Local non-profit organizations and residents of Sault Ste. Marie received necessities from the INC, such as winter clothing and food | Photo via INC Public Information Office
ONTARIO, Canada — As part of Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) (Church of Christ) Giving Program, members ran donation drives to community centers, soup kitchens, and family shelters in Sault Ste. Marie and Mississauga in this town. The activities included acts of appreciation for community members in Vaughan and North York.
In Sault Ste. Marie, multiple aid organizations received over 5,000 pounds of food items, including rice, pasta, canned fruits and vegetables, and racks of winter clothing, from various INC congregations based in the Greater Toronto Area. The INC volunteers traveled over eight hours to transport the donated items to St. Andrews United Church, where non-profit organizations and individual community members gladly received them.
Recipient organizations included the Sault Ste. Marie Indigenous Friendship Centre, the Filipino-Canadian Community of Sault Ste. Marie, the Food Bank of Sault College, Save Our Young Adults (SOYA), and the Soup Kitchen Community Centre.
Katherine Filion, president of the Sault College Student Union, noted how the activity brought the community together and recognized those who “may have been forgotten or overlooked.” Abidemi Alud, Food Bank coordinator of the Sault College Student Union, emphasized the significance of INC Giving donations, especially for international students.
In Mississauga, INC, volunteers delivered 30 boxes of winter clothing and hygiene essentials to the Peel Family Shelter to benefit homeless families and those at risk of homelessness, for which the shelter provides emergency housing.
Additional INC Giving events took place across Ontario, including a Firefighters Appreciation Day in Vaughan, a Seniors Appreciation for elderly residents, and a Teachers Appreciation at Willowdale Christian School in North York, Toronto.
Through the INC Giving program, INC said volunteers are fueling a momentum of kindness and upholding the biblical tenet to do good to those in need.
The INC has active members in 165 countries and territories. Its membership comprises 150 ethnicities and nationalities.
–With Jay Domingo/PDM
