Check It Out: One in five Canadians use charitable services for essential needs

By Joan Janzen

The doctor told his patient to quit smoking. He advised him to chew on a toothpick whenever he felt like lighting up. A few months later, the patient returned for a checkup. The doctor said he had good news and bad news.

The doctor said, "The good news is that your lungs have started to clear up. The bad news is that you have Dutch Elm Disease."

Within minutes of waking up every day, people are bombarded with "bad news." You hear it on your television and while you're driving down the road. And when you look at your phone or other device, it's on your latest news feed. People may wonder if there's any good news happening in the world, but they could miss the good news that's happening in their own communities.

Did you know there are approximately 85,000 charities across Canada that provide help for Canadians daily? The list includes food banks, women's shelters, kids' camps, churches, rehab centres, ministries, and much more. John Pellowe, Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Centre for Christian Charities (CCCC), discussed the state of Canada's charitable sector when interviewed by Faytene Grasseschi.

Statistics reveal that one in five Canadians use charitable services to meet their essential needs. In 2023, one in seven Canadians said it was the first time they had relied on charities for help.

Faytene said the food bank in her area in New Brunswick told her their volume of demand has tripled in the past four years. "We're in tough economic times, so there's a lot of people who work, but pick up food to help supplement their needs," she said.

While I was chatting with a single-income family with two babies, they expressed appreciation for our local food distribution charity. It fills a huge need in their household.

The increasing need may explain survey results showing more than 57 percent of charities cannot meet the current levels of demand. The demand has increased because food prices have increased.

A single mom in the area verified the price increases when she found a grocery receipt from 2022. She went to the same store and purchased the same items; the total was double what it had been on the 2022 receipt.

That's the bad news, but the good news is that help is available for people in need. Much of that help is not government-funded but is provided by ministries and churches and funded by the generosity of Canadians.

John from CCCC said an analysis was made on the value charities bring to societies. "They analyze the value the same way they analyze the economic value of a sporting event coming to Canada. They've done the same analysis for churches," he explained. The study showed that every $1 a church spends has a $5 return to the community because of the services they provide. "There's a tremendous return on your investment. If you take Christian people/organizations out of the equation, we would be very much impoverished in our charities."

Statistics showed that 82% of Canadians contributed to charitable organizations in 2014, as opposed to 60% contributed in 2023. Although the number of Canadians making charitable donations has been on the decline, an IPS survey showed that those who are giving are giving larger amounts.

"That's why there are concerns about measures the federal government is taking that will actually hurt the charitable sector," John reported. "The demand for their services has skyrocketed in the past four years. What we have now is major donors who are stepping in to help fund all kinds of charities. They're giving out of their wealth, not just their income."

John gave an update from CCCC, which reported that the government is implementing an "alternative minimum tax."

"Currently, if you give a gift of securities, you don't include any of that as capital gains. It's an efficient way to give because everything goes to the charity," he explained. With the inclusion rate, the donor rate will pay tax on the donation. It undermines one of the strongest economic bases for charities." It is especially harmful to charities that don't get corporate or government funding and depend on individual donors.

"To be honest other than hearing this from you, I have not heard this message," Faytene observed.

These combined trends mean some charities that bring so much to our communities are vulnerable. John encouraged Canadians to stay informed and stay in touch with their MPs.

"I think the best thing we can do is to just be our very best selves and be out there helping other people," he concluded. Good news happens when we continue to help and support those in need.