As Ontarians await their $200 rebate cheques, one organization is urging residents to donate the funds, arguing that giving the money to local charities would have a far greater collective impact than if it stays in our pockets.
The initiative, 200dollars.ca, says the cheques could make a lasting difference for those facing affordability challenges.
“Feed Ontario has said they can stretch every donated dollar to two meals and that would mean $200 would be 400 meals,” said Erin Brubacher, one of 200dollars.ca’s founders.
The Ford government announced the cheques in late October, saying they would be delivered to 15 million Ontarians as a one-time measure to ease cost of living pressures.
While opposition leaders criticized the cheques as insufficient in tackling affordability and a “gimmick” aimed at distracting voters, Brubacher says 200dollars.ca is completely non-partisan, simply encouraging as many as possible to participate.
She said she hopes it will unite residents — especially as the province struggles with a mounting housing crisis, rising food insecurity and continued strain on its healthcare system.
Many have begun donating through the site before receiving their cheques, says Brubacher, donating mostly to shelters, food banks, hospitals and children’s organizations such as SickKids and Kids Help Phone.
Some of those charities are already excited about the movement.
“If you don’t need your rebate, we know somebody who does need it, and that’s the bottom line,” said Neil Hetherington, CEO of Daily Bread Food Bank.
The Ontario government says it will send a $200 rebate cheque to roughly 15 million people in the province. CBC’s Lane Harrison has more on the announcement.
Food insecurity has seen a staggering rise, Hetherington said, with more than one in 10 Torontonians now making use of the Daily Bread Food Bank.
There were 3.49 million visits to food banks from April 2023 to April 2024, according to the Who’s Hungry Report released by Daily Bread and North York Harvest Food Bank late last year.
That’s a million more visits than the year before and nearly four times the number of visits than before the pandemic.
It took 38 years for food banks to reach one million visits, the report notes, but only two years to surpass two million visits and only one year to reach three million.
Hetherington said he hopes the rebate initiative will encourage people to give back and support essential programs to address food insecurity.
With home prices and rent costs steadily increasing, many Ontarians are also finding it increasingly difficult to secure an affordable place to live.
Non-profits like Habitat for Humanity GTA, which helps make home ownership more accessible, are facing increasing challenges.
The cost to build homes, from land to construction materials, has increased threefold over the past decade, said Christine Matt Batchelor, the charity’s vice president of resource development.
“That’s made it very challenging for us,” she said.
‘Every dollar counts’: Habitat for Humanity GTA
She says Habitat increasingly relies on the generosity of individuals, corporations and foundations to build affordable homes.
“Every dollar counts. It does make a difference for organizations like ours and others right across this province,” Matt Batchelor said.
The 200dollars.ca website includes a portal to a CanadaHelps.org page featuring a wide variety of Ontario charities, where people can choose a cause they support.
Brubacher says donors can make a public pledge on the website if they feel more comfortable receiving the cheque before donating it. She hopes that inspires others to do the same.
“When we put our money together, we can do more for more people,” said Brubacher. “We have to look at what we care about and what actual change we want to see happen.”