2014 – 2015 - Learning Enrichment Foundation

networking
LEF
Community Industrial Training Child Care
Food Employment Language Social
2014 Annual
2015 Report
Board of Directors
2014 – 2015 EXECUTIVE:
Mission Statement
Ed Lamoureux – President
James McLeod – Vice-President
Fotios Saratsiotis – Vice-President
Arthur Kennedy – Secretary
The Learning Enrichment Foundation provides
integrated and holistic community responsive initiatives
that enable individuals and families to become valued
contributors to their community’s social and economic
development.
Members:
Principles and Values
John Blair
Bob Churchill
Sam Cole
Alison Fauquiver
Alex Kroon
Devon MacDonald
Sadrudin Kassam Meghji
Marg Middleton
Katherine Roos
Alan Tonks
The Learning Enrichment
Foundation was formed more than
35 years ago in response to the
needs of the former City of York.
Today we offer a range of services,
including: childcare, youth programs,
employment and settlement
services, language training, skills
advancement programs and courses,
and community enterprises.
We respect and believe in the dignity and value of
individuals.
Therefore, at LEF, we:
• Work to restore/enhance self-sufficiency and selfdetermination for clients;
• Support an inclusive community focus;
• Celebrate diversity;
• Value justice and compassion;
• Uphold integrity in programming and accountability to
stakeholders;
• Promote creativity and innovation;
• Collaborate, cooperate and share;
• Approach our work in a proactive, flexible, multifaceted and practical manner;
• Respond to community needs; and
• Trust in the commitment, high professionalism and
integrity of our staff.
Retirements
RETIRED
Claudette Trim
Nooria Rahim
Adele Peden
Louis Viens
Rose Amenhen
JANUARY 2014
24 YEARS
CHILDCARE ECE
JULY 2014
16 YEARS
CHILDCARE ECA
SEPTEMBER 2014
33 YEARS
EVENTS MANAGER
FEBRUARY 2015
10 YEARS
FOOD SERVICES
MARCH 2015
21 YEARS
CHILDCARE ECA
TENURE AT LEF
POSITION
LEF Looking Forward
T
he genius behind LEF is that our founders created an organization that is adaptable to the
ever-changing landscape of the community we serve. We have always had our ear to the
ground and have been able to respond to emerging needs, as they arise. We attribute this
level of nimbleness to our amazing Board that trusts in the directions LEF takes, and has the
confidence to expect and embrace an ever-changing road map. Indeed they are the caretakers
of this core aspect of LEF that was thoughtfully established by our early leadership.
The leadership team at LEF opens the door to experimentation and is not afraid to propose or try
initiatives that might “fail”. Our ability to accept failure is how we learn and continue to evolve.
Our staff deeply understand the skills, power and resilience of those we serve, and work to enable
them to realize their dreams, while ensuring that they are in the driver’s seat.
LEF recognizes that problems are solved only when we work with others, whether they are our
clients and community members or partner agencies in the community. In the upcoming year we
will be working more closely with a variety of new partners.
On hand at 116 Industry Street and 1267 Weston Road will be:
• North York Harvest Food Bank
• Weston King Neighbourhood Centre
• North York Women’s Centre
• GenesisXD (Project Get Reel)
•ONESTEP
• The Canadian Community Economic Development Network
• Social Enterprise Toronto (Social Procurement Project)
In a spirit of collaboration, while respecting each other’s strength, we are confident that much can
be accomplished. Together we will have the courage to try new things and respond to emerging
needs as they arise.
Ed Lamoureux
Peter Frampton
Networks Matter
Networks are all around us. There are the obvious ones
like the Internet or social media. There are also many we
don’t think about like those in nature; ecosystems, veins
in leaves, even our own circulatory systems. Networks
not only serve to connect, but can mobilize, adapt and
innovate. It is these qualities that make them powerful
and valuable.
The Learning Enrichment Foundation (LEF) has always
been an active member in many networks. In 2010 we
added up all of the tables and strategic groups that we
were attending and it totaled more than 70! This included national to local networks, issue-specific tables, and
policy oriented groups.
The importance and value of networks is something
which LEF has long understood, and we are using this
knowledge to change how we operate. We are bringing
network modes of operating into LEF spaces.
What does this mean?
LEF knows that it does not have all the answers. Only
through partnerships, networks and collaborations can
we create the impact we want to see in our neighbourhoods. In part for this reason, and in part through serendipity, we have a number of new organizations that have
or are joining us in our spaces. While these could be seen
as a viable co-location, we are seeing them as opportunities to expand our collective reach and expertise, while
increasing how we collaborate and do our work.
Why do networks matter?
LEF has more than 35 years of experience in battling
problems, particularly poverty. In spite of all of our
knowledge this is not a challenge we can tackle alone.
Through a networked approach we can better meet local
needs and develop innovative solutions to address local
challenges.
Why are we excited?
For LEF, this brings new ideas, resources, experience
and knowledge to the organization and the community.
Similarly for those organizations that we are welcoming
to LEF, we have much to offer.
While each organization has a formal partnership
agreement, we are striving to create collaborative environments at each of our locations. We hope to have innovation sparked through the casual conversations that
take place in the hallways every day.
While we are certainly not the first to develop such an
operating environment, we are excited to see how this
unfolds at LEF and what we can create together.
“Networks are sets of relationships and the patterns
they create. These patterns influence the quality of communication and the likelihood of collaboration and innovation.” June Holley, Network Weaver Handbook
LEF
Building Collaboration
We want to formally welcome the following new partners to the LEF community:
In the last year we have seen many changes across the organization, with many new
developments to come throughout 2015. We
are particularly proud of the developments
we have made on our strategic directions
(social enterprise development, embedding
entrepreneurship in all we do, stabilizing
childcare, enhancing private sector partner-
NORTH YORK WOMEN’S CENTRE
ships, and investing in staff development).
OPENING DOORS FOR WOMEN
While we will share these stories in the following pages, we also wanted to highlight
all of the new partners that have joined us
in the last year.
We also wish to thank our ongoing partners:
Social Enterprise Toronto
North York Harvest Food Bank
W
ith loss, often comes gain, and
that is how LEF has been so
fortunate to have North York
Harvest Food Bank (NYH) co-locate
with us. When NYH found that their
lease would not be renewed , we saw
natural links in our missions and
visions and are excited to have them
moving their distribution centre to
116 Industry Street. Thank you to
Ryan Noble, Executive Director, for
sharing his thoughts on this new
partnership.
North York Harvest Food Bank is
the primary food bank for northern
Toronto, distributing over 2 million
pounds of food in 2014 through 60
community programs. We believe
in dignified food access, empowering individuals and strengthening
communities.
Why did you want to co-locate with
LEF? The collaboration with LEF
has the potential to deliver on key
aspects of NYH’s strategic priorities:
improved quality and quantity of
food, creating close and informative
connections, and engaging in longterm food solutions. LEF openly seeks
collaborations and use of space that
bring about synergies and strengthened community supports. Both
NYH & LEF are excited about this
collaborative opportunity, where both
organizations stand to realize greater
impact in community collectively.
What do you hope will change
by working with LEF and in your
new location? NYH and LEF will
immediately begin offering joint
programming. LEF will continue
its long-standing 7-week Industrial Skills program, with the forklift
training component to be carried out
in NYH’s operating distribution centre, giving the program a professional, applied dimension for the benefit
of participants.
With these activities as a starting
point, it is the stated intention of
both NYH and LEF to actively pursue
other collaborative, strategic opportunities that may include food projects,
delivery of food to childcare, integrated training programs, or volunteer
opportunities.
What are you most excited about
moving forward? The most exciting things will be having increased
capacity for food, especially our new
walk-in cooler and space to enable
us to deliver more fresh and frozen
healthy food. It will also be a step
closer in working more closely with
like-minded organizations in developing a community approach to food
insecurity, hunger and poverty.
What collaborations do you think
may happen? Currently a group of
partners are exploring and developing a priority list of collaborative
opportunities. Synergies may be
found in training programs, logistics
integration and social enterprise .In
the future, NYH envisions making
use of the LEF kitchen facility for
things such as community programming and food production.
Childcare Expansion at LEF
THIS
summer saw our
largest and fastest
expansion of childcare in our history.
In just a few short months we added
six childcare centres and six rooms of
extended day programming for four
and five year olds. This was a feat that
pushed our childcare stewards to their
limits, required our newly hired Talent
Developer to conduct many interviews,
and required the City and Province to
move forward approvals at break-neck
speed. In only five weeks the first three
centres were approved, which is considered the fastest childcare centre opening
in the history of the province.
This was not our usual process for
launching new childcare centres, but
the pace was required to ensure continuity of service for families. Working
closely with the staff and management
we worked to ensure that not only was
the transition smooth for staff of both
organizations, but that families felt that
there was no interruption to care or
impact on overall quality.
We not only are proud of the successful launch of all of these programs, but
we also pleased to retain these vital
childcare spaces for our community and
the continued employment of these staff
members.
LEF extends both a thank you and a
welcome to all of the staff and families
that have made this transition with us.
NORTH YORK WOMEN’S CENTRE
OPENING DOORS FOR WOMEN
A
mong the new partners
joining us at our 116 Industry
Street location is North York
Women’s Centre. We are
excited to have an organization that brings both women-centered programming and a
feminist-lens to the work of LEF,
our clients and our community.
Barb Williams, Project Manager,
at North York Women’s Centre
shared some of their story, and her
thoughts and excitement about this
new partnership.
Since its incorporation in 1989,
North York Women’s Centre
(NYWC) has provided opportunities for hundreds of women
to learn, grow, and reach their
goals. NYWC is supported by
government and non-government funders, along with a broad
community of dedicated donors,
energetic volunteers and committed staff.
NYWC Board of Directors recently decided to seek out transformative partnerships that would
bring opportunities to sustain and
grow NYWC’s programming and
community while achieving greater
efficiencies in its operations. The
Learning Enrichment Foundation
emerged from the search as an ideal fit with the partnership criteria
NYWC set.
NYWC is looking forward to
sharing space with LEF because
it will expand the range of programming its participants can
easily access to include education,
training and employment services.
Re-locating to LEF’s facilities will
help the women NYWC serves to
connect with vital supports such
as childcare and food security. The
move will facilitate outreach to
new communities of women who
will benefit from NYWC services,
linking even more women to more
of what they need to be successful.
NYWC has been building its ability
to use evidence to better understand the impact of its work and is
excited about exchanging its learnings with LEF and other co-located
partners. We are confident that as
we connect our perspectives, assets
and energy, we will create a wealth
of opportunities to address community needs.
Measuring our Impact LEF
has spent nearly 10
years thinking about
how to better measure the
outcomes and the impact of our
work. This year we have made
significant strides and will
have preliminary data available in summer 2015. Through
this process we not only will
have better data, but we have
also focused on staff training,
creating smoother pathways for
clients through our services,
developed guides for new and
current frontline staff, and
tweaked our intake process
leading to greater efficiency and
reduced paperwork.
We are using Sustainable Livelihoods to better understand
the impact of our work. This is
a holistic model that includes
asset mapping for individuals.
This tool allows individuals to
understand where they have
strengths, and how to leverage these to improve areas of
weakness and achieve goals.
The tools that LEF has developed will give individuals a
space to reflect upon how our
staff and our services improved
their lives.
In addition to Sustainable Livelihoods, we are providing staff
training on Motivational Interviewing. This is a counselling
tool which is gaining traction
across social services agencies,
and has a proven track record
in the addictions field. This
tool pairs well with Sustainable
Livelihoods, as it is focused on
engaging clients in conversa-
tions that support them to take
an active role in planning their
next steps and setting future
goals.
Together these tools will enhance the experience of clients
coming to LEF. We expect that
through these new processes
we will not only better understand how we impact individuals’ lives, but we will also
support individuals to increase
their ability to self-advocate, set
goals, and plan for their future.
This has long been a priority for
LEF. We know that with good
data and numbers we will be
better positioned to access resources improve programming
and advocate on behalf of our
communities and community
members.
Welcome to
on government policy and program advocacy,
and related public awareness.
We asked Ed Kothiringer, ONESTEP Executive
Director, a few questions about why LEF was
the right home for ONESTEP and what they
could expect from this enhanced partnership.
Here is what he had to say:
This year we are happy to have ONESTEP
(The Ontario Network of Employment Skills
Training Programs) joining us at our 116
Industry Street space. ONESTEP is the provincial association for more than 80 nonprofit
employment and training services in Ontario.
Their mandate is to support members (such as
LEF) with professional and organizational development resources, identify emerging issues
and develop response strategies, and to work
collaboratively with other sector organizations
Why did you want to co-locate with LEF?
As a network, we will benefit from co-location
with one of our members as part of the hub of
community service organizations at 116 Industry Street. We anticipate lively discussions of
issues, new models of community service and
organizational best practices, and unstructured fun times with our colleagues.
What do you hope will change by working
with LEF and in your new location? All
nonprofits are being challenged by tightened
government and foundation funding while social challenges like poverty, income inequality,
discrimination and lack of positive life options ask us all to do more and more. Bridging
between groups with different missions opens
up opportunities for new thinking, coordinated ventures and fresh energy for these shared
challenges.
What are you most excited about moving
forward? LEF has a longstanding reputation
for pushing the envelope, posing uncomfortable questions and providing innovative responses. We hope to engage with and contribute to that ferment and achieve great things.
What collaborations do you think may
happen? New attempts at social enterprise
and earned income, combining sound business
principles with social justice values to model transformative systems change, engaging
community members in collaborative planning
that broadens the common understanding of
service.
Networks Matter
Responding to our Communities
OUR
Client Engagement team
and programs have been
busy this year.
The Language Instruction program has been
planning, training and working to implement
Portfolio-Based Language Assessment. LEF is
one of the lead organizations undertaking this
process in year one of implementation. This
will be rolled out in all LEF classes throughout the year. This change means a standard
assessment for our students that they can take
with them to any school they attend. We are
excited to see how this can positively impact
the curriculum and learning of all of our
students.
Community Engagement Workers have also
been engaged in professional development
fortnightly. This has included increased infor-
mation about community resources, training
on topics such as violence against women
and harm reduction. Departments within
LEF, along with community organizations,
also contribute their expertise to professional development. This investment is not only
beneficial for the professional development
of staff, but also has improved their ability to
meet the needs of community members.
The Community Engagement team has also
taken a strong role in their support of entrepreneurship at LEF, alongside the Community
Responsiveness and Innovation team. Together these teams have launched a youth entrepreneurship program, continued the development of our Emerging Entrepreneurs program,
and launched a two-week pre-self-employment class and evening classes. Community
Engagement has supported these programs
by offering one-on-one employment supports
and facilitating personal development workshops, while Community Responsiveness
and Innovation has led the self-employment
workshops and supported business planning
and development.
Self-employment programs at LEF have been
very responsive to local needs. The two-week
introductory program allows individuals to
determine whether self-employment is the
right option for them, while evening classes
are accessible to those that are unavailable
during the day.
We have worked hard as a team to ensure that
there is continuous improvement of all our
programs and services, and we expect many
new developments through 2015.
GenesisXD (Project Get Reel)
LEF
is looking forward to supporting
one of Toronto’s newest and most
innovative social enterprises. GenesisXD,
an experienced design firm with a focus
on brand and marketing communications
based in downtown Toronto, has always
been a firm believer in making an impact on
social causes with our creativity. “Our capacity for doing social good has been growing, which leads us to bringing our latest
social enterprise Project Get Reel to LEF.”
Graham Lewis, Social Innovation Chief,
shared their vision for a strong partnership
with LEF.
LEF has a trusted reputation of putting
people first, and understanding an individual’s personal needs. LEF’s value is in perfect
alignment with one of the core values of
Genesis – People Focus. Hence we made the
decision to co-locate with LEF.
The significance of Genesis setting up a
workshop at LEF is that the opportunity to
work alongside LEF will increase the exposure of Project Get Reel. We envision being
able to recruit future employees within the
premises due to the community mix that
happens within LEF.
We find the overall environment within
LEF exciting – the vibrancy, the diversity,
the friendliness of staff, and the richness of
learning opportunities. Moreover, Genesis
is most excited about how flexible LEF is in
respect of the facility and potential to grow
as Project Get Reel thrives. Moving forward,
we see LEF as our comrade in addressing
an important social-environmental issue we
are both passionate about.
We anticipate forging new collaborations
with LEF in new endeavours that will transform lives. Our partnership can be a beacon
in social enterprising.
Genesis looks forward to discovering more
social good opportunities within LEF.
GenesisXD is proud to present to you our
new social innovation initiative, Project Get
Reel. Our primary focus for this project is
helping people who face barriers to employment (lack of affordable childcare, being
a new immigrant, struggling with mental
health, etc.) find jobs.
Here’s how we do it: By giving individuals an opportunity to participate in an
otherwise neglected environmental initiative (recycling videotapes), and gain useful
employment experience as they re-enter the
market place.
GreenLEF Landscaping
After much planning and
partnership development
LEF launched its landscaping social enterprise and
training program in 2014.
This was a very short-term
pilot project which gave
us the experience to move
forward with a full launch
in Spring 2015.
In Summer 2014 we trained 5 individuals in more
than 10 certifications developed, delivered and recognized by the Ontario Parks Association (OPA).
The partnership with the OPA has provided LEF
with expertise from the landscaping field, municipal connections across the province, industry-recognized training, and highly qualified training
instructors.
In addition to training in landscaping, individuals
also completed our self-employment program. This
meant that individuals interested in starting their
own landscaping or related business had not only
technical skills for the field, but a business plan and
the skills needed for business development.
Following all training the program participants
maintained the LEF grounds including garden
maintenance, lawn care and general grounds
maintenance. While at that time we did not look
for external contracts, we feel that we gained much
of the knowledge to expand this into an external
social enterprise in 2015.
In preparation for the upcoming growing season
we will be training a new cohort of participants.
This summer we will be working with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority to identify
potential contracts that we are able to complete on
their lands throughout the City of Toronto.
We know there will be many more learnings
throughout 2015 for this enterprise, but we are
excited to see its development and how it will move
forward.
Weston King Neighbourhood Centre
Weston King Neighbourhood Centre
has joined us in the last year and we
are excited about the new possibilities
this opens up for LEF and our clients.
Erika Pulfer, Program Planning Coordinator, shared some of their ideas for
our future together.
The Weston King Neighbourhood
Centre (WKNC) has operated a
small, well-respected drop-in center
for the most marginalized members
of the Weston community for more
than 12 years. We provide emergency
food programs; hygiene and clothing
support; housing and harm reduction,
and education and recreation programs for
people who are coping with extreme poverty
and homelessness. WKNC’s success can be
attributed to its responsive, client-centered
approach; dedicated staff; strong volunteer
program; and focus on collaboration and
diversity.
WKNC’s new satellite, housed within LEF’s
Weston Road and Ray Avenue building,
will extend drop-in services to the Mount
Dennis community, while focusing on skill
building and community economic development. Co-locating with LEF provides a great
opportunity to bring wrap-around services
to residents of the community, and create a
service ‘hub’ at 1269 Weston Road. While LEF
provides settlement and employment supports,
and entrepreneurship programs, WKNC will
provide hot meal programs, cooking skills
development, therapeutic recreation, support
for the development of peer-led programming,
and harm reduction and housing workers.
The most exciting aspect of this collaboration
is working together to bring our organizational
expertise to people who may primarily use the
services of the other organization, and increasing the accessibility of our programs for a
diverse group of clients – for example, how can
LEF tailor and deliver employment supports to
people who are more distant from the labour
market or facing exceptional barriers? And
how can WKNC use our skills in delivering
emergency supports with dignity to address
the issue of hunger among language students
and newcomers? The strong sense of collaboration and client-centered approach has also
lead to a shared commitment to making the
Weston and Ray site available to outside agencies providing services that neither organization would otherwise be able to offer, as well
as resident-led programs and initiatives.
The Weston and Ray site is currently under
renovation to improve office, meeting and
programming space, and to build a commercial-grade community kitchen that will be the
centre of much of our programming. A joint
commitment to accessible community infrastructure has united LEF and WKNC, and
sets the foundation for a very exciting future
together!
EVENTS
T
his year we once again hosted our 15th annual dotcom
CLASSIC Golf Tournament
and 5th annual Comedy Cares.
While these are great fundraising
events, they also are an opportunity for LEF to work closely with the
private sector to build intentional
and long lasting relationships that
benefit both our clients and our
community.
Whistle Brewery. This was a night
of laughs with our fantastic line up
of comedians. This was a night of
not only humour and fundraising,
but we raised the profile of LEF
and our work in the community.
We would like to thank all of our
sponsors, donors and volunteers
for making this event a success.
We are looking forward to the next
great Comedy Cares event.
In September 2014 we once again
hosted Comedy Cares at the Steam
This year we also said goodbye.
After 15 years we have retired our
dotcom CLASSIC Golf Tournament. While this has always been
a fun and successful event, it was
time to re-imagine this fundraising
event. We extend a huge thank you
to all of those organizers, sponsors
and golfers that have made this
event the success that it has been
for the last 15 years. While we
don’t yet know what event will take
the dotcom’s place, there are many
possibilities for the future.
The dotcom was not our only
goodbye in 2014. We also said
goodbye to our longest standing
employee and Events Manager,
Adele Peden. Adele started with
our Childcare Department and
managed our Events team for more
than ten years. Her career with LEF
spanned more than three decades.
Adele had the ability to make all
of our events run smoothly with
creativity, excellence and ease. We
wish Adele all the best with her
retirement.
Social Enterprise Toronto
Other Partners
In
our effort to welcome our
new partners, we also
wanted to recognize those
partners that have been located in
our space for many years, including
Social Enterprise Toronto (SET) and
the Canadian Community Economic
Development Network (CCEDNet).
SET is a network of nonprofit
social enterprise practitioners. Their
members run enterprises that employ
business methods and practices
to create employment or training
opportunities for low income/
marginalized individuals. SET’s
mission is to grow and support social
enterprises in the GTHA. Thank you
to Mehnaz Rahman, Research and
Communications Coordinator, for
sharing her thoughts on this longstanding partnership.
Why has being located at LEF
made sense for SET? LEF is not
only a SET member, but has trusteed
SET for a number of years. Over
the years, SET has greatly benefited
from the expertise that is available
at LEF (network leadership and
management, knowledge of the
social enterprise and non-profit
sectors, and opportunities to build
partnerships). Further, SET is a
practitioner-run network. We pride
ourselves in being grounded in
community. LEF offers a space to be
fully integrated in community.
What are benefits of colocation? Benefits include sharing
supports, expertise, knowledge
and ideas, often resulting in useful
collaborations. One such example
was the 2014 SET Conference. LEF
was able to provide leadership in
developing the goals and vision for
the conference, provide the venue,
logistical support through the Events
Department with staff and volunteer
supports.
What potential collaboration are
you excited about? As a network
of social enterprises, we are excited
about LEF hosting a new social
enterprise which will employ people
with barriers to employment and
train them to recycle VHS tapes. The
new enterprise has already indicated
an interest in becoming a SET
member and more involved in the
social enterprise community.
This partnership has given CCEDNet
the opportunity to collaborate and
work closely with SET and the Social
Purchasing Project, particularly
around the provincial survey of
social enterprises. Being located at
116 Industry Street has also meant
that CCEDNet has been able to
easily hold board meetings, regional
conferences and even AGMs in the
LEF space.
CCEDNet is a national network
of hundreds of organizations and
individuals in every province and
territory committed to strengthening
communities by creating economic
opportunities that enhance social/
environmental conditions. Mike
Toye, Executive Director, and Paul
Chamberlain, Ontario Regional
Director, shared why they partnered
with LEF and the collaborations they
foresee.
With ONESTEP also moving into the
LEF space, CCEDNet is excited as we
are already working with them on
an earned income capacity building
project for ONESTEP members. By
being co-located, this partnership
can be more integrated to further
support this project.
As Paul is an avid cyclist, he also
appreciates working in a space where
you can leave your bike for repair at
the start of the day and know that
you will have a smooth ride home.
LEF Interview
about expectations
Many people at LEF have been instrumental in developing partnerships with
those that will be co-locating in LEF
spaces. Some of these staff have shared
their thoughts and anticipation about
the potential for our next year.
Roopa Dittakavi
Elisa Martínez-Reyes
Peter Frampton
COORDINATOR CLIENT ENGAGEMENT
MANAGER CLIENT ENGAGEMENT
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
What do you hope will change by
co-locating with our new partners?
What do you hope will change by
co-locating with our new partners?
What do you hope will change by
co-locating with our new partners?
We hope to understand clientele better and
establish stronger relationships with community,
while also strengthening our wrap-around service
model. We also expect to connect clients to these
partner services and improve follow-up, as the
partners are on-site.
I hope to see lots of conversations in the Town
Square, leading to initiatives big and small.
What are you most excited about
moving forward?
I hope we provide better opportunities for our
clients to strengthen their social connections,
opportunities to lead, self-confidence and skills.
I also want a more vibrant space created for the
community to gather and connect. Further, by
working side-by-side with our partners, I want
to see an increase in our knowledge and capacity,
while having the appropriate resources available
in-house.
We can further the holistic services that we
provide to clients by sharing information not only
across departments, but also across organizations.
What are you most excited about
moving forward?
What collaborations do you think
may happen?
Exploring new partnership models and the
synergies among the organizations, while getting
to know their staff and the community they serve.
Seeing clients’ reactions when learning about the
multiple opportunities available.
Collectively we can increase the information about
our community, so that we can betterdesign our
program and services, increase over all client flow,
and leverage all of our strengths.
What collaborations do you think
may happen?
I am expecting effective referral and follow-up
across our organizations. I also anticipate shifting
our client service model to one where staff from
two different organizations work closely with a
single client, resulting in increased support. I hope
to see co-facilitated and co-hosted events and
group activities, shared best practices and jointly
developed new programs.
What are you most excited about
moving forward?
Each organization has a unique set of skills. I am
looking forward to designing initiatives that enrich
the community and leverage the skills of each
organization.
What collaborations do you think
may happen?
Currently there is movement around food, but
over time I think we will see collaborations around
food, employment, and training. We hope to see
initiatives which combine these three areas, and
moves us to a scale that LEF could not achieve
alone.
Sponsors/Donors/Funders
2nd Site Inc. Fresh Books
Addictive Mobility
The Allan Candy Company
Alterna Savings &Credit
Union Limited
Anonymous
Bicycle Commons
BIXI Toronto
Brady Financial Group
George Cedric Metcalf
Foundation
Monerey Sales
Shum Vourkoutiotis Fund, TCF
Gowlings LLP
Mr. Dairy &Food Distributing Ltd
My First Wheels Inc.
Skyline Boutique, Hotels
and Resorts
Greenshield Canada
Haremar Plastic Manufacturing
Ltd.
Employment and Social
Development Canada/
EmploietDéveloppement
Social Canada
Central Ontario Building &
Construction Trade Council
Hub International
Citizenship and Immigration
Canada/Citoyennetéet
Immigration Canada
Image Gear Inc.
Hybrid Visions
Industry Canada/Industrie
Canada
National Post
NFP Canada
Norco Performance Bikes
Novotel Toronto Centre
Nunu Educational Products Inc.
Ose’s Fine Foods
Ozery’s Pita Break
Squibb’s Stationers
Standard Life Canada
Steam Whistle Brewing
Strategic Marketing Counsel
Supreme Basics-Supreme Office
Products Limited
Sysco Toronto
OMERS Worldwide
Tatangelo’s Wholesale Fruit &
Vegetables Ltd.
Ontario Ministry of Training,
Colleges and Universities
Tex-Euro Industrial Sales
Outdoor Gear Canada
The Grocery Foundation
The Home Depot Canada
Foundation
Paper Plus More
The Score
Pandor Productions
The Schad Foundation
Postmedia
The Weather Network/Pelmorex
Pristine Property Management
Limited
Thomson Group
Diamond Estates
Wines & Spirits Ltd
M&M Meat Shops
Maisliner Inc.
Public Bike System
Ellis Flowers
Marriott Toronto Airport
Toronto Public Health
RBC Foundation
Employee Wellness Solutions
Network
Marriott Toronto Downtown
Eaton Centre
Toronto Public Library
Robert Kerr Foundation
Toronto Star
Employment Ontario
Martinway Contracting
Royale Tissue
TubeMogul
Evolve Media
Megcour Foodservice Inc.
Rudolph’s Bakery Ltd.
University of Toronto
eyeReturn Marketing
Metro Distributing Inc.
Sandwich and Crepe
W.D. Colledge Co. Ltd.
FoodShare Toronto
Metroland Media Toronto
Scotiabank
Weston Bakery
City of Toronto
ClubLink
Comedy Cares
Crocodile Copy & Print
Cue Digital Media
Detailing Knights
Irving Tissue
JSL Partners Inc.
Juice Mobile
Katz’s Deli
The Lunch Lady
Ontario Trillium Foundation
Toronto Community Foundation
Second Harvest
®
Individual Donors
Grace Addai
Larry Edwards
Eileen Longson
Terrance O’Sullivan
Reverend Emmanuel Adefila
Leah Eustace
Mamie Lyle
Robert & Susan Partridge
Margarida Almeida
Cheryl Eves
Devon MacDonald
Lori Pacitto-Pecora
Juan Alvarez
Peter Frampton
Dr Kathleen Macdonald
Adele Peden
Cathy Aspeliender
Joy Noonan & Paul Franco
Peggi Mace
The Peri Family
Arshia Azam
Neserita Gascon
Martha MacGray
Margaret A. Radley
Sandra Barton
Olesya Gleba
Lucinda Main
Alan Redway
Darri Beaulieu
Maria Gonzalez
Jason Marin
Pamela Richardson
Ruth Belsey
Matthew Gottieb
Peter Marinelli
Joan M. Roberts
Joan Birkett
Nancy Green
John & Doris Martensen
Dineth Rodrigo
Elizabeth Brooks
Larry Gutstein
Rosalie Marsden
Katherine Roos
John Blair
Robert Heath
Beverley Eloris Matthews
Fotios Saratsiotis
Comfort Kyei-Boateng
Chris Hinde
James McLeod
Rodney Seyffert
Ed Boer
Denis Hoban
Karen McKinnon
Rose Sobel
Anne Forbes-Brown
Sharon & WJ Paul Jones
Sandra McKinnon Fletcher
Glenna Shiaman
Joe Campisi
Denise Ince
Roslyn Mendelson
Ashish Saxen
Bob Churchill
Arthur Kennedy
Benjamin Mbugua
Albert Silver
Mike Colle
Margie KneeshawI
Marg Middleton
Helen Smith
Sam Cole
Alex Kroon
May Millar
Sylvia Smith
Thelma Conant
Lona Kopriva
David Miller
Barbara Spyropoulos
Brima Conteh
Ben Lam
Joan Milling
Cecile & Alan Tonks
Kathleen Crook & James Penturn
Ed Lamoureux
Stephen & Gerry Moore
Janet and Craig Turner
Tom Day
Elizabeth Lanfermann
Carl Mueller
Jennifer Venart-Sym
Irene Dzerowicz
Clifford Lax
Grace Nalbandian
David Walsh
Candace Edwards
Anne Lesarge
Patricia Nelson
LEF
116 Industry Street
Toronto, Ontario M6M 4L8
P: 416.769.0830 F: 416.769.9912
www.lefca.org