Representatives of the Catholic agencies supported by ShareLife and ShareLife volunteers and staff have been visiting Toronto parishes, appealing to parishioners for financial donations to support the 34 agencies and 10 grant-in-aid recipients in the archdiocese of Toronto.

Through the parish campaign, ShareLife plans to raise $12.6 million, which is $650,000 more than the previous year. The corporate campaign goal is $1.4 million.

“We hope that our Catholic community will help us to meet that goal,” said Arthur Peters, executive director of the charitable fund-raising arm of the archdiocese of Toronto.

Peters said ShareLife will not film a promotional video this year and will spend less on printing, reducing its operating budget by two per cent. Last year ShareLife celebrated its 30th anniversary, so many of those affiliated costs will be gone. 

Since the federal government eliminated the capital gains tax in May 2006, more people have donated gifts of mutual funds, bonds and bequests, increasing ShareLife’s revenue.

The extra money will help fund a series of new projects, including a volunteer mentoring program, deaf sign language courses for parents and siblings of the deaf, live-in elderly support services and mentoring programs for inner-city youth where medical students volunteer their time on weekends.

There will also be increased funding for member agencies: Good Shepherd’s transition programs to help men break free from addiction, Canadian Food for Children, Birthright and Toronto Life, the Office of Catholic Youth and St. Augustine’s Seminary.

Two more agencies will receive program specific grants: Hope for Children Foundation, which raises funds for child abuse prevention programs for the Catholic Children's Aid Society of Toronto, and Mater Dei, a women's addiction and emotional issues rehabilitation program run by the Passionist Sisters of St. Paul of the Cross. 

The funding “would help us to better our services to the ladies,” said Sr. Christine Minicucci, the executive director of Mater Dei.