I CAN FOR KIDS FOUNDATION

What I CAN FOR KIDS FOUNDATION does

I Can for Kids Foundation is a Calgary-based registered Canadian charity (founded 2015) that operates a single flagship initiative — the Grocery Gift Card Program — to address childhood food insecurity across Calgary, Airdrie, Red Deer, and rural central Alberta. Rather than distributing traditional food hampers, the foundation issues grocery gift cards that are distributed exclusively through a network of 25+ trusted frontline partner agencies, including social service organizations (McMan, Carya, Closer to Home), housing providers (Calgary Housing Company), Indigenous family services (Metis Calgary Family Services, Miskanawah), and public healthcare networks (Primary Care Alberta, Mosaic Primary Care Network). The model is asset-light: cards are purchased at discounted rates from retail partner Save-on-Foods and handed to families already enrolled as clients of these partner agencies, preserving dignity and choice while eliminating the warehouse, transport, and logistics overhead of conventional food banking.

The underlying program design has been validated through a peer-reviewed research partnership with the University of Calgary and O'Brien Institute for Public Health (2023), making it the first such study in Canada. Since the 2020 pivot from food hampers, the organization has distributed more than $4.8M in grocery gift cards to families in 260+ communities, reaching 49,300+ food-insecure children in the most recent year, with quantified outcomes including 85% of card spend on fresh foods and 75%+ of caregivers reporting reduced food worry. Complementary products include a free downloadable implementation guide for other charities, monthly newsletters, annual impact reports, and peer-reviewed publications — positioned to extend the model's influence beyond direct service delivery.

Financially, the foundation reported 2025 total revenue of $1,781,753 CAD, of which 88% ($1,567,853) came from individual donations, 5% ($87,624) from gifts-in-kind, 4% ($75,000) from grants (notably Nutrien and Inter Pipeline for rural expansion), and 3% ($51,276) from investment income. The organization operates with 1–10 employees, maintains 82% of contributions flowing directly to the gift card program, and is governed by an independent Board of Directors chaired by Leanne Zee. There is no parent company, no equity backing, and no product or service revenue — I Can for Kids is structurally a pure donation-funded non-profit.

Name

I CAN FOR KIDS FOUNDATION

Legal name

I Can for Kids Foundation Inc.

Website

https://icanforkids.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

I Can for Kids Foundation is a Calgary-based Canadian charity that distributes grocery gift cards through a network of 25+ frontline social service, healthcare, and Indigenous agencies to address childhood food insecurity across Alberta. Founded in 2015 and revenue-funded through donations and grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Food Assistance Services

NAICS

Community Food Services (624210), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

School Feeding & Child Nutrition Programs (BPADAJAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Food & Nutrition Assistance Programs (BPAIAKAF), Child Nutrition & Meal Programs (CACFP/Snack Programs) (EDACAMAA), School Feeding & Social Protection Partnerships (Conditional Cash Transfers, etc.) (EDADALAL)

Keywords

• Childhood food insecurity
• Grocery gift cards
• Food assistance program
• Nonprofit charity services
• Hunger relief programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Calgary

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: The primary revenue stream comes from individual donors who make one-time or recurring monthly donations. In 2025, donations totaled $1,567,853 representing 88% of total revenue of $1,781,753.
2. Gifts-in-Kind: Grocery gift cards, auction items, and advertising donated at no cost. In 2025, gifts-in-kind valued at $87,624 represented 5% of total revenue.
3. Grants: Funding from foundations and organizations such as Nutrien and Inter Pipeline for rural expansion programs. In 2025, grants totaled $75,000 representing 4% of total revenue.
4. Investment Income: Investment returns on reserve funds. In 2025, investment income was $51,276 representing 3% of total revenue.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

I Can for Kids Foundation is a registered Canadian charity that distributes grocery gift cards to food-insecure families with children in Alberta through a network of 25+ trusted frontline social service agencies, community organizations, and public healthcare partners. The income-based model enables recipient families to shop with dignity and choice at local grocery stores rather than receiving pre-selected food hampers, addressing the root cause of food insecurity (insufficient income) rather than the symptom (lack of food). The foundation also advances research and advocacy on childhood food insecurity through a peer-reviewed partnership with the University of Calgary.

Product overview

I Can for Kids Foundation operates a single core program—the Grocery Gift Card Program—supported by complementary resources including a free implementation guide for other organizations, peer-reviewed research publications, monthly newsletters, and annual impact reports. The organization does not offer a modular software platform; rather, it functions as a direct-service charity that distributes grocery gift cards through a network of trusted frontline agency partners to food-insecure families in Alberta, enabling them to purchase food with dignity and choice.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Grocery Gift Card Program The flagship income-based approach to addressing childhood food insecurity, distributing grocery gift cards through a network of 25+ trusted frontline social service agency partners, community organizations, and public healthcare providers to food-insecure families in Calgary and rural Alberta. Enables families to shop with dignity and autonomy at local grocery stores (primarily Save-on-Foods).

Quantifiable outcome

• 49,300+ food-insecure children received support in 2025
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• McMan Central RegioncoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2024Strategic partnership to distribute grocery gift cards in rural central Alberta. McMan's 8 community branches and 34 programs serve families in 60+ rural communities, distributing $110,000 in grocery gift cards to reach 5,800 children in 2025.
• University of Calgary / O'Brien Institute for Public HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership conducting peer-reviewed study on grocery gift card program impacts on food-insecure families. First study of its kind in Canada, validating the income-based approach through interviews with parents and agency staff.
• Primary Care AlbertacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPublic healthcare partnership reaching food-insecure mothers through prenatal and postpartum programs. Pilot program with postpartum community services provides immediate support to new mothers experiencing financial stress.
• Save-on-FoodsmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGrocery retailer provides gift cards at discounted rates and matches donations dollar-for-dollar during campaign periods. Major corporate champion supporting the program.
• Mosaic Primary Care NetworkcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHealthcare network reaches vulnerable children and families through the public healthcare system using grocery gift cards to address food insecurity alongside health services.
• Canada HelpsminorOthersOnline donation platform enabling donors to make tax-deductible contributions to I Can for Kids through canadian charity giving portal.
• BenevityminorOthersCorporate giving platform enabling employee matching gifts and workplace giving programs for companies supporting I Can for Kids.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Breakfast Club of Canada: National nonprofit providing breakfast and nutrition programs to school-aged children across Canada. Direct peer because it operates in the same child-focused food security niche and pursues similar corporate and donor sponsorships.
• Community Food Centres Canada: National non-profit building and supporting community food centres across Canada. Direct peer as it promotes alternative models of food security and shares overlapping policy, research, and advocacy goals with I Can for Kids.
• The Stop Community Food Centre: Toronto-based community food centre delivering food programs alongside advocacy and research. Direct peer because it pursues a dignity- and choice-based alternative to hamper-style emergency food relief and publishes similar evidence-based research.
• Calgary Food Bank: Calgary-based emergency food relief charity that distributes food hampers to food-insecure families. Direct peer because it serves the same Calgary population and competes for the same donor dollars, but uses the hamper model that I Can for Kids has explicitly departed from.
• Second Harvest: Canada's largest food rescue organization, redirecting surplus food to nonprofits. Direct peer as it is a Canadian food-security charity pursuing an alternative model (rescue rather than income) in a comparable donor and partner ecosystem.

Emerging players

• FoodShare Toronto: Toronto charity combining food access, food literacy, and advocacy. Emerging player because it overlaps on alternative food-security models and research-driven advocacy, but with a more urban Ontario focus.

Broad incumbents

• Food Banks Canada: National umbrella organization for the Canadian food bank network, aggregating more than $200M in annual activity. Comparable because it operates a parallel food-security mission and attracts overlapping government and corporate funding.
• United Way Calgary and Area: Regional United Way chapter funding a portfolio of social-service and food-security agencies in Calgary. Broad incumbent because it both competes for donor dollars and serves as a potential upstream funder for I Can for Kids' partner agencies.

Regional players

• The Mustard Seed: Calgary and Alberta-wide faith-based charity addressing hunger, homelessness, and poverty. Regional peer because it serves an overlapping vulnerable Calgary population and competes for similar corporate and individual donors.
• Edmonton's Food Bank: Edmonton-based hamper-distribution food bank serving northern Alberta. Regional peer operating in the same province with a comparable mission but using a hamper-based model rather than the income-based gift card approach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/I-Can-for-Kids-1485646718421685
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/i-can-for-kids
• Instagraminstagram.com/icanforkids

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 I CAN FOR KIDS FOUNDATION