Donations collected locally should be used to help local families.
That’s the message Myrlene Boken, president of Community 4 Kids (previously Christmas for Kids and also known as C4K) presented to the Bradford West Gwillimbury/Innisfil Police Services Board meeting at the Innisfil Town Hall last week.
“When we collect in Innisfil, can we distribute that in Innisfil?” she asked. “I think there is a perception that everything that goes to Barrie will filter back here, but it doesn’t really — not to the extent that we need it.”
Boken was hoping “even a portion” of the donations collected as part of the South Simcoe Police Service’s annual Weekend of Giving held in Innisfil and Bradford each December could be provided directly to C4K rather than all going to Simcoe Muskoka Family Connexions for their annual Toy Mountain campaign.
The police are one of several partners in the campaign which last year collected 14,839 items, including toys, gift cards, hygiene products, household items and small appliances, according to Jerome Ben Tolila, manager of communications and community relations at Family Connexions.
Those donations are then sent to the organization’s toy depot at Bayfield Mall in Barrie, before the agency redistributes them to their clients, including more than 3,000 families, children, youth and community partners from last year’s campaign.
In response to Boken's concerns, Ben Tolila explained to BradfordToday that it’s difficult for Family Connexions to track which donations came from which communities, and even if they did, the needs of people in each community might not match the donations provided.
“Know that your donation is very appreciated, and it will serve a child, still in your region, as we only service Simcoe and Muskoka,” he said via email. “The kids that are in need in your region will get the same attention and personalized holiday hamper as anyone we support with our program.”
There’s no specific criteria to become a recipient of the agency’s holiday program other than being one of their clients, according to Ben Tolila, who said staff work with clients to determine their needs and they can also fill out a request form for anything specific.
However, only some of C4K’s clients are also clients of Family Connexions, according to Boken, who said others are referred from the YMCA, schools and churches.
“If you really want your donation to remain local, the easiest way to do that is to make a financial donation and to put in the notes that you want this to only be used for a specific city/area,” Ben Tolila said.
Boken felt the issue of resources leaving the community for Barrie extended to donations customers make while shopping at the local NoFrills grocery store, but a representative at John’s NoFrills said donations usually go to the Innisfil Food Bank, and a representative of the Innisfil Community Church, which operates the food bank, confirmed they receive food donations from the store weekly.
The issue was of particular concern to Boken, since the Barrie Food Bank recently changed its policy to no longer serve residents of Innisfil.
Innisfil clients were informed in April that they should now be using the Innisfil Food Bank, according to Karen Shuh, executive director of the Barrie Food Bank, who said all food banks in the Feed Ontario network operate based on geographical boundaries.
“This approach helps avoid service overlap and ensures that individuals receive support from the food bank closest to their residence, fostering stronger community connections,” she said via email.
That change comes as the Innisfil Food Bank has “grown significantly,” and are working toward their own membership with Feed Ontario and joining the local Simcoe County Food Hub, according to Shuh.
“Our goal is equity of access to food supports,” she said. “It was increasingly lacking fairness that a Barrie resident could only access one food bank while an Innisfil resident could access two.”
The Barrie Food Bank doesn’t automatically deny food to people from outside their boundaries, though, instead using what Shuh described as a “compassionate approach.”
The first time someone from Innisfil visits the Barrie Food Bank, they’re offered the standard shopping experience, but also informed how they should be accessing the Innisfil Food Bank.
For any subsequent visits, they’re provided with emergency food supplies and again directed to the Innisfil Food Bank.
While each food bank operates independently, Shuh explained they also collaborate as part of the Food Hub, which supports food banks in Barrie, Bradford, Alliston, Orillia, Midland, Wasaga Beach, Collingwood and now Innisfil.
Boken also emphasized to the board C4K’s role over the last 30 years in helping local families dealing with poverty, first by creating a Christmas toy drive, and later expanding to include food drives for multiple holidays as well as programs providing birthday presents, backpacks and school supplies, new shoes, warm coats and boots, plus more.
“Our mandate has really, really expanded,” she said, adding they’ve begun working closely with town groups and agencies.
Currently, Boken estimates they’re serving about 500 children and about 200 families, and this year alone have provided about $10,000 worth of miscellaneous assistance to help people afford food, fuel, prescription drugs and more.
“We find that a lot of our families are living with so much stress and so much anxiety, because they can’t pay for their basic needs,” she said “It’s awful, actually. You can see it in their faces.”
In addition to helping people make ends meet and offering the chance to enjoy family celebrations and holidays, C4K’s programs are also intended to help build clients’ confidence and self-esteem, according to Boken, who said their is no means test to register nor any requirement to provide proof of income.
“The last bit of dignity these people have is some right to privacy, so I’m not going to infringe on that,” she said.
The charity operates on an annual budget of about $100,000, with roughly 75 per cent coming from individual donations, according to Boken.
“We are getting a lot of money from the community, but our costs are going up,” she said.
The board didn’t make a decision about the issue during the meeting, but in the meantime, Chris Gariepy, board chair, recommended Boken reach out to the Rotary Club of Barrie, of which he is a member, for assistance.
C4K, is a registered charity that assists vulnerable children, teens and their families, throughout the year. They help make holidays, special occasions, and back-to-school a little brighter for those who need a helping hand.
For more information, visit community4kids.ca.
Family Connexions is non-profit agency providing programs and services to meet the needs of children, youth, and families in the District of Muskoka and the County of Simcoe where they also provide child protective services under the Child, Youth and Family Services Act.
For more information, visit familyconnexions.ca
