Peter Bennett, a native of Halifax and a Dalhousie graduate in Commerce and Law founded Hearthstone in November 1983, following 18 years as a senior executive with a trust company and two major Canadian property management and development companies.
“ I saw the need for specialized property management services exclusively for homeowners. I had heard from transferring employees of their worries about their home while away and had spoken to investors who wanted to own homes, but didn’t have time or the expertise to manage them. It was clear that these owners needed a hands-on manager who realized that a home was more than bricks and mortar”
Out of these findings came Hearthstone Property Management Services Inc.
We are located in the centre of the City of Toronto on trendy Bayview Avenue. We have a staff of three and utilize the services of quality tradesmen - most of who have been working with us for over 12 years.
Peter Bennett- “ I was sitting in front of our fireplace one night with my wife Martha, trying to come up with a name for our new business. Aided by a Thesaurus and a book of antonyms and synonyms, we struggled to find a word or concept that would convey the warmth, solidity and permanence we hoped would typify our company.
Sitting in front of our fire has always brought a feeling of peace and comfort and it wasn’t long before that atmosphere stimulated our discussion and took us from “fireplace” to ‘hearth” to “hearthstone”
Our community is particularly vibrant, comprising as it does Leaside and North Toronto. The schools are excellent and we have strong community organizations
Hearthstone is a strong supporter of Leaside Rotary and Rotary International. We actively participate in all things Rotary and particularly the Rotary Community Corn Roast which is held the 3rd Sunday of September each year at Trace Manes Park in Leaside. This year the sun shone brightly and we had an excellent turnout
Our Rotary Club is currently engaged in a wonderful literacy project in Ghana " A Bookplate for Bawku" My sister Penny Bennett is in Bawku with WUSC-UNITERRA engaged in a program directed at keeping young girls in school. Part of her mandate was to do get the library operational. She arrived in Bawku to find a library but no books on the shelves .
Leaside Rotary agreed to donate $3500. towards acquiring and shipping books. In addition
it sold bookplates for $5.00 each. At the time of sale, the purchaser writes his name on the bookplate and the bookplate is affixed to one of the books being sent. The bookplates carry the Canadian Flag and the Rotary wheel. They read
"To our friends in Bawku
from
(John Smith)
and
The Rotary Club of Toronto-Leaside"
By the time the project was finished over 900 bookplates were sold and in late December 2006 we shipped 48 boxes of Children's fiction and reference books to Bawku. Our efforts were recognized
on the sign below.
Peter Bennett was made a "Guatamalan Literacy Fellow" for his efforts on the above project.
