The Compassion Society of Halton

What The Compassion Society of Halton does

The Compassion Society of Halton is a registered Canadian charity (BN# 804301810 RR0001) founded in 1999 and headquartered at 1881 Fairview Street, Burlington, Ontario. The organization provides food, clothing, household items, personal care products, seasonal programming, and referrals to community resources for residents of Halton Region, specifically Burlington, Oakville, Milton, Halton Hills, Acton, and Georgetown. It is operated by two paid staff, an active board of directors, and a large volunteer base, and it celebrated its 25th anniversary with a Burlington City Hall flag raising on May 1, 2025.

Operationally, the charity runs a single physical warehouse and client pick-up site with scheduled hours three days per week, supplemented by drop-in donation intake and online monetary donations processed through CanadaHelps under the Every Dollar Feeds Hope Campaign. There is no proprietary technology platform — intake, sorting, and distribution are manual — and marketing relies on a website, Mailchimp newsletters, local earned media, and community events. Programmatic offerings extend beyond core food assistance to include suit drives and employment-readiness support, holiday and seasonal gift programs, and referrals to legal, housing, healthcare, and employment services.

Funding is sourced from individual monetary donations, in-kind food and goods contributions, corporate sponsors (Starbucks Canada, Burlington Hyundai, Industry Diesel & Turbo Service), service clubs (Aldershot Lions Club, Rotary Clubs of Burlington Lakeshore and North), faith-based partners, and foundation grants including the Ontario Trillium Foundation and the Burlington Foundation Pandemic Response Fund. The organization is currently absorbing surging food-insecurity demand, which has prompted a temporary pause on clothing donations from July 23 to October 5, 2026, to redesign intake workflows.

Name

The Compassion Society of Halton

Legal name

The Compassion Society of Halton

Website

https://compassionsocietyofhalton.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Compassion Society of Halton is a volunteer-driven registered charity founded in 1999, providing food, clothing, and social service referrals to low-income residents across six Halton Region municipalities from its Burlington, Ontario warehouse.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Social Services

NAICS

Community Food Services (624210), Emergency and Other Relief Services (62423), Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Emergency Shelter, Camp Management & Non-Food Items (NFI) (BPAGAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Food Assistance & Nutrition Relief (Emergency Feeding) (BPAGAAAD)

Keywords

• Food bank services
• Clothing distribution
• Community social services
• Emergency food assistance
• Charitable donations

Headquarters

HQ city

Burlington

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Monetary Donations: Receives cash donations from individual donors, corporate sponsors, and community organizations to fund operations and purchase needed items.
2. In-Kind Donations: Receives food, clothing, and household item donations from the community which are distributed to clients in need.
3. Grants and Foundation Funding: Receives grants from organizations such as Ontario Trillium Foundation and Burlington Foundation Pandemic Response Fund to support specific programs and emergency response.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Compassion Society of Halton provides free emergency food assistance (non-perishable, perishable, and frozen items), clothing and personal care/hygiene item distribution, and referrals to local social services for low-income residents of the Halton Region. It runs seasonal programs around Mother's Day, Father's Day, back-to-school, and major holidays, and supports job seekers through suit drives and interview-preparation resources, all from its Burlington, Ontario headquarters and warehouse.

Product overview

The Compassion Society of Halton is a charitable social services organization providing food, clothing, hygiene products, and referrals to community resources. The organization does not offer technology products or software platforms. Its services include emergency food assistance, clothing distribution, seasonal programs (Mother's Day, Father's Day, Christmas, Back to School), personal care item distribution, and job seeker support services. The organization is volunteer-driven with approximately two staff members and is registered as a charity (BN# 804301810 RR0001) serving Burlington, Oakville, Milton, Halton Hills, Acton, and Georgetown.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Emergency Food Assistance Free distribution of non-perishable, perishable, and frozen food items to low-income families and individuals, picked up during designated walk-in hours at the Burlington headquarters.
• Clothing Distribution Free provision of clothing to clients in need, supported by community clothing donations; currently paused July 23 – October 5, 2026 due to storage capacity.
• Personal Care and Hygiene Items Distribution of personal hygiene items including body wash, deodorant, feminine hygiene pads, shampoo, size 6 diapers, and underwear to clients.
• Seasonal Holiday Programs Special seasonal programs supporting clients around Mother's Day, Father's Day, Canada Day, Back to School, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, and Halloween with meals, gifts, and celebration items.
• Job Seeker Support and Suit Drive Personal Growth program providing job seekers with interview information and training, a suit drive to dress them for success, and monthly service booths to support clients.
• Community Resource Referrals Referrals connecting clients to local community resources including legal services, employment services, housing help, and healthcare services.

Quantifiable outcome

• Serving clients across 6 municipalities in Halton Region

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered regular.

• Starbucks Canada / The Starbucks FoundationregularGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor providing ongoing support through donations and community partnerships.
• Burlington HyundairegularGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal corporate sponsor featuring video support and community donations.
• Aldershot Lions ClubregularGTM or Marketing PartnerService club providing regular donations and community support.
• Rotary Club of Burlington LakeshoreregularGTM or Marketing PartnerService organization providing regular donations and community support.
• Rotary Club of Burlington NorthregularGTM or Marketing PartnerService organization providing regular donations and community support.
• Food for Life HaltonregularGTM or Marketing PartnerRegular food donor organization supporting the charity's food distribution programs.
• COBS Bread BakeryregularGTM or Marketing PartnerRegular donor providing bread and baked goods for distribution to families.
• West Plains United ChurchregularGTM or Marketing PartnerChurch community providing regular donations and volunteer support.
• East Plains United ChurchregularGTM or Marketing PartnerChurch community providing regular donations and volunteer support.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Safetynet Children & Youth Charities: Oakville-based charity serving Halton Region families and youth with clothing, food, and support services. Comparable Halton-region social services mission with overlapping donor and volunteer pools.

Broad incumbents

• Goodwill Industries (Ontario): National nonprofit operating donation centres and thrift retail including a Burlington location that competes for clothing donations. Comparable charitable donation-driven operating model and overlapping donor base in the same region.
• Feed Ontario: Provincial association of Ontario food banks providing coordination, advocacy, and funding across the network. Comparable in mission focus on food security, but functions as an umbrella body rather than a direct service provider.
• Food Banks Canada: National charitable umbrella organization representing the Canadian food bank network. Operates in the same hunger-relief space but at the national coordination level rather than as a community-level service provider.

Direct peers

• Daily Bread Food Bank: Toronto-based food bank distributing food and operating member agency network across the GTA. Directly comparable community food bank model with similar volunteer-driven distribution and donor-funded revenue structure, albeit at significantly larger scale.
• Second Harvest: Canada's largest food rescue organization operating across the GTA. Comparable food redistribution and hunger-relief mission with similar donor and volunteer ecosystem, though operating at a larger and more professionally staffed scale.
• The Mississauga Food Bank: Regional food bank serving Mississauga, adjacent to Halton Region, distributing food through member agencies. Highly comparable model serving a similar suburban Ontario community with food hampers and referral services.
• North York Harvest Food Bank: Toronto-area food bank distributing food through member agencies with a donor-funded, volunteer-supported operating model. Comparable community food bank structure serving a defined geographic catchment in Ontario.
• Open Doors Burlington: Burlington-based charity offering free clothing and household goods to those in need, explicitly referenced on the Compassion Society's own website as a parallel donation destination. Directly comparable neighborhood-level clothing and essentials distribution.
• Salvation Army Burlington (Burlington Community & Family Services): Operates a Burlington-based community services unit providing food, clothing, and emergency assistance to local residents. Direct competitor in the same Halton Region catchment for clients and donors.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-compassion-society-of-halton

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Compassion Society of Halton