FAQ

Answers To Our Most Common Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

What do you NOT accept?
What do we ACCEPT?
Do you take household items? furniture?
Do you take clothing, household items? Can I donate clothing?
Donating Clothing? Please read!
Where can I donate my clothing / textiles?
How do I become a client?
What are the MOST NEEDED Items?
Do I need an appointment?
What is your Registered Charity Number?
I have used furniture, where can I donate it?
Do you give out clothing?

❌ Furniture
❌ Kitchen & small appliances
❌ Dishes, cutlery, pots & pans
❌ Lamps
❌ Mattresses
❌ Child car seats
❌ Toys, books, games & puzzles
❌ Drapery & window coverings
❌ DVDs, CDs or VHS tapes
❌ Bicycles & mobility devices
❌ Used electronics (computers, tablets, laptops)

We only accept and are in NEED of:

Food (see the list on the home page and under the Most Wanted button)
Diapers - sizes 5 & 6
All men’s and women’s hygiene products (e.g. body wash, shampoo, deodorant)

Please place the items in the red bins at the front of the "Donation Warehouse".

Donation days & hours:

Monday - 9:00 am - 3:30 pm

Wednesday - 12:00 - 7:00 pm

Friday - 9:00 am - 3:30 pm (NO Clothing / Textile Donations)

NEVER LEAVE YOUR DONATIONS OUTSIDE THESE DAYS & HOURS!

EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 2026, we accept these all year:

Bedding:
- sheet sets
- duvets & covers
- quilts
- blankets
- mattress covers
- bedspreads
- decorative pillows (NOT bed pillows)
- sleeping bags
Linen:
- towels
- facecloths
- table cloths
- shower curtains

EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 2026 NOT these items:

EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 5, 2026: We have NEW CLOTHING DONATION GUIDELINES.

★ WHAT'S NEW — PLEASE READ FIRST! ★

Limit of 2 bags, boxes, or plastic bags of clothing per visit. For larger donations or estate donations, please call to make an appointment.
Planning a clothing drive? Please talk to our staff first — we can tell you what's needed most.
Please do not donate out-of-season clothing or items that do not meet our criteria below.

Please don't leave donations outside our door!

ACCEPTING NOW: — WINTER (AUG–FEB)

Winter jackets, parkas & snowsuits
Sweaters, scarves, hats, gloves & boots.

CLOTHING ITEMS WE CANNOT ACCEPT:

✗ Used socks
✗ Business suits — please donate these to Dress for Success or Safetynet Children & Youth Charities

ACCEPTED ANYTIME:

Pants, sweatpants, jeans, long-sleeve tops, shoes, sneakers, slippers, dresses, athletic wear, hoodies, pyjamas, handbags, belts, fashion scarves, and jewelry.
NEW socks only.

CLOTHING CONDITION STANDARDS:

Clean; free of rips, stains, odours, pilling, and pet hair; no broken zippers or missing buttons; current style.

Ask yourself: would you be happy giving this to a friend?

Charities that provide Free Clothing to those in Need:

Open Doors Burlington at St. Christopher’s Anglican Church
Address: 662 Guelph Line, Burlington
Phone: 905-634-1809
Hours: Monday – Thursday 9:00 am to 4:30 pm / Friday 9:00 am to 12:00 pm
Website: https://opendoorscommunity.ca/
Safetynet Children & Youth Charities
Address: 166 South Service Road East, Oakville
Phone: 905-845-7233 ext. 0
Hours: Monday – Friday 9:30 am to 4:00 pm / Saturday 9:30 am to 1:00 pm
Website: https://www.safetynetservices.ca/

In addition, your neighbourhood Churches may offer a limited amount of clothing to people in need. Please contact your church to confirm.

Charities that run thrift stores, but all monies go to support their charitable endeavours:

Salvation Army Thrift Store
Address: 3245 Fairview Street, Burlington
Phone: 905-633-8762
Hours: 10:00 am to 9:00 pm, Monday – Saturday
Website: https://thriftstore.ca/
Mission Thrift Store
3305 Fairview St, Unit 3, Burlington
Phone: 905-631-1199
Hours: Monday – Friday 10 am to 8:00 pm / Saturday 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Website: https://missionthriftstore.com/
Goodwill Donation Centre
Address: 4051 New Street, Burlington
Phone: 905-333-8989
Hours: Monday – Friday 8:00 am to 8:00 pm / Saturday 8:00 am to 6:00 pm / Sunday 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
Website: https://www.goodwillindustries.ca/donate/

EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 5, 2026: We have NEW CLOTHING DONATION GUIDELINES.

★ WHAT'S NEW — PLEASE READ FIRST! ★

Limit of 2 bags, boxes, or plastic bags of clothing per visit. For larger donations or estate donations, please call to make an appointment.
Planning a clothing drive? Please talk to our staff first — we can tell you what's needed most.
Please do not donate out-of-season clothing or items that do not meet our criteria below.

Please don't leave donations outside our door!

ACCEPTING NOW: — WINTER (AUG–FEB)

Winter jackets, parkas & snowsuits
Sweaters, scarves, hats, gloves & boots.

CLOTHING ITEMS WE CANNOT ACCEPT:

✗ Used socks
✗ Business suits — please donate these to Dress for Success or Safetynet Children & Youth Charities

ACCEPTED ANYTIME:

Pants, sweatpants, jeans, long-sleeve tops, shoes, sneakers, slippers, dresses, athletic wear, hoodies, pyjamas, handbags, belts, fashion scarves, and jewelry.
NEW socks only.

CLOTHING CONDITION STANDARDS:

Clean; free of rips, stains, odours, pilling, and pet hair; no broken zippers or missing buttons; current style.

Ask yourself: would you be happy giving this to a friend?

⏰NEW DONATION DAYS & HOURS: ⏰
MONDAYS – 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM
WEDNESDAYS – 12:00 PM to 7:00 PM

Need somewhere to donate right now? These local organizations would love your items:

🧥 Open Doors Burlington at St. Christopher's Anglican Church
🧥 Safetynet Children & Youth Charities
♻️ Salvation Army Thrift Store
♻️ Mission Thrift Store
♻️ Goodwill Donation Centre

Thanks for your understanding.

Charities that provide Free Clothing to those in need:

Open Doors Burlington at St. Christopher’s Anglican Church
Address: 662 Guelph Line, Burlington
Phone: 905-634-1809
Hours: Monday – Thursday 9:00 am to 4:30 pm / Friday 9:00 am to 12:00 pm
Website: https://opendoorscommunity.ca/
Safetynet Children & Youth Charities
Address: 166 South Service Road East, Oakville
Phone: 905-845-7233 ext. 0
Hours: Monday – Friday 9:30 am to 4:00 pm / Saturday 9:30 am to 1:00 pm
Website: https://www.safetynetservices.ca/

In addition, your neighbourhood Churches may offer a limited amount of clothing to people in need. Please contact your church to confirm.

Charities that run thrift stores, but all monies go to support their charitable endeavours:

Salvation Army Thrift Store
Address: 3245 Fairview Street, Burlington
Phone: 905-633-8762
Hours: 10:00 am to 9:00 pm, Monday – Saturday
Website: https://thriftstore.ca/
Mission Thrift Store
3305 Fairview St, Unit 3, Burlington
Phone: 905-631-1199
Hours: Monday – Friday 10 am to 8:00 pm / Saturday 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Website: https://missionthriftstore.com/
Goodwill Donation Centre
Address: 4051 New Street, Burlington
Phone: 905-333-8989
Hours: Monday – Friday 8:00 am to 8:00 pm / Saturday 8:00 am to 6:00 pm / Sunday 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
Website: https://www.goodwillindustries.ca/donate/

You need to be a resident of Halton to qualify. New clients of Compassion Society must fill out the registration form that they will be provided to take home with them upon their first visit and bring back with all relevant information needed as directed on the forms.

We are unable to do walk-in interviews because we are volunteer geared and will ask for additional information as needed.

No Appointments are given over the phone or email and first time clients can only be taken through walk-ins.

In the meantime, if you are in need of food, we can provide you with food and clothing for the first time until you fill out the forms and register for regular services.

When you fill out the forms, please be sure to bring the following:

Identification: Driver's License, Passport, Landing Papers, etc. are all acceptable.
Proof of Residence: Tenancy agreement or mail to your current address.
Proof of Dependents: Birth certificates or OHIP cards to show the date of birth for all dependants/household members.
Proof of Income: Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Notice of Assessment, OW statement, ODSP statement, pay slip or payroll statement.

Personal Care:

Body wash
Deodorant
Dish detergent
Laundry detergent
Shampoo
Toilet paper

Food items:

Canned meats (e.g., chicken, tuna, ham, fish, corned beef)
Canned vegetables: mixed vegetables
Breakfast essentials: cereal
Ready-to-eat meals: chunky soups or stews
Pantry staples: cooking oil (e.g., vegetable, olive), nut/seed butter, jam, sugar, salt, condiments
Beverages: instant coffee
Snacks: cookies, crackers, granola bars
Kid's specific snacks: juice boxes, nut-free granola bars, fruit snacks/cups, puddings or Jell-O cups, single-serve crackers & cookies

Please place the items in the red bins at the front of the "Donation Warehouse" located at 1881 Fairview St, Units 4 & 5, Burlington, ON L7S 2K4

Donation days & hours:

Monday - 9:00 am - 3:30 pm
Wednesday - 9:00 am - 7:00 pm
Friday - 9:00 am - 3:30 pm

NEVER LEAVE YOUR DONATIONS OUTSIDE THESE DAYS & HOURS!

We now have new walk-in hours for clients without appointments:

Mondays: 1:00 to 3:30 pm
Wednesdays: 5:00 to 7:00 pm
Fridays: 1:00 to 3:30 pm

Our BN # 804301810 RR0001

We DO NOT ACCEPT ANY FURNITURE!

Please donate at one of the places below:

(call first to see if they are taking donations)

Rescued and Restored

248 Freelton Rd., Freelton, ON L0R 1K0

Phone: 289-679-0481

Proceeds of sales support Drummond House, a transitional home for women and children in crisis.

Habitat for Humanity Restore

1800 Appleby Line, Burlington, ON L7L 6A1

Phone: 905-637-4446

A non-profit charity.

Furniture Bank of Mississauga & Halton

25 Connell Crt., Unit 1, Toronto, ON M8Z 1E8

Phone: 416-934-1229

Will pick it up for a fee. Call them for their rates.

Salvation Army Thrift Store

3245 Fairview St., Burlington, ON L7N 3L1

Phone: 905-633-8762

A non-profit charity.

Yes we give clothing to CLIENTS ONLY from 12 to 3:30 PM on Mondays and Fridays.

On Wednesdays between 4:00 to 7:00 PM.