It’s not every day a person has a street named after them, but the president of one of Canada’s largest stainless steel sink manufacturers found himself in that position on Nov. 5.
Habitat for Humanity Canada honored Case de Jong for his work on behalf of the organization over the years. De Jong spearheaded the initiative to get the Canadian Institute of Plumbing & Heating (CIPH) involved with Habitat.
He got the idea after seeing a television show in 1992 about a Habitat build in Winnipeg. He proposed the idea to other members of CIPH and support built quickly. Members set a goal of $100,000 for the first campaign in 1994 and raised $125,000.
“People said we would never achieve that number,” said de Jong. “What amazes me is that (the partnership) has achieved far more.” Members have raised over $10 million in cash and products to date, making CIPH by far Habitat Canada’s biggest supporter.
Over the years CIPH members have directly participated in a number of home builds, the latest being the 13-unit town home complex in Burlington located on what is now De Jong Lane.
“I was the catalyst, but I had to have a lot of support. We’ve always had that in CIPH,” remarked the somewhat humbled De Jong.
