and make the communities that we work and live in better. I'll tell you, just don't forget your thought. The guides that we have there in Ecuador, they asked us about our shelter, and I'm sure maybe you had an opportunity to speak to your guides as well, and they don't, obviously they may not have the shelter components that we have or the structure, but there is still that association. Okay. It's a domestic violence, it's a personal problem. Nobody's going to get involved. That's how most of the world still thinks. Okay. That's between husband and wife. We're not going to get involved. Right?

Lisa Gibbs (25:00):

Right. Exactly. Exactly. And one of the important things that we have done, and we did again here, is that we sourced a shelter locally. So this... In Ecuador, the very first shelter, which was started in the early nineties versus Canada in the early seventies, the first shelter in Ecuador was Casa Matilda. And the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation made a donation of $10,000 to Casa Matilda. As part of our trek, we felt it important to, if we are going to come in and raise funds and send them back to Canada, we better make our position known in Ecuador to give back. So we had an opportunity to meet with the founder of Casa Matilda and presented her with this check, and she told us a great deal about the issue of intimate partner violence in Ecuador. And to your point, Manny, you're absolutely right. It's very, very different even than in Canada. And we know that intimate partner violence is in all societies across all socioeconomic factors around the world. But in Ecuador in and of itself, versus Canada, Canada will see tragically a woman killed by her intimate partner every six days. That's a bone chilling statistic. In Ecuador, the stats are very different. In Ecuador, a woman is killed by her intimate partner every 23 hours.

Manny Andrade (26:50):

Wow.

Lisa Gibbs (26:53):

The issue is so big and probably where we were years and years ago. So they have a steep climb to gain the type of recognition and solve for the issue and see the type of societal changes that Canada has experienced. And yet even, we're still behind the times. So it's tough to wrap your head around that, but that is their reality.

Manny Andrade (27:30):

But you know what? They have the opportunity. They get to meet us. They get to meet you people like yourself, the head of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, and they have now a beacon or somebody that they can follow in terms of, it's six to one. It is horrible to think that we're losing somebody to domestic violence every six days now, every 23 hours. It's unimaginable. But they have us, I guess, you to help shape their future.

Lisa Gibbs (28:01):

And we've made such strong bonds. I mean, I feel like that was something that we did at every opportunity in Ecuador, but being able to meet with that organization at the start of our trek was so meaningful for us. For sure. For me personally. Indeed.

Manny Andrade (28:24):

Yeah. That's nice to know. I wasn't aware of that. And us connecting with the guides and the guides being. So we brought our guides back for dinner at the end of the trek, and they were emotional about this whole thing. What we do while we're doing it, we weren't just a bunch of gringos as they call us. We were there for a purpose. We're good bunch of people doing treking for an amazing purpose and cause. There's a little trickle of personal goals attached to whatever everyone was doing. But the big picture was the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. And so they were genuinely grateful and not surprised, but they were happy that we were doing this and for the purpose and the cause. So that was actually getting to meet those people and understanding who they are and where they come from was actually fascinating as well. Was a big part of the experience. I got to tell you, this whole trekking thing, and like you said three years ago, that I see myself in Ecuador having these discussions being part of a great act of kindness and raising $1.7 million. No, but I'm getting my motorcycle license and I think I'm going to Columbia, but don't tell anyone. Oh, come

Lisa Gibbs (29:49):

On. Come on. Oh, I won't. Won't tell anybody. Don't tell. Oh, I'm so excited for you.

Manny Andrade (29:53):

Don't tell my kids. No, no. They probably don't listen to this. So...

Lisa Gibbs (30:00):

Truth be told. My second oldest, his name is Harley. So I think that we all have a little bit of that persona in us. I'm glad you're actualizing it.

Manny Andrade (30:13):

Well, it's baby steps, baby steps. I have the ATV, but I want to go from four wheel to two wheels, and I need to tone things down a little bit in my mind. And I need to remind myself that I'm no longer 20 or 16

Lisa Gibbs (30:27):

Getting your motorcycle license. That's toning down Manny? Okay,

Manny Andrade (30:30):

Well, I have to be mindful. Okay, well then,

Lisa Gibbs (30:32):

Okay, then. Well,

Manny Andrade (30:34):

I have to be respectful of the rules of the road and the machine that I'm riding. But I want to go back. I want to go back to South America. I want to see more of the Andes and I want to see more of the people and experience more of the wonderful, amazing things that we experienced in such a short period of time.

Lisa Gibbs (30:52):

I cannot agree more. Whereas we do so much European travel as Canadians, and I feel like we've forgotten the whole South America. The South American continent.

Manny Andrade (31:13):

I'm in love.

Lisa Gibbs (31:14):

I'm captivated as well. I really, again, and I did not see that happening. The food. What about the food?

Manny Andrade (31:21):

Yeah, the food. Cooking, we don't want to give people the wrong impression here. The food was raw. It was whatever the local chef or cook came up with. But it was so good, so good, so good. I don't think I lost any weight. I mean, we're exerting ourselves in heat and in climate conditions, cold, hot wind, rain, thunderstorm, whatever. But I didn't lose any weight. I was eating well. I don't want people to feel for me. I was eating well.

Lisa Gibbs (31:51):

I wanted to eat well because I thought intellectually based on what I'd just done, that I should be hungrier. But then I read that altitude affects appetite, and so I'm just going to say it did drop a few. Did you? Which was good. Which was very good. So...

Manny Andrade (32:08):

I was hoping for it.

Lisa Gibbs (32:10):

Maybe I made up for it in Galapagos.

Manny Andrade (32:12):

Well, maybe that's what happened. I mounted the scale and I thought, well, oh, well. That was part of the goal and that was part of my working out regimen during the summer. I wanted to drop a certain amount of weight and I didn't. But nonetheless, we made it unscathed and...

Lisa Gibbs (32:30):

Well, and coming back to that word, Manny, strong, it's not about the weight, it's about how strong you feel. So I can only imagine that you're conditioning and you doing what? Setting the goal and achieving it showed you your own personal strength. I know I felt that way. And again, there's that word again. Strong.

Manny Andrade (32:52):

Circle it. We're putting the word strength on a mannequin with your initials beside it.

Lisa Gibbs (32:57):

That's It. Thank you.

Manny Andrade (32:58):

Lisa Gibbs, before we wrap, how did you come across Royal LePage? Tell us the connection with Royal LePage and Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. Is there one?

Lisa Gibbs (33:08):

Well, yeah. I mean, it was putting the two terms together really for me. I come from a background of knowing very well the strength of the Royal LePage brand. My maternal aunt was a very successful Royal LePage agent in the national capital region. My own mother was a Royal LePage agent in Sarnia where I grew up. So I definitely knew of the brand and the strength of it as a Canadian branding success story, quite frankly. And then I was in the field in a previous role in women's health, and I came across quite by accident, of course, in the sector of intimate partner violence, the fact that Royal LePage had its own foundation, the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, and it just felt like the right connection at the right time. I'd spent my entire career in the area of corporate philanthropy. And then to put the type of branding, the side, the philanthropic cause was just the right time.

(34:19):

Right. Perfect, perfect. Coming together. I think it's important too sometimes for us all to reflect on that, first, when did you first realize that intimate partner violence was a thing and a really quick story? A kid growing up, I had a friend down the street whose family was the most wonderful family. I wanted to be a part of their family. Mom was a beautiful, beautiful society woman. Gorgeous. Dad was a successful career. They just had the big house. They had European ski vacations. They were the coolest family. And I remember my brother and I one day at our house sitting around watching tv, and there was a knock at the door. And I went to answer the door and it was my friend's brother, and he said, call the police. My father just broke my grandfather's arm and he's beating up my mom.

(35:17):

That was the family. I wanted to be a part of that family. They were the perfect family, but they held that secret of what we now know as intimate partner violence. And so from a very young age, I had an understanding of just how secretive, just how much shame was inherent in this. And that full circle. My life can now be focused on building passion and strength of the Royal LePage brand on making sure that we've got the supports in this country for that issue. Just feels like one of those very unique full circle moments. And I feel so fortunate to be in this role and to meet amazing, wonderful people like you, Manny.

Manny Andrade (36:06):

Oh, that's so nice. We're going to almost end with that. But you know what? You are in the right place at the right time. You are the right person for the task at hand. You are passionate about this. You're doing a wonderful job as a leader of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. Carly. Carly was there as well.

Lisa Gibbs (36:27):

Of course, she's been a part of everything we do. We got such a strong team. It's so exciting.

Manny Andrade (36:34):

Keep doing what you're doing.

Lisa Gibbs (36:35):

Got some great plans. Yep.

Manny Andrade (36:37):

Right. Okay. And when's the announcement for the next trek?

Lisa Gibbs (36:42):

Good question. We'll be making that announcement at the National Sales Conference in Calgary, Alberta in late September, 2024.

Manny Andrade (36:51):

What a coincidence. I'm going to Calgary in late September, 2024.

Lisa Gibbs (36:55):

Oh, of course.

Manny Andrade (36:56):

So I want to hear it live. And then in person

Lisa Gibbs (36:59):

You will. We'll be drinking coffee and making that announcement. Manny,

Manny Andrade (37:03):

I'm going to do something a little stronger than coffee, depending on the time of day. I'm just saying. But you know what, Lisa, look, I want to thank you for coming in. This podcast is supposed to be light and fun and poke fun at us sometimes, at the industry. Try to be helpful, provide some insights in the industry. This was a little heavier than most. I trust people who appreciate it and it will resonate with some because this is not a little secret anymore. This thing is real. And it's unfortunately still very prominent in our communities and society. Great work. Thanks for coming in. Thank you. I want to thank everybody for listening to this. If you'd like it, share it. Give us some feedback. Thank you, Lisa. Thank you everybody. And then, until next time.