Salvation Army gets a boost
Grand and Toy offers up temporary digs following blaze
The Salvation Army found itself on the receiving end of generosity when Grand and Toy offered temporary use of their warehouse space after the charitable organization's Railside Road facility went up in smoke in May.
The 34,000-square-foot warehouse at Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue will provide refuge until The Salvation Army's food and toy distribution centre can re-open in 2009.
The Salvation Army's Railside Road location was deemed unusable after a May 4 fire caused significant water and smoke damage.
The fire destroyed 268 skids of food and $2.2 million worth of toys for needy families.
In mid-June, the charity moved into its temporary location, which came with a docking area and furnished office space.
"It's been a process over the last couple of weeks," said Captain John Murray, spokesperson for The Salvation Army. "Grand and Toy wanted to demonstrate corporate social responsibility and they stepped up to help us."
Murray said the charity's advisory board sought out temporary shelter after the fire and Grand and Toy agreed to loan the space at 33 Green Belt Dr.
"When an agency like The Salvation Army suffers like that, so do hundreds of thousands of other people," said Kevin Edwards, vice-president of marketing for Grand and Toy. "It was an obvious opportunity for Grand and Toy to help out."
The warehouse was sitting virtually empty prior to housing The Salvation Army, Edwards said, adding the space is bigger than the Railside Road site.
"It all came together," he said.
The space will store and distribute food and toys for about 90,000 people in the Greater Toronto Area who rely on shelters, feeding programs, camps, daycare centres and emergency and disaster relief programs daily.
