ShareLife, the charitable fundraising arm of the Toronto archdiocese that funds more than 30 Catholic agencies, had reached $7.5 million of its $12-million 2010 parish goal by The Register’s deadline. That is just slightly more than what was raised by this time last year in a campaign that fell about half-a-million dollars short of its goal.

But ShareLife said it’s always hard to gauge its progress since parishes report tallies at different points in the campaign, for various reasons. Besides hosting a Sunday collection, many of the parishes organize fundraising events from dance classes to golf tournaments and some even choose to host their largest ShareLife fundraising event after the parish campaign officially ends on May 30, the last of three ShareLife Sunday collections in parishes throughout the archdiocese.  

“Last year we were able to raise $34,000 from our golf tournament and of this, $8,000 went to an orphanage in the Philippines that I founded and the rest went to ShareLife. This year we hope to do more,” said Fr. Daniele Bertoldi, pastor at Immaculate Conception parish in Woodbridge.

The tournament this year is scheduled for June 4, Bertoldi said, because it was a better time. But the parish did spearhead other efforts in months leading up to the campaign’s end to raise money on Mother’s Day through the sale of roses, a seder meal at Easter time, a raffle on the Feast of the Assumption and an event organized by the parish’s Knights of Columbus.

“Coming from a congregation (Immaculate Conception) where charity is the main goal, we are trying to promote our parishioners to get more money for ShareLife,” he said.

At St. Ignatius Loyola parish in Mississauga, parishioners hoped to reach their personal campaign goal of $275,000. Before May 30 parishioners had already raised $204,000 in eight weeks.

“I think ShareLife is important because it gives people the opportunity to reach out to people that maybe, in their daily lives, they can’t touch,” said associate pastor Fr. Joe Gorman. “If it is the marginalized, if it is people in need where day-to-day people don’t get to see that, but ShareLife gives them that opportunity to be a part of that social outreach of our Church.”

A gala dinner organized by the parish in April raised $10,000, but parishioners were constantly coming forward with other ideas.

“A lady, a dance instructor, wanted to do something for ShareLife so we did the Zoomba last night. It’s a dance that gives you a fitness workout,” Gorman said, noting a free-will offering raised more than $400.

“(Pastor) Msgr. (Joseph) Shiels gives priority and understands the importance of ShareLife to the whole diocese and really has made people aware of that situation because of how many lives it touches.

“And so for years, ShareLife has been very important to this community and they respond every year,” Gorman said.

Bill Steinburg, spokesperson for ShareLife, said he hopes people will remember any new donations will be matched by an anonymous donor this year. And the need is greater than ever.

“The demand is such that agencies could be providing more services, $800,000 worth,” Steinburg said.