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Oriole in Photos
Our Oriole Community Food Space opened in 2013, and it’s been an important hub for community support ever since!
Nestled in the Oriole Community Centre, the space operates in partnership with Flemingdon Health Centre and Working Women Community Centre. Together, our space fights food insecurity through food support and advocacy while providing wraparound supports for our community.
Our Oriole Community
Oriole Community Food Space operates two program days per week, serving 1,300 clients per month.
- 25% of clients are children and youth
- 16% are 65+
- Nearly half (47%) of clients live in 1 or 2-person households
- In 2025, 36% of clients turned to our food bank for the first time
Meet Nisha!
Nisha, above right, first joined North York Harvest in 2015 as a volunteer before becoming relief staff. From 2020-2025 she was the Manager of our Albion Library Community Food Space before making the switch over to Oriole.
“The reality is that it is not only people who are homeless or unemployed who need to use the food bank, which is what I think many people still believe,” Nisha says. “Many of our clients are households where multiple adults are working, yet they are still unable to provide enough food for themselves after paying for other necessities.
“It is also the fact that not only can people not afford enough food, but that they are unable to access healthy, nutritious food,” Nisha says.
Healthcare support for food bank clients
As part of our partnership with Working Women, ambassadors from North York Toronto Health Partners are a regular fixture at Oriole, providing a range of supports with resources, events, and more including:
- Mobile cancer screening
- Mobile Dental Bus
- Finding a primary physician
- Support with specific client healthcare issues
Meet Maura!
Oriole Food Space has about 37 volunteers who dedicate their time to making their community a better place for everyone — including Maura!
“I have volunteered at the food bank for over two years. What I look forward to and enjoy, is that each week is different. I’m usually at the fresh produce/eggs-milk station,” Maura says.
“I look forward to the familiar faces each week and getting to know them better — their humour and their individual quirkiness. It is also a plus to work with and know the other volunteers who come from many walks of life.”
Thank you for joining us at Oriole Community Food Space!
And thank you to our donors, community partners, staff, and volunteers who help make this critical work possible every day.
Together we are working toward our vision of a community where all members are able to meet their food needs.
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