Comments Off on National Volunteer Week: Meet Melina!
North York Harvest Food Bank has hundreds of dedicated volunteers who show up every day to make a difference in their community; by sorting food in our warehouse, serving clients in our food spaces, supporting with events, and so much more. People from all walks of life unite under a common goal: To care for their neighbours and fight food insecurity.
People just like Melina, a volunteer at our Lawrence Heights Community Food Space.
For National Volunteer Week, hear from Melina about what she loves about volunteering, why she thinks everyone should do it, and how everyone has the power to make a difference.
Comments Off on Welcome to Oriole Community Food Space
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 2,610 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 Spacebefore 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.
Comments Off on Welcome to Bathurst-Finch Community Food Space
Bathurst-Finch in Photos
Welcome to the Bathurst-Finch Community Food Space! It’s North York Harvest’s busiest food space, located in the Westminster-Branson community at the Herb Carnegie Centennial Centre. Follow along to learn more about Bathurst-Finch and the community we serve.
The North York Harvest delivery truck arrives in the morning with food for the week’s programs. In addition to essential non-perishable food received from the community, North York Harvest works with several partner organizations to procure high-quality fresh foods including meat, dairy and produce.
Volunteers get to work unpacking the day’s deliveries onto the shelves and into the fridges ahead of service in the afternoon.
Bathurst-Finch has three program days a week, serving over 3800 client visits per month.
Bathurst-Finch has a dedicated team of nearly 40 volunteers who help out on a regular basis, including Jesse! Jesse has been with us since September, helping out with everything from client registration to receiving shipments, and helping our community engagement team with advocacy initiatives.
“As a person who has required food banks for most of my life, it feels good to be able to provide back to a service that has provided to me,” Jesse says.
His favourite moment of volunteering so far was attending the Budget Rally in February 2025 at CIty Hall. The Community Engagement team mobilized 60+ food bank clients down to City Hall to attend the rally and hand-deliver petitions to our elected officials.
Julie has been working at North York Harvest since 2015, where she began as a student in community social work.
“I like engaging with clients, you get to meet a lot of community members on different levels – not just inside the food space but in the community itself.
“For a lot of our members, this is their only option, it’s no longer a temporary solution. North York Harvest has been doing a lot of outreach at our food spaces to get more community members involved in our advocacy efforts to fight together for change.”
North York Harvest uses a choice model as part of our commitment to dignified food assistance. Our volunteers show clients what is available on the shelves, and clients are able to choose what they would like to cook for themselves and their families. This allows clients to adhere to their own unique dietary or cultural restrictions, and it reduces food waste by not serving community members food they cannot use.
Bathurst-Finch serves a diverse community from all walks of life, including many clients of Filipino and Ukrainian descent.
Our Bathurst-Finch Community
Nearly 20% of client visits are seniors
1 in 4 are children and youth
57% of clients are from 1 or 2-person households
In the past 6 months, 25% of clients served were first-time clients
“Like most Ukrainians, we lived very well in our country, not needing anything. Everything was abundant. No one expected a full-scale invasion… It’s very scary to be in another country without even being able to provide ourselves with food. So we are extremely grateful to the food bank for providing us with such support. “ – Diana, client
There’s a reason North York Harvest calls its food banks ‘community food spaces.’ Beyond emergency food support, these are welcoming spaces where clients can connect with one another and build relationships with our volunteers and staff.
Last year, more than 26,000 volunteer hours were worked at North York Harvest. We are grateful for every person who generously gives their time to
ensure our community members can get the dignified food support they need. This month, we would like to highlight Müge, one of our newer volunteers who helps out at Lawrence Heights Community Food Space. Whether it’s serving clients or helping to conduct surveys for our annual Who’s Hungry reports, we’re glad she’s part of the team!
What made you want to volunteer at North York Harvest?
After moving from Istanbul to Toronto just three months ago, I sought to connect with the community and contribute in a meaningful way. My background in the food industry has always fueled my passion for food and social responsibility.
In London I was deeply impacted by the initiative to donate unsold pastries to a local charity for the homeless. This experience not only relieved my concerns about waste but also filled me with a sense of purpose, knowing that our efforts helped those in need enjoy quality food. Eager to replicate this positive impact in my new city, I discovered North York harvest and was impressed by its mission and community involvement.
Have you volunteered elsewhere previously?
While I do not have extensive experience with regular volunteer commitments, my involvement in humanitarian efforts following the devastating earthquake in Turkey on February 6, 2023, was eye-opening. This involvement was an urgent response to a critical need and helped lay a foundation for my passion for community service.
Can you describe your experience volunteering at NYH so far?
My experience volunteering at North York Harvest has been incredibly fulfilling, both personally and for my community.
Each day, I see firsthand how much the distributed food means to those who receive it. There’s a profound sense of gratitude and relief among the beneficiaries, which deeply resonates with me. Volunteering here has reinforced my passion for helping others. The environment at NYH is one of mutual respect and cooperation; we’re all driven by a shared goal to make a tangible difference in peoples’ lives.
Every session ends with a sense of accomplishment and a reminder of the positive impact we can have when we work together. Overall, my time at North York Harvest has been an enriching journey that has not only helped me connect with the local community but has also affirmed the value of collective action in addressing food insecurity.
Comments Off on Interested in becoming a Board Member?
North York Harvest is looking for candidates to join our dynamic Board of Directors.
If you have passion for our vision of a community where all members are able to meet their food needs, this may be the volunteer position for you.
Do you have:
Experience working in or with government
Understanding of poverty reduction and food security
Experience or connection to food distribution
Strategic planning
We are seeking candidates for board terms effective February 2020; please note that orientation, including introduction to the Board, will begin as early as December 2019.
If you are interested in this opportunity, please review the NYH Board Posting.
Comments Off on “I wanted to make sure others have the same chance I did.” – How Theresa Pays it Forward
Asking for help is hard.
When Theresa visited our Lawrence Heights Community Food Space for the first time, her hands were shaking. “I was so embarrassed to have to ask for food,” she remembers. The single mother was desperately in need of help to put food on her table, but we often hear, Theresa felt ashamed of her situation.
Theresa’s situation, however, is not unlike the ones many others face in Toronto. “I was new to the city. I came here because I thought I’d be able to find work. But it was harder than I expected.” Because of the generosity of our community, Theresa was greeted warmly by Julie, our Food Bank Manager.
She walked away with the food she needed and a new sense of belonging. Just like 1 in 3 of our clients, Theresa wanted to “pay it forward”. Even though she was in a time of personal crisis, she was determined to give back so others could receive the same help she had. She became a volunteer to create a safe, friendly space for her neighbours who were also struggling.
“I told Julie to call me whenever she needed help – day or night. I wanted to make sure others have the same chance I did. I know this community needs help, so I’m helping in the way I can,” Theresa insists with a shy smile.
Stories like Theresa’s happen at North York Harvest agencies every day. Emergency food assistance makes life a little better and restores a sense of purpose and hope. People come in for help and find a community.
Your support makes sure that providing emergency food support is just the beginning of our relationship with people like Theresa. And just like you, Theresa is committed to building a healthier Northern Toronto.
Will you join Theresa and give what you can to make sure our community members in need can find healthy food across Northern Toronto?
Your participation allows us to support food banks, food education programs, community kitchens and more. These programs not only help people access food but bring people together all year long!
Recently, I had the opportunity to visit with the incredible volunteers and clients at the Bathurst Finch Community Food Space. Located in a tiny room inside Northview Heights Secondary School, the hustle and bustle of getting prepared for the upcoming drop in made the room buzz. Operating outside of school hours, volunteers make sure the shelves are stocked and fridges full to help community members put food on the table.
Elis, who manages the food space, treats everyone that enters like family. Everyone is in this together and a VIP in the eyes of the caring volunteers.
One of the VIP clients using the food bank is Anna. Anna has been living in Canada for 11 years after leaving Uzbekistan because she was unable to find work.
After working 9 years at local Russian grocery stores, Anna had a child named Nikita and found herself out of work in order to take care of him each day. She had to go on social assistance but unfortunately that wasn’t enough to cover all of her expenses from rent and utilities to food and baby supplies. She was in a bind.
While searching for a way to get baby powder and baby food, Anna came to the Bathurst Finch Community Food Space. When she arrived, the helpful volunteers let her know that not only she could receive baby products, but she was also given food for herself. Anna was amazed by the kindness and generosity that was located right in her neighbourhood. She has been coming to the food bank for the past year now which has helped her stretch her small income.
To get to the food bank, Anna walks with Nikita in his stroller. During the harsh winter months, she was unable to take her stroller through the icy and snowy sidewalks and had no way to access the food bank. Thomas, a volunteer, took the time to drop off food to her home for three months so Anna and Nikita wouldn’t have to go without. “It was amazing that someone was willing to come and help us out when we couldn’t get around,” says Anna, “the food bank volunteers are wonderful!”
After Anna’s father passed away, her mother is still living in Uzbekistan alone. Anna hopes that her mother will be able to join her in Canada so they can be together again. “If she comes to stay with me, she’ll be able to help take care of Nikita so I can go back to school and get a full time job,” says Anna who dreams of becoming a paralegal one day to support her family.
Anna would recommend that anyone who needs help in her neighbourhood visit the Bathurst Finch Community Food Space. “They are so caring and have been so helpful to Nikita and myself. If someone is in need of help they will bring you in and treat you like family.”
At the Bathurst Finch Community Food Space, it is about more than just putting food on the table, it’s about bringing family to that table.
Would you like to support people in your local food bank like Anna? Make a donation here
ensure our community members can get the dignified food support they need. This month, we would like to highlight Müge, one of our newer volunteers who helps out at Lawrence Heights Community Food Space. Whether it’s serving clients or helping to conduct surveys for our annual Who’s Hungry reports, we’re glad she’s part of the team!
