Daily Bread held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on October 18, 2023, welcoming staff from 123 member agencies. The AGM is an opportunity for Daily Bread partners to come together to connect, network, vote on proposed changes, and receive recognition for their dedication to ending hunger across the city.
This year, Daily Bread was honoured to welcome Mayor Olivia Chow as the evening’s Keynote Speaker. In her speech to the group, she highlighted the importance of storytelling and advocacy, and the power of coming together – urging the group, “let us work together, and let us lift each other up”, at a time of record need in Toronto.
During the AGM, Daily Bread distributed the 2023 Annual Impact Report. Although the year was one of growth and challenges, with over 2.5 million clients visits to member food banks and programs, it was also one of collaboration and meaningful steps forward; with this past year presenting unique opportunities to advocate for the right to food, including hosting the first debate of the mayoral by-election campaign, speaking at the House of Commons on food inflation and the Federal Grocery Rebate, and advocating for the Canada Disability Benefit. Neil Hetherington, CEO, Daily Bread, captured the essence of our efforts as we look forward when he said, “As long as we can, we will feed the need and advocate for change.”
Each year, the AGM also presents an opportunity for a changeover in members on the Daily Bread Board of Directors.
This year, departing members were Aisha Ansari and Morgan Harris:
Aisha has been an integral part of the Board of Directors for 8 years. In her role as a member of the Governance & Nominations Committee, she has ensured accreditation with Imagine Canada and the standards of governance that resulted in Daily Bread’s A+ rating with Charity Intelligence. She has also provided leadership as the Co-Chair of the Public Relations Committee, dedicated to advancing Daily Bread’s research work, overseeing the development of Who’s Hungry and integrating research with public relations to amplify our message.
Morgan joined the Daily Bread Board of Directors in 2019, leveraging his experience supporting Allan Gardens Food Bank to help on the Programs and Services Support Committee. He has been a passionate advocate for agency concerns and how Daily Bread’s policies and procedures affect the work being done on the ground. His work has led to the increased capacity and resilience of one of Toronto’s busiest food banks.
We thank both Aisha and Morgan for their dedication and years of service.
This year, the Daily Bread Board of Directors welcomed three new members, Boafoa Kwamena, Bill Argeropoulos and Nicole Barry:
Boafoa has over 14 years of public policy experience and is currently Director of Project Implementation at the Ministry of Infrastructure. She is also on the Board of Directors of Rise, an organization dedicated to empowering people with mental health and addiction challenges to achieve greater social and economic inclusion through entrepreneurship, and is volunteer coordinator at Grace Pascoe Food Bank, a Daily Bread member agency in the upper beaches area of Toronto.
Nicole is the Chief Financial and Administrative Officer at MaRS Discovery District, having moved to Toronto from Winnipeg for the role. She has worked in senior leadership roles within finance and operations for over 20 years, and is the founder of two start-ups. Nicole has spent many years volunteering on not-for-profit boards and is excited for the opportunity to contribute to her new community of Toronto by joining the Daily Bread Board.
Bill had a long and successful career in commercial real estate for 33 years, before retiring in 2021. As a regular volunteer in the Daily Bread production hall, food insecurity is his greatest cause, and a problem that he has seen grow right before his very eyes. His tireless efforts to support organizations including Canadian Red Cross, GlobalMedic, Princess Margaret Hospital and the Canadian Cancer Society have earned him the Community Service Award at the 2023 NAIOP Greater Toronto Chapter’s Real Estate Excellence Awards Gala.
Thank you to all our member agencies, staff and volunteers for your dedication to serving your communities and supporting those facing food insecurity in Toronto. Thank you as well to our Board of Directors for your support of our mission.
You can learn more about our 2023 Annual Impact Report by clicking here.
