Good evening everyone. My name is Crystle Avery. It is my pleasure as the Executive Director of Chalmers Community Services Centre to report back to you and thank the 100 Women Who Care for your incredible support.

After being chosen as your charity in April, 176 members supported this choice. We are extremely grateful to all of you. This very generous support comes at a time when the needs in our community are growing by the month. As folks in Guelph feel the impact of these uncertain economic times, the number of guests accessing our services at Chalmers is also increasing. We have seen this both in our three weekly food pantries and in our cafés.

As the demand for food increases, thanks to all of you, we are now in a much better position to order more food which we have already started doing. Last Thursday at our west location, we served 231 food baskets. This was a record for us for one day. As the lineups grow longer, Chalmers is committed to ensuring that no guest or family leaves without a complete food basket. More and more families are turning to us for help and we must be there for them.

Your generous support is helping us meet the needs of these guests. We are ordering more food and have expanded our food pantry distribution. Thanks to you, we have put oranges, eggplant and cheese permanently back on the food line. Our guests are thrilled that they once again have these healthy options to feed to their families. I often hear exclamations of delight as our guests go down the food line and see the amazing choices. They are incredibly grateful. And so are we.

Our Monday and Tuesday cafes downtown are also seeing increased numbers of guests walking in the door. A typical café morning would normally see 25-30 guests. Two weeks ago, we had 54 guests on a Tuesday morning! Our volunteers couldn’t believe how many folks there were. One of the guests commented that he had not eaten since the previous Saturday. We were very shocked by this and worked hard to make sure that he left with food that he could eat. Many of our café guests experience housing insecurity as well, so thanks to your support we are able to purchase more packaged food that does not require cooking for these folks.

This trend of growing numbers seems to be continuing. Last week we had 43 guests on Tuesday. Remember an average morning would see 25-30 guests in the door. These increased numbers are a signal to us that more and more folks are struggling with food insecurity. Your donation has made it possible for us to increase the food that we provide during these cafes. Both in choice and in volume. Our cafe guests are so grateful that they have a place to go where they can have hot coffee, fresh pastries, breakfast and a sense of community. And our volunteers are very grateful as well. We all find it very hard to turn guests away due to lack of food. Your donations are ensuring that we do not have to do this.

In conclusion, every dollar that you have donated is being spent on food. It is ensuring that we will not have to turn guests away and children will be fed. Thanks to you we now have cheese, oranges, and eggplant on the food line again. Thanks to you, we are able to purchase more food to meet the increased demand. Together, we are providing folks in Guelph with a safety net in these very turbulent times. As our community of Guelph struggles with higher unemployment and higher prices, Chalmers is committed to being ready to help them get through this. And the donations from the 100 Women who Care are ensuring that we can respond to the needs of thousands of guests and their children. Together, we are making a tremendous difference. Together we are showing that we care! On behalf of our guests, we say thank you to the 100 Women Who Care. We are very grateful for your support! Thank you for supporting Chalmers.

Good evening everyone,

I want to start with the most heartfelt thank you. A few months ago, I stood here and shared the story of Ronald McDonald House Charities South Central Ontario — our mission, our work, and the very real impact it has on families from Guelph whose children need to be at McMaster Children’s Hospital.

And you responded. Over 170 of you raised your hands — not just to give, but to say: “This matters.” That kind of collective action is powerful. It tells us, and it tells the Guelph families we serve, that their community is walking beside them in one of the hardest moments of their lives.

Thanks to your generosity, RMHC SCO received over $17,000 in donations. And in the short time since your gift, we’ve already welcomed 17 Guelph families through our doors, 8 of whom are STILL living there today. We have provided over 212 nights of comfort, rest, and home-cooked meals. Tragically, two of those families experienced the unimaginable loss of their child — and we were there with them through it all, offering support no hotel room or waiting area ever could.

This is why RMHC exists. We are not just a place to stay — we are a place to be held. A place to breathe, to grieve, to hope. And we do that with no government funding. We ask families for $12 a night if they can afford it — but our real cost is over $250 a night. And while McDonald’s supports us through things like McHappy Day and Round-Up, that covers just 30% of what we need to operate. The rest — 70% — comes from donors like you.

Your support is especially meaningful because we operate in Hamilton, yet serve families from across the region — and it can be easy to feel “outside the bubble” of some local giving. So for a group like 100 Women Who Care Guelph to look beyond city limits and say “these are our people too” — that’s not just generous. That’s transformational.

Your support matters — not just because of the dollars, but because of the message. When 170 women in one city stand up to say, “We care about this,” it creates momentum. It sends a message to other donors, to corporations, and to decision-makers that this is a cause worth paying attention to.

But even more powerfully, it tells Guelph families — you are not alone. Even when you’re far from home, your community has your back. That kind of leadership — from women like you — creates ripples. It says, “We take care of our own, even when they need to leave the city to get that care.” It helps more than just with the dollars — it builds visibility, it opens doors, and it tells future funders and families alike that this is a cause that matters here.

Because the truth is: families from Guelph will continue to need to travel for pediatric healthcare. That’s a reality. And so building a strong network of care and compassion for them on that journey is not just important — it’s essential. You are now part of that network.

And tonight, I’d also like to acknowledge someone who represents another important piece of this growing community of care — our Board Chair at RMHC South Central Ontario, Paul Matteis. Paul is also a proud member of 100 Men Who Give a Damn Guelph, and his presence here tonight means so much to us. He understands firsthand the power of collective giving and the difference it makes when a community shows up for its families.

I’d love to invite Paul to say a few words and help us close out this full-circle moment. Before I pass it over, from all of us at RMHC, and from the Guelph families who have walked through our doors this year, thank you.

Thank you so much.

Meaghan Moore,
Director, Advancement & External Relations
RMHC SCO

What your donation has done for our community!

A refugee claimant family newly arrived in Canada on November 12th and had been living in a shelter since their arrival. Due to limited space within the shelter, they were occupying one room for the whole family. The family consisted of 8 family members: 6 children and two parents. Based on their limited resources, the family was selected to be beneficiary of ISGW temporary housing support.

Family #1
A 2-bedroom accommodation with 5 beds was arranged for the family to move in by December 23, 2024, until end of March 31, 2025. With our support they have begun the process to receive refugee status. They have already received their Acknowledgment of Claim and UCI number, and they have done their medical as well. They had an appointment on December 17 at 8:00am with IRCC officer in Kitchener.

With our staff support the father, mom and youth all have work permits and need help to get a job. Driver’s license has been translated by our TIPS program.
To further support their successful integration, they have received the following:
1) Work permit
2) SIN number
3) Welcome card that gives them a bus pass, access to YMCA and orientation information.
4) They completed an English assessment
5) Referred to several employers as they are super keen to work.
6) We have registered the children in school. Waiting for next step to check documents at each school: Central Public School, Willow Rd Public School and GCVI.

Family # 2
A three-person family with a mother expecting another child had been staying in our shelter. They were selected to be beneficiary of ISGW temporary housing support. Given the mother is expecting and has a two- year-old child we felt it was prudent for us to support with a temporary housing solution. A 2-bedroom basement was arranged for the family to move in by December 23, 2024, till end of April 31, 2025. The unit
is fully furnished and even a crib was prepared since they are expecting new baby in March 2025. Since their move in date, the father started working and hopes to stay at his current residency.

ISGW staff and board of express our sincere appreciation for your generous contribution. With your help 7 children and one expecting mother are warm and safe tonight! It may not seem like a lot but imagine where they would be if you had not supported our mission to help newcomers who choose the City of Guelph
as their home!

THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

Hope House Guelph Extends A Huge Thanks to 100 Women Who Care

It is so good to be back. My name is Jaya James and I have had the privilege of being
the Executive Director of Hope House Guelph since November 2016.

On June 24, 2024, I had the honour of presenting to you, on the affordability crisis that
so many in Guelph are facing. I shared how a growing number of Guelphites must make
increasingly difficult choices like choosing between paying rent and buying food.

Warm with gratitude,

Jaya James
Executive Director – Hope House Guelph