Strike at Canada Post: fundraising threatened

Welcome Hall Mission President and CEO Sam Watts said the strike comes at a critical time of year.

This text is a translation of content from CTV News.

“Approximately 40% of all donations received during the year are received in November and December,” said Mr. Watts.

The Welcome Hall Mission toy drive, which took place on Saturday, is one of the biggest events of the year for the charity and Mr Watt said about half of the donations are sent by post .

“One of the things I most expect is that we could be down as much as $1,000,000 by the end of the first quarter of our fiscal year, which ends in December. So that’s something we’ll have to catch up on,” he said.

Nicole Danesi works for Canadon, an online donation platform.

“For many charities in Canada, it’s a bit like the nightmare before Christmas,” she said

Nicole Danesi adds that donations have steadily declined over the past decade and the strike comes at a time when many organizations are facing an increase in demand.

“Anecdotally, we’ve heard of many food banks facing very high demand, but Canadian charities are facing many challenges right now,” Danesi said.

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Charities and non-profit organizations rely on Canada Post this time of year. Organizations send mailers reminding donors to donate and receive checks or cash in return.

“There are still a lot of Canadians who open their mail. They are reminded that this is the time to give and they send the check back to the charity.”

Organizations like the Welcome Hall Mission must reorient themselves and encourage donors to make donations online, by telephone or in person.

Mr Watts says this is an important time of year to support the community.

He warns that the repercussions could be felt in the future and affect the children who rely on this service, for the only toy they might receive during the end-of-year holidays.