For more than 70 years, Goodwill has played a vital role in the fabric of our communities.
Mention “Goodwill” and we think of the convenience of clearing out our closets and the satisfaction of picking up great bargains from our local thrift store. Few people realize that Goodwill’s role in the community goes far beyond this.

A registered charity since 1935, Goodwill’s core mission has always been to create work opportunities and skills development for people facing serious barriers to employment - among them, persons with disabilities, youth at risk, the chronically unemployed, Aborginal people and newcomers to Canada. At Goodwill, we know how hard it can be to find paid work. And we understand that the working world can be unkind to those who face barriers to employment, whether it is for language, race, age or social reasons.

Goodwill’s goal is to assist more people in our communities to work by giving that critical “hand up” not a “hand out.” By providing employment to those too often excluded from economic and social activity, Goodwill exposes you to the “power of work.”

TRANSITIONAL EMPLOYMENT
Throughout the years, Goodwill has continually evolved to meet the changing needs of our communities. Today we are focusing on a new state-of-the-art approach to providing access to work known as Goodwill REACH™ (Real Employment to Achieve Community Health), which provides hard-to-employ individuals with paid, on-the-job work experience and transferable skills.

Goodwill offers transitional employment to Goodwill REACH™ participants in its various non-profit enterprises-Donations, Retailing and Environmental. We are committed to creating 1,000 Transitional Employment positions for these hardest to employ people on an annual basis by 2010 in Ontario.

BETTER SHOPPING AT GOODWILL
With over 20 locations, we are well known for our network of Goodwill retail stores throughout Greater Toronto, Central and Eastern Ontario. In 2005, Goodwill made major changes to our retail outlets - offering a fresh, new approach to retailing. Our stores are now brighter, cleaner and more customer-friendly - making it easier and more pleasant than ever to find the bargains you’re looking for. And new items are brought into the stores on a daily, sometimes hourly basis. This includes many brand name fashions and home merchandise, all selling for well below retail value.

CLEANING & GREENING COMMUNITIES
Goodwill plays a significant role in the recycled goods business and waste management, by diverting huge volumes of valuable and used goods that would otherwise end up in landfills. This way, Goodwill assists individuals to clear out their clutter and communities to reduce, reuse and recycle.

YOUR DONATIONS REALLY WORK
Donations are critical. When you donate your new and gently used goods, the revenues generated go directly toward supporting our core mission of creating jobs opportunities for people in our community who need them most, including the young, the old, new Canadians and disabled people.

Goodwill depends on individuals in the community to donate their new and gently used items and to shop in Goodwill stores. Because, by supporting Goodwill, you are assisting more people in your community to work.

And when more people in our communities work, our communities work better for everyone.