What is the Gift Card Program?
With record increases in child and family poverty in Toronto, many families served by the Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto (CCAS) have struggled to afford food, diapers, formula, personal care items and basic household needs. Your donations provide families with gift cards from Canadian retailers so they can provide for their children, preventing a temporary cash shortfall from snowballing.
How it helps:
Vulnerable families need a hand
Toronto is the child poverty capital of Canada, and the depth of poverty is growing, particularly among low-income, one-parent, Indigenous, racialized, immigrant and newcomer children. Gift cards from the CCAF offer a lifeline for CCAS-involved families, who are challenged by financial instability, unemployment, education gaps and mental health concerns.
Your impact:
CCAF-funded gift cards cover unexpected needs that fall through the cracks
Gift cards don’t just deliver financial aid—they offer stability, dignity and hope. Thanks to donors like you, CCAF-funded gift cards have:
- Helped an unemployed mother buy a stroller or her toddler after escaping from domestic violence.
- Filled the lunch boxes of children who recently arrived in Canada, but whose family hadn’t yet qualified for community support.
- Been a godsend for a single mom who was unable to work while caring for her teenage daughter with cancer.
Read more inspiring stories

Shanika’s story: Scholarship recipient defied the odds
“It means someone is rooting for me.” CCAF bursaries help youth in extended care attend university, college or trade school

A helping hand for young mom Valeria* and her toddler
Donor support helped avert a crisis and gave this mother important skills, resources and community to provide for her child

Brandon and Sean’s Story – How Two Brothers Are Paying It Forward For The Next Generation
“They are my parents, that’s how I think of them today. I love them. I definitely wouldn’t be where I am today, if it weren’t for them.”
– Brandon, 32, on his foster parents
See more programs

Gift Card Program
CCAF-funded gift cards help impoverished families buy groceries and other necessities

Camps 4 Kids
CCAF donors help send Toronto children and youth in care to overnight and day camps

Ignite The Spark
We cover enrolment costs for sports, arts and recreation fees so kids and youth can learn and have fun pursuing their passions