Mark and Erin Engelhardt

CPAWS CHAMPIONS

Back in 2014, our daughters Helen (then 12) and May (then 9) were eager to fiddle for charity, and we began searching for a meaningful organization they could support through busking. That’s when we discovered CPAWS and its Big Wild Challenge— the kids were all in. The idea of protecting Canada’s wild spaces resonated with our whole family. It was incredibly rewarding to watch Helen and May busk at events like Westfest, not just for fun, but to make a difference. CPAWS even provided some fun swag, which made the experience all the more memorable! We ended up busking for several years with CPAWS as our chosen charity, and those moments are ones we still cherish deeply. 

Over time, our support for CPAWS has grown to include more significant personal and corporate donations, but it all started with those early days of fiddling for the forests. 

To us, conservation means protecting the wild places that make Canada so special—the trees, lakes, forests, and all the treasures they contain. It means ensuring that we don’t lose these wild places to relentless development and unchecked growth. We believe deeply in preserving the natural world, not just for ourselves, but for future generations. 

Our hope is that our support helps CPAWS continue its mission to create and maintain substantial, connected wilderness areas across the country. These wild lands are not only ecologically essential to the preservation of our planet, but also a meaningful part of our shared cultural experience as Canadians. 

Spend time in nature. Let it bring you peace and awe (and also bug bites) and help to protect it. Our opportunity to preserve nature is now.  

– Mark, Erin, Helen & May