Dr. Réjean Thomas receives the cheque from Essor Insurance from the head of the company's Marketing Department, Ross Gagné. (CNW Group/Essor Insurance)

Indeed, on June 10, Ross Gagné, head of Essor Insurance's Marketing Department, met with directors of the Fondation l'Actuel, at the clinic of the same name, in Montréal, to hand them a cheque.

Established in 2006, the Fondation l'Actuel seeks to ensure the wellbeing of people living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections as well as hepatitis. It has also made it its mission to favour access to research, detection, treatment and care for individuals with HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections, and hepatitis, and to foster the prevention of these diseases among the general population.

An advertising billboard that drew more than its share of attention.

With this donation, Essor Insurance was making good on a promise it had made last April at the launch of a particularly daring billboard advertising campaign. It may be recalled that the insurance firm had turned more than a few heads with its billboards positioned along strategic roads throughout Quebec. The ad shows a packaged condom in the form of a house, along with the message: Protégez ce que vous avez de plus précieux (Protect your most precious values), a concept that reminded consumers that condoms remain the best form of protection against sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections as well as the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

"At Essor Insurance, we are pleased to join forces with the likes of Dr. Réjean Thomas and his colleagues, who make a real difference in society by helping people who not only need compassion and understanding but concrete help," explains Ross Gagné, spokesperson for Essor Insurance.