ABOUT COMPASSION SOCIETY OF HALTON
We offer practical help, thoughtful connection and a community that cares.
Compassion Society of Halton is a community food bank and support hub serving neighbours across Burlington, Oakville, Milton, Halton Hills, Acton and Georgetown. From our home on Fairview Street in Burlington, we offer free groceries through our Food Market, clothing through Mina's Closet, personal care items, seasonal programs and connections to trusted local services.
Everything we do starts from one belief: people should be able to ask for help with dignity, make their own choices and feel welcome. Our staff and volunteers take time to listen and help each person find a useful next step, whether that is food and clothing to take home or the right local service for housing, health or work.
A CONNECTED RESPONSE
We help with today and connect you to what comes next.
Poverty is rarely about one need alone. That is why we bring everyday help, honest conversation and strong local relationships together in one place.
Mission and vision
At Compassion Society of Halton, we believe everyone deserves dignity, hope, and the support to move forward. For more than 25 years, we’ve been the helping hand that lifts up individuals and families during life’s most challenging moments by providing access to food, clothing, household essentials, and compassionate support services. But we do more than meet immediate needs: we inspire hope, strengthen resilience, and bring our community together. Through the generosity of volunteers, donors, partners and supporters, we’re building a stronger, more caring Halton where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.
Connecting individuals and families with food, clothing and community services when they need it the most.
To be the first place our community members think of when they need a helping hand, and the charity of choice for those who want to give back to our Halton community.
These two statements guide everything we do, and most of our work begins with one welcoming conversation.
PURPOSE IN PRACTICE
A mission becomes meaningful through the way people are treated.
Our mission shows in how a neighbour is greeted, how carefully our space is arranged, the freedom to choose and the patience to listen when someone is carrying more than one worry.
We offer food, clothing and community connections in a way that protects dignity and builds trust. That means clear information, respect for privacy, careful use of every resource and teaming up with other organizations when they are better placed to help.
Five values guide how we work: collaboration, dignity, engagement, resourcefulness and accountability.
Select a value
Dignity
Every neighbour deserves to be welcomed without judgment, offered clear choices and treated as the expert in their own circumstances.
OUR STORY
One clothing rack became a community response.
More than 25 years ago, founder Mina Wahidi placed a clothing rack in her Burlington basement and invited neighbours to take what they needed. The idea was simple and the welcome was generous. People found help without judgment, and volunteers answered a need they could see in their own community.
As more neighbours came and more volunteers joined, the work outgrew the basement. We moved into a church basement and later into storefronts, making room for food, clothing and everyday essentials. Each move followed the same pattern: a need became visible, local people stepped up and we made room to do more.
As poverty grew more complex, we added referral support so neighbours could reach services beyond our walls. Our Fairview Street home carries that history forward, bringing everyday help, warm conversation and local connections under one roof.
Our locations, programs and size have changed over the years. Mina's founding idea has stayed the same: share what we have generously, listen carefully and help each neighbour leave with a little more stability and a clearer next step.
IN MEMORY OF OUR FOUNDER
Mina Wahidi
Mina Wahidi founded Compassion Society of Halton more than 25 years ago, starting with a single clothing rack in her own basement and an open invitation to any neighbour who needed it. She led the organization as it grew into a trusted community hub, and her belief that support should be practical, dignified and freely given still shapes how we welcome people today. Mina passed away on April 4, 2023. The Burlington community later unveiled a tribute recognizing the lasting impact of her work across Halton.
- 2008 Burlington Citizen of the Year
- 2012 Queen's Jubilee Medal
- Rotary Paul Harris Fellow
HOW SUPPORT WORKS
Immediate help can create room for the next step.
A neighbour may first come to us because the grocery budget no longer stretches to the end of the week, a child needs clothing for a new season or an unexpected bill has made essentials hard to afford. We start with practical help: free groceries, clothing and hygiene items that ease the pressure and give back a measure of choice.
Every household is different, so neighbours choose what suits them from what we have, with clear information and a friendly guide along the way.
A visit can also open a conversation about housing, health care, work, income or whatever else is weighing on a household. Our team listens for what would help, with care for each person's privacy.
Through our Referral Partner Program, we help neighbours find the right local service and make that next connection clearer and easier to reach. Each organization sets its own eligibility, and we help you understand what to expect.
Program growth
An Ontario Trillium Foundation Grow grant is helping us expand the Referral Partner Program.
COMMUNITY STEWARDSHIP
Compassion becomes possible when a community takes part.
Our work is carried by many hands. Volunteers sort donations, stock shelves and welcome neighbours. Staff run our programs and community relationships, and a volunteer board provides oversight and long-term direction.
The wider community makes it all possible. Individuals give food, clothing and funds, businesses run drives and volunteer days, foundations and public funders invest in our growth, and service clubs, faith communities and partners share their knowledge and connections.
This work runs on trust. As a registered Canadian charity, we publish our annual financial statements and welcome questions from anyone.