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Donations to ShareLife help 42 social service agencies, like Catholic Family Services of Peel Dufferin, in their work.
Photo courtesy ShareLife
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Photo courtesy Holy Family Parish, Whitby
As summer gets into full swing, the ShareLife parish campaign has amassed $8.83 million, 60 per cent of its record-high $14.5 million target.
Arthur Peters, the executive director of ShareLife and the archdiocese’s director of development, hailed Toronto Catholics as “very generous toward the work of ShareLife agencies” and for recognizing “what we’re doing to support them, especially in these challenging times where there’s more needs than ever before.”
Forty-two Catholic social service agencies are supported by this ambitious appeal, launched at the start of Lent, powered by the charitable fundraising arm of the Archdiocese of Toronto.
Food insecurity, once again, looms as a critical issue that the 49-year-old charitable appeal seeks to address. On Dec. 17, 2024, the City of Toronto declared a food insecurity emergency as an estimated 24.9 per cent of the populace are affected by this plight.
For the third straight year ShareLife is poised to announce later this summer that it will provide food security grants to parish-based food banks and meal programs, and agency and community-run food programs. This initiative, in partnership with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Toronto, committed $520,000 in 2023 and $750,000 in 2024.
In addition to tackling hunger, the non-profit empowers agencies and entities supporting victims of domestic violence, caring for isolated seniors, counselling individuals experiencing mental health issues and accompanying young ladies who become unexpectedly pregnant, among others.
A particular ShareLife-funded initiative spotlighted by Peters is the newcomer senior’s wellness group facilitated by Catholic Crosscultural Services (CCS). These recurring sessions in Scarborough that launched earlier this year helps new elderly Canadians learn simple everyday English and basic computer skills and provides them with an environment to foster friendships.
Senior social loneliness was an issue broached in the official promotional video for the 2025 ShareLife parish fundraising drive. It told the story of David, a man “who felt quite isolated, quite depressed,” said Catholic Family Services of Toronto executive director Brenda Spitzer, as the chronic health issues he contends with led to him losing his source of income and thus made it difficult to pay his rent. His wife had also recently passed away and he was estranged from his adult children.
A pastor directed David to Catholic Family Services. He was offered seniors' counselling, a navigation specialist that provided him with resources to better his situation. Spitzer said the funding provided by ShareLife helps make it possible for Catholic Family Services to offer low-barrier services at low fees or no fee at all.
In that same video, Cardinal Francis Leo, the Archbishop of Toronto, implored churchgoers to join him in donating to the ShareLife parish campaign.
“At a time when so many people are struggling it is your love that leads the way,” said Leo. “Through the ShareLife parish campaign, you are walking with those in need. Offering food to the hungry, comfort for the suffering and providing hope to those who feel forgotten. Your love reflects Christ’s mercy and brings light into the darkness of people’s lives.”
Donations can be made online or via mail or at ShareLife collection Sundays staged on March 30, May 4 and June 8 within each of the 225 member parishes of the archdiocese.
The aspiration is for the campaign to not only generate a strong second-half haul to attain the desired $14.5 million benchmark, but also to set the stage for ShareLife’s 50th anniversary in 2026.
Peters said efforts are underway to ensure the “history and importance of ShareLife” is commemorated during the forthcoming calendar year.
Watch the ShareLife 2025 video by visiting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ihm2azEnzI&feature=youtu.be
(Amundson is an associate editor and writer for The Catholic Register.)
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