Tag Archive: giving back

  1. Thankful for Your Support

    Comments Off on Thankful for Your Support
    Thankful for your support on Giving Tuesday!
     
    Giving Tuesday is a global day of giving back that kicks off the giving season. This is a day when individuals and businesses join together in support of charities. It is a time to amplify, celebrate and encourage activities that support our community. Whether you’re volunteering time, helping your neighbour, spreading the word, or making a donation, Giving Tuesday is a movement that offers everyone the opportunity to create change, have an impact and make a difference in their community.
     
    At North York Harvest, we are continuing to focus all our efforts on providing emergency food assistance. We are not able to do it alone. We are incredibly thankful for the support we have had from our community.
     
    Your generosity helps us ensure that everyone is able to put food on their table and feed their families during what continues to be very challenging times. 
     
    Here is a special message from our Board Chair, Habon Ali sharing more about how you make our work possible.

    Thanks to you, more than 2,5000 people in our community were able to be supported each week.

    Thank you for helping our community meet their food needs, we couldn’t have done the work we do without  the kindness, support and  generosity from all of you!

  2. North York Harvest Launches 2021 Give 30 Campaign

    Comments Off on North York Harvest Launches 2021 Give 30 Campaign

    Since 2012, Give 30 has been making a difference in communities nationwide, the United States and Australia. This grassroots movement was inspired by the Muslim faith’s Ramadan which takes place from April 13 until May 12, 2021. Regardless of of faith or background, everyone is encouraged to support partnering community organizations to fight hunger and food insecurity in our communities.  This  year, the campaign runs until August 31, which enables donors to extend their participation past the traditional 30-day campaign period. As a participating member agency, when you make a donation to Give 30 through North York Harvest Food Bank, your donation directly impacts the lives of families and individuals right here in your local community. By supporting one another, at times when we all need it most, we can each make a difference, together. 

     
    Find out more about the values, and vision of Give 30  along how this important initiative began with a singular idea and inspiration. Interested in learning how you can connect with others who are also taking part in this global movement? Become a Give 30 Fan on Facebook and follow Give 30 on  Twitter
     
    DONATE TODAY
  3. Back to School BBQ

    Comments Off on Back to School BBQ

    “How can I make a difference in my community?” It’s a question we hear a lot at North York Harvest, and one that’s hard to give a concrete answer for. Every day we meet new amazing people who are taking new and creative approaches to helping their neighbours in need. Everyone’s different and the way they better their community is a reflection of that.

    But while it’s hard to come up with a formula for creating positive change, we usually encourage people to do 3 things.

    • Choose your passion. Is it fresh food?  Is it kids eating healthy meals?
    • Plan a fun and creative event based around the things you love to do.
    • Invite your friends, family and co-workers to join you.

    Easier said than done right? Well, this last week, one of our incredible donors, Brand Active, followed these steps perfectly, and the result was inspiring, impactful, a really fun.

    With the summer winding down, you’ve probably started to notice parents heading to the store to set their kids up with back-to-school supplies. Pencils, notebooks, calculators and backpacks are all important to a child’s academic success and self-esteem, but they can also be expensive, especially for your neighbours already on a tight budget. Any major expenses can be hard on a family, and when finances get strained the tough solution for many parents is to skip meals to make up the difference.

    Long-time North York Harvest partner Brand Active had noticed the financial strain of back to school shopping, and decided that they wanted to help. They reached out to North York Harvest and before you knew it, a plan was in place.

    Yesterday 22 Brand Active employees came to the NYH warehouse with 500 brand new back packs. Working as a team, the employees spent the morning carefully filling each back pack with school supplies that the Toronto District School Board had identified to them as the most crucial to a student’s success.  After a few hours, the bags were packed and ready to be distributed to children throughout the community. Mission accomplished, right? Wrong. Brand active was just getting started.

    The bags were packed in to cars and sent to one of our member agencies, the Room to Grow Community Food Bank in Toronto’s west end.  The Brand Active team joined the volunteers there to set up Room to Grow’s first ever Back to School Community BBQ. Throughout the afternoon Brand Active volunteers grilled burgers, hosted games, and painted faces. At the end of the event over 400 families got brand new back packed filled with school supplies for their kids.

    “We’ve partnered with NYH for several years and support them throughout the year.  But we wanted to do more than just write a cheque. We wanted to engage all our employees and give back to our community.  This was something special that went over and above the other ways we work with them.  It’s not food.  We realize that’s a bit odd given we are working with a food bank,” said Robynne Budish, Brand Active’s Principle Partner. “But for every backpack we hand out we are saving families anywhere from $50 -$60 that they would have to spend on schools supplies.  That’s a lot of food they can buy instead.”

    If you’re feeling inspired by Brand Active’s story, and want to find your own creative way to help your neighbours in need, we’re here to help. Email kyle@northyorkharvest.com and he’ll work with you to create your own plan of action. You can also register to host a food and fund drive, sign up for volunteer food sorting, or to make donation to North York Harvest through our website today.