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www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, December 14, 2011 · 16 You don't have it that bad, says pop star Continued from page 14 have dinner with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, and `hang out' with Shaquille O'Neal and Magic Johnson. Desman said he got involved with Free the Children after hearing a story about a mother, father and three children. When a huge drought hit their east African home, the family had to walk for 20 days to get to the closest city to get water and food. En route, the mother and two children died. "Maybe one day you guys are having a bad day and your mom took away your Nintendo DS. And you think to yourself, `Aw man, this is the end of the world, this is so bad.' Remember back to the story I just told you. You guys don't have it that bad," he said, telling students to remember stories like this and get involved to try and make change. He said Free the Children is about positive things and about making positive change. Knowing several students in the audience went to a We Day concert in Toronto, Desman asked them how they felt afterwards. Several children responded saying things such as: inspired, excited, awesome, touched and united. They felt like they could change the world. "This is what Free the Children and We Day are all about," he said. "Next year, I want to see more of you guys get involved because I believe the little things are really big things and really do help make change." After the presentation, Grade 7 student Paolo Di Michele said his favourite part was the motivational speech by Desman, his cousin who was invited to the school by his family. The visit was kept a surprise for the students. "I think they (students) were very surprised," he said. "I think they enjoyed it." Naylor Group top employer Naylor Group Inc. (NG), an Oakville contracting firm, has made the list as one of the top 70 employers in the GTA. In the Best Employer in the Greater Toronto Area poll ­ conducted by Aon Hewitt (AH) and Queen's University ­ NG ranked 13th in the 50-399 employees category. The 70 companies identified as best GTA employers for 2012 vary in terms of industry and workforce size. Research conducted by AH with the support of Queen's University School of Business, indicates they share a key requirement­ high employee engagement. The average employee engagement is 77 per cent. "This study goes beyond satisfaction (how much I like things here) and commitment (how much I want to be here) to measure engagement (how much I want to and actually contribute to improving our business results)," said Neil Crawford, AH study leader. This year's selected employers range in size ­ from 50 employees to over 50,000. Those eligible for the GTA list are drawn from participants in the 2012 national best employers studies. Organizations chosen are either located in the GTA and/or have a significant employee population working there. For 2012, 35 organizations appear on two lists ­ one for employers with 400 or more employees, and another for small and mid-sized organizations with 50­399 employees. For information on NG, visit www. naylorgroupinc.com. For more information on AH, visit www.aon.com.