BY: ZAARA MAZZUCA
Volunteering is an activity that is seen not just in Canada, but all over the world. Teenagers, young adults, and people of other age groups volunteer all the time. Whether it’s for high school volunteer hours or just an activity, there are always people contributing to their community through volunteer work.
December 5, 2021, is International Volunteer Day, and there are many Canadian volunteers who are celebrating that day. According to Statistique Canada, in 2007, Canadians aged 15 to 24 make up 58% of the volunteer population. Teenagers, ages 15 to 19, make up 66% of the 58%, and young adults ages 2 to 24 make up the other 48%.
There are many different types of volunteer work available to people, such as working at a soup kitchen, retirement home, food drive, etc. In the Jane and Finch area, there are many, many opportunities to get volunteer work at different places. The Jane and Finch and Family Centre, 4400 Jane St, North York, focuses on poverty reduction, capacity building and anti-oppression and has been determined to meet their goals for over 40 years.
JaneFinch ReachingUp is another community service that offers volunteer work located at 1830 Finch Avenue West. Their goal is to “ promote educational excellence as the ultimate solution to overcoming poverty and violence in the community” as said on their website.
Inner City Outreach is a non-profit organization that is targeted to help youths through homework clubs, physical activity through basketball, summer camps and more. It is located at 4545 Jane Street, and offers volunteer work. Their application form is located on their website: https://innercityoutreach.ca/.
These are just three organizations that offer volunteer work. The Ward 7 Youth Council, part of Councillor Anthony Perruzza’s office is a great resource for local volunteer opportunities. The council meets with diverse groups in the Jane-Finch community to discuss partnerships, collaborations and opportunities for growth in our young volunteers. Through their volunteer work, they were able to organize toy drives, backpack drives, vaccine clinics and much more.
The Jane and Finch area is one of the most culturally diverse areas in Toronto, with more than 120 nationalities and over 100 languages. The community centres that offer volunteer work in Canada encourage diversity and welcome it into their community. There are volunteers of different ages, ethnicities, cultural groups in Canada that take the time to better their communities.