519pursuit

To our valued friends and community members, 2020 was a year of growth, unity and constant change. We are grateful to have the experience 2020 brought and the supportive community that has grown so strong around 519Pursuit and the lives of our friends. 2020 brought a new partnership with The London Food Bank and The RBC Place, as well as the capacity to grow our loving volunteer team. 2020 brought the opportunity to ensure food was being delivered to the hands of our friends... daily and keeping connection that was consistent. 2020 was challenging but together our community showed strength, endurance and innovative ways to service one another. We want to start this new year first with a deep breathe and by saying THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts. Below we would like to share with you some numbers that provide insight on the impact your support is making in the community. Distribution numbers since March; Care Packages: PPE - 380 Snacks - 1264 Lunches- 8896 Clothing- 789 Socks- 13325 Blankets- 180 Shoes- 67 Daily Necessity- 617 Without you this would not be possible, without you there is no 519Pursuit! #Togetherisbetter

Last year was the deadliest year on record for accidental overdoses. Please head into 2021 prepared to save a life. Get naloxone free and confidentially today f...rom us at MAF. 106+ lives saved and counting. https://mattadamsfoundation.org/get-naloxone-now

GREAT NEWS! We started moving community members into the first WISH site yesterday! Your donations are making a difference in peoples lives right now! So, thank...-you. And now a renewed list of items to help make the place a little more like HOME! First: SHARE this post and LIKE the WISH Facebook page. What we still need: 1. Bus tickets - help our folks get to where they need to go - appointments, visits, shopping, and laundry. 2. Home made Snacks - wrapped for an individual (a few cookies, a muffin, etc) - we need 60/day! 3. 60 laundry baskets 4. Small curtains - 2 feet by 2 feet max! 5. Slippers for the common space Thanks but NO MORE! Because you donated, we have lots of: bedding, clothes, computers, bike locks, dining supplies, and mugs! Drop off: Because the province is under lockdown, please be advised that our drop-off locations have reduced hours. Ark Aid Street mission, 696 Dundas St- (back door) between 3-5pm holiday hours (Christmas, Boxing Day, New Years Eve, New Years) and 1-5pm other days. Downtown YMCA on Waterloo St - re-opening Tuesday for drop off. Call when you get to the door, call 519-667-3300 for assistance.

Friendly reminder we have unfortanetly had to make the difficult decision of postponing any donation days until further notice in response to the new Covid-19 lock downs and restrictions. We are grateful to say we have 2 storage lockers of warm clothing and supplies to continue to support our friends during this time. We thank you all for your continued support!... #Togetherisbetter

Your sock donations are making a difference in the community!! Thank you for all who have participated and donated! #Togetherisbetter

Catch Co-Founder Allison DeBlaire and Amber Irvine on Her Stories tonight at 6PM on Rogers TV! #Togetherisbetter

You can help make housing guaranteed for everyone! How? Write a letter to your elected officials that supports an accelerated plan for building public housing!... If you need support with this, we have drawn up a template for you. Click here: https://unityproject.ca/letter-to-elected-officials/ #GivingTuesday

LAST CALL Last Saturday, November 14th we held an official sock drop as our 6 week pledge has come to an end. We are busy tallying up the socks that have come in and we are eager to announce to the community just how well everyone did. ... We want to know if you still have socks in your possession to donate or are expecting other pairs to come in. Whether is is an amount of pairs or an amount of monetary donation, we need to hear from you TODAY! We will be announcing across our social media the final count TOMORROW and we want to ensure each and every participant has had the time to either donate or communicate to us their final count. Side note: LOOK AT ALL THESE AMAZING SOCKSTARS WHO CAME AND MADE THEIR DONATION! Without YOU there is no 519Pursuit! #Togetherisbetter

THE POWER OF COMMUNITY AND SOCIAL MEDIA! We learn a lot from our friend Peter, The Hungarian Experiment . The power of social media, conversation, message sharing! Over the past three years Peter has helped us reach places in the world we could never have imagined. The 519Pledge is globally known and supported. Our friends voices are being heard! ... If you are a business owner, social media influencer or simply want to learn more about the power of social media check out Social Mediation. Every Sunday they are sharing new tips and tricks! Peter Kloczko @Socialmediation

TOGETHER YOU DID IT We set a lofty goal on October first to option a donation of 55,000 pairs of socks. Throughout six weeks our community unified for a collective purpose. The conversations had, the perspectives challenged, the support that is continuously growing for our friends. We can not THANK YOU enough. The third annual 519Pledge for socks grand total is: ... 57,196 #Togetherisbetter

#togetherisbetter

THANK YOU P.J.'s Family Hair Centre for participating in the third annual 519Pledge for socks! Your donation has gone directly local to our friends The Nameless who support homeless friends in St.Thomas! #Togetherisbetter

We are still working hard to crunch those numbers! WOW - who would have thought counting socks would take such an effort. We want to take this time to pause and reflect on the amazing work our volunteers are doing and continue to do each and every week. We want to thank those who came out to support us with their time on Saturday and helped us make it safe and convenient for all community members! We appreciate each and every person who stopped in, donated socks, applauded... the work of our organization and volunteers as well as those who brought us snacks and hot coffee! We are powered completely by compassion and community. You are the heartbeat to our work and have created within an immensely strong support system. WITHOUT YOU THERE IS NO 519PURSUIT! #Togetherisbetter P.S. - If you have socks that you want included in our 3rd annual 519Pledge total please get in touch with us ASAP! We are eager to let the community know how many pairs they have contributed.