Adam, George, Mary, Tera, Jeff and Emily in the newly-organized donation room.

At North York Women’s Shelter, when generous donors give gifts-in-kind of new personal hygiene items, kitchenware, clothing or gift cards, they aren’t always used right away. They are stored in a donations room, sorted by item type, size and expiry date, and distributed to each family entering our shelter according to each of their individual needs.

On May 23rd, 2025, we were honoured to work with a group of six staff from the BMO Corporate Real Estate team – dedicated supporters of our shelter’s work, and incredibly driven, optimistic and committed individuals! This wonderful team joined our Development staff to spend the afternoon rearranging our donations room – boxing and unboxing, labelling, sorting and re-shelving everything to make the donations space more accessible to our shelter staff.

On top of this practical support, the team also coordinated the very generous donation of some cleaning materials, which are now being put to use around the shelter by our own staff, and gifted to clients in their ‘departure packages’ when they move on from the shelter to their own housing and begin the next chapter of their lives. This is the BMO Corporate Real Estate team’s newest gift-in-kind to the shelter; last year, they also gave us a donation of outdoor patio furniture which has helped to turn our outdoor healing garden into a place for family connection and rest – especially during the warmer months.

Not only did the BMO Corporate Real Estate team give their time and these item donations, but they really exemplified care and the true value of volunteering.

To Adam, Emily, Tera, Jeff, Mary and George, we want to say a big thank you for the energy, time and passion you gave to support our work here at North York Women’s Shelter. We hope to see you again very soon!

The BMO Corporate Real Estate volunteers and NYWS staff after their day of volunteering at the shelter.

Want your workplace to volunteer at the shelter, donate a meaningful gift, or host a group volunteering day at your own office? Call us at 416.638.7335 x 106 or email
donations@nyws.ca to find out how!