Who we are
With your help, we’ve been looking out for children of all ages since 1988. Enfant Soleil engages with healthcare professionals across Quebec, in all areas of pediatric care. Our aim is to see children heal and grow with a smile on their face.
Our mission and values
Providing the best healthcare for children
We exist to mobilize the entire Quebec population so that our children have access to the best healthcare across the province, by supporting the hospitals and organizations that care for them.
- Proximity – We are never far away
Accessible, attentive, and empathetic, we are connected, heart and mind, to families, healthcare staff, volunteers, donors, and partners. We are present throughout the province, alongside the hospitals and organizations that take care of children's health.
- Mutual support – Our movement draws strength from the community
Little miracles don’t happen on their own! We’ve always believed that it is together that we can achieve great things: you have demonstrated this every year since 1988.
- Recognition – Every action counts
It is thanks to the generosity and involvement of each person that we are able to make a difference in children's health across the province. That’s why we make it a point to highlight those who help support our mission.
- Transparency – Every donation deserves your trust
We strive to maximize the impact of every contribution and proudly demonstrate this thanks to your support. We communicate with complete transparency and authenticity with all our partners.
- Determination – Present as long as there are children to care for
It is our promise and our reason for being. Creative and passionate, we are inspired both by the courage of the children we support and by the generosity and involvement of all our allies. Our desire to carry out our mission drives us and fuels our eagerness to move forward, seize opportunities, and reinvent ourselves.
Our story
Our story began with a brilliant idea: to create a solidarity movement that unites Quebec to provide the best care for sick children.
Inspired by the Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) Telethon for sick children, members of the Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec-Université Laval (CHUL) proposed launching a similar event in French in Quebec. Their idea quickly gained support from pediatricians and Quebec’s Ministry of Health. CMN agreed to test the concept the following year, marking the start of a grand adventure to mobilize the Quebec population and support local pediatrics.
The first French-language Telethon was organized in June 1988 by the CHUL Foundation. The goal was to raise funds to equip the CHUL with a pediatric emergency department, in collaboration with Desjardins. Broadcast only in eastern Quebec on CKMI-TV, it raised $1.6 million, a great success.
In the fall, Opération Enfant Soleil was officially incorporated as a non-profit organization, with Dr. Jacques Brunet, Director General of CHUL, as the first Chair of the Board.
In 1989, Opération Enfant Soleil, in collaboration with CMN, broadcast the Telethon live on TVA for 25 hours. Re/Max became the official partner, and its commitment has continued ever since. In 1990, the Montreal Children's Hospital and CHU Sainte-Justine joined the initiative, turning it into a provincial event. By 1991, the mission expanded to support regional hospitals providing local pediatric care, with 10% of the funds allocated to them. The mission of Opération Enfant Soleil became clear: to mobilize Quebecers to support the best care for all sick children in Quebec by supporting the healthcare facilities that care for them.
Year of the first edition of the Maison Enfant Soleil draw. New fundraising initiatives are developed, enabling ongoing commitment to children's health. Hundreds of partners and volunteers mobilize each year to support the mission of Opération Enfant Soleil. The Telethon becomes a tradition, the culmination of a year of fundraising and project realization in over a hundred facilities that care for children's health across Quebec.
From 1996 to 2003, support for regional care increased from 10% to 15% of the net proceeds, while 85% went to the three university pediatric centres.
In 2004, this percentage rose to 87% with the addition of the CHU de Sherbrooke as the fourth university pediatric centre. Together, these four centres provide specialized and highly specialized care for all the children in the province who need it.
Thee Centre mère-enfant Soleil at CHU de Québec-Université Laval was inaugurated that same year. Its name highlights the major donation that made its construction possible and Opération Enfant Soleil’s unwavering support since then to ensure its continued development.
Determined to do more and better in pediatrics, the organization grows, modernizes its brand image and practices, and implements a strategy for philanthropic development and diversification. New programs, such as monthly and planned donations, strengthen its foundation. Opération Enfant Soleil becomes much more than a Telethon. This allowed us, in 2017, to shorten the Telethon o 15 hours without affecting the grand total, which surpassed r $20 million for the first time.
The pandemic hit just weeks before the Telethon. The team adapted by shortening the broadcast to nine hours in a format that respected the public health measures. Every fundraising initiative was revised to fit the pandemic context. According to the 2021 Épisode/Léger study, Opération Enfant Soleil is the organization that excelled the most during the pandemic. This recognition reflects the resilience, creativity, and determination of the team, the board of directors, and all those who mobilize for the cause.
To ensure the sustainability of its mission, Opération Enfant Soleil has developed a strategic plan focused on evolving.
Since 2021, the organization has been making constant progress thanks to the efforts of the team, partners, volunteers, and donors, reaching new heights to support hospitals and organizations across Quebec.
The Cercle des Bâtisseurs was established in 2023, initiated by Michel Pauzé, Chair of the Board.
In January 2025, Opération Enfant Soleil is becoming Enfant Soleil and is updating its brand image, ushering in new era of hope and possibilities.
We will write it together.
So that our little rays of sunshine can glow with health.
