OUR MISSION
OUR MISSION
Together, we provide Help for Today and Hope for Tomorrow.
This mission statement was true when The Compass was founded by a group of local Christian Churches in 2002 and remains the foundation of what we do today.
We provide a safe and welcoming place for people to come to for help. We offer immediate assistance with food, then work with clients offering practical and spiritual support to the challenges that often come along with a low income.
What makes us unique?
1. Our clients can shop weekly. Unlike most food banks, we are able to support our clients weekly. This helps our clients better cope with food insecurity and helps our staff and volunteers build relationships with our clients.
2. We provide a community experience for our clients during their weekly shopping by offering a nourishing meal or a cup of coffee in a communal environment.
3. We offer opportunities to connect such as the Men’s group, Women’s group, Refresh, and Films & Fellowship.
4. Our clients can count on us to provide a stable market supply of key commodities like milk, eggs, meat, fresh vegetables, baby products and hygiene products.
5. We inform our clients of available community services through our Client Services staff and volunteers, understanding that each client’s circumstances are unique.
6. We provide assistance to our clients with tax returns, haircuts, showers and laundry service for those experiencing homelessness.
Our clients are facing serious economic pressures, with increasing food and living costs.
From April 2021 to April 2022, the price of food rose by 9.7%, with fresh fruit and meat increasing at a higher rate. Canadians also saw rising costs in other areas: after food, 32% were most affected by increasing costs in transportation, 9% by shelter and 8% by household operations.1
As food, rent, housing, and debt costs continue to outpace income and other social supports, the demand for our services continues to increase. Some highlights of increased client usage for 2023 so far:
The number of households we supported increased by
93%
from January to June 2023 than the same time last year.
(from 1,054 to 2,029)
New households we served increased by
165%
from January to June 2023 compared to the same time last year.
(from 363 to 962)
Food distributed increased by
72%
from January to June 2023 compared to the same time last year.
(from 300,777 to 516,206)
We have seen significant increases in demand for the last 5 years
and we expect this alarming trend to continue.
We provide services to a growing number of children, adults and seniors
and we expect to evolve our programs to support them.
Fast facts
Last year, one in five Canadians expect they are likely to obtain food or meals from a community organization.1
In Mississauga, almost 1 in 10 persons are considered low income.2
30% of food bank users in Mississauga rely on social assistance as their main source of income, yet a single person receives a maximum of $733/month through Ontario Works or $1,169 through the Ontario Disability Support Program.3
3 out of 4 food bank users say that affordable housing would most significantly change their quality of life.3
Limited Ontario social assistance programs, lack of affordable housing, wage & inflation, and mental health & addiction all contribute to our clients’ increased dependency on The Compass programs. We seek to advocate for long-term structural solutions and systemic change to reduce poverty. Click here to learn more about our commitment to advocacy.
Our aspiration is to strive to meet 100% of client needs, onsite or through a trusted partner, 100% of the time.
For the last few years, the strategic focus of The Compass was on successfully moving to our new expanded location. Looking ahead, we will be a community that progressively meets the needs of our clients through food, advocacy, and seamless access to a broad network of social services.
Explore our five year plan:
1. Enhance client services to better fulfill the "hope for tomorrow" part of our mission."
- Increase client connection to identify 100% of client needs and goals.
- Support the entire client journey by celebrating 100% of clients’ goal accomplishments and by following up on 100% of all referrals, with results documented regularly.
- Create a responsive environment by regularly reviewing relevant service plans with each client.
2. Amplify advocacy by working with our clients and partners to advocate for change.
- Create a client-focused advocacy direction and tracking.
- Deepen interagency partnerships.
- Influence government and policies.
- Utilize the connections of our community.
3. Grow organizational capacity by investing in recruitment, training & systems.
- Elevate volunteer engagement to increase active volunteers.
- Equip and support staff to improve staff satisfaction.
- Enhance board governance by reviewing committee structure.
- Elevate infrastructure support by improving the stability of IT systems, facility cleanliness and equipment durability.
4. Generate sustainable funding so that we can effectively meet the demands of growth.
- Increase grant revenue.
- Bolster community communications to increase individual and corporate donations.
- Enhance donor engagement through improved outreach, cultivating legacy giving, matching campaigns and donor stewardship.
1 https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220609/dq220609a-eng.htm, accessed August 2023.
2 https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?DGUIDlist=2021A00053521005&GENDERlist=1&HEADERlist=0&Lang=E&STATISTIClist=1&SearchText= Mississauga, accessed August 2023.
3. http://www.themississaugafoodbank.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/SMALL_TMFB-Annual-Impact-Report-2022-V12FINAL.pdf, accessed August 2023.
We are a Food Bank & Outreach Centre located in and serving South Mississauga
A Proud Partner With:
Contact Us
905-274-9309
info@thecompass.ca
427 Lakeshore Rd East
Mississauga ON L5G 1H8