Murray discovered how special his community is

When my wife, Jessica, and I moved to Guelph in 2001, it didn’t take long for us to realize that our community is special. With a wonderful blend of old and new, urban and rural, warm friendly people of all cultures, great restaurants and craft breweries, an amazing arts culture, and a leading edge university where student keep the place lively – it really is a fantastic place. I knew I had to get involved.

As an accountant, I felt I could make my best contribution on boards of organizations that help make Guelph unique. With a passion for music, I have chaired the board of River Run Centre and am currently Treasurer of the Hillside Festival. I am also Treasurer of the Volunteer Centre of Guelph/Wellington, and have served in the same role with the Guelph Chamber and Guelph Wellington Business Enterprise Centre. I am proud to have worked with these organizations, each of which makes life in Guelph tangibly better.

What I didn’t expect to gain from these experiences was a personal benefit beyond the satisfaction of contributing toward a good cause. Nevertheless, I can truly say that my career has been strengthened by volunteering. Serving as an auditor for non-profit organizations requires a strong understanding of governance, strategy, risk management, and varied funding models – all skills I’ve strengthened while serving on boards.

In fact, sitting on these boards made me realize that I wanted to specialize in the non-profit sector. As RLB’s first specialized non-profit partner, I have had the opportunity to get to know many talented people and to observe how the volunteers and staff of Guelph’s community benefit organizations do amazing work every day.

I am just one of thousands of volunteers in our community. There are many reasons why Guelph is such a great place, but the myriad of volunteers is certainly among the most important.

– Murray Short, Partner, RLB LLP

Photo and story courtesy of Chris Tiessen