We are super grateful for the incredible 'Behind the Shield' volunteer community that continues to enrich The Salvation Army Ontario Distribution Centre (ODC) with the joy of giving. Thank you to the 3,600 volunteers who, in 2025, dedicated their time and compassion to positively impact the lives of so many. What an incredible year of giving! 

Let’s continue this volunteer momentum together… bringing joy, generosity, and purpose in 2026 to support and strengthen our Ontario community. 

March Break, March 16th –20th 2026, is fast approaching! 

 Bring your families, friends, and students (ages 10 and up) and spend some of that time with us during the March Break, March 16th –20th. 

For Parents with students in Grades 9-12, this is a perfect opportunity for your high school teen to get more community service hours completed.  

For Parents with children ages 10-13 years old, this is a wonderful opportunity to spend a few hours of quality family time together while helping the GTA community that you live and work in.  
 
For Students ages 10+, volunteering is a valuable and rewarding life experience. It helps one see that one person, with one small selfless act of volunteering, can make a positive impact in the world and come away feeling good. And volunteering is FUN!!! 

During the March Break (March 16-20), we have volunteer shifts available for Food Sorting and Toy Sorting activities: 
- 9:00am - 12:00pm (Monday to Friday), and 
- 1:00pm - 3:00pm (Monday to Thursday) 

Check out the MyImpact volunteer portal to select your volunteer date/shift.  For more information ,see details below.

Thank you again for your vibrant ‘Behind the Shield’ volunteer spirit! 

Please see our Ontario Distribution Centre volunteer program details below:

Volunteer Shifts: For safety reasons, we accept groups with a maximum size of 15 volunteers per shift.' 

January to October, we have the following volunteer shifts where the volunteers sort food and other items (clothing, houseware, back-to-school supplies, toys, etc.).

  • Morning volunteer shifts: Monday to Friday (9am-12pm)

  • Afternoon volunteer shifts: Monday to Thursday (1pm-2:45pm…our warehouse hours end at 3pm).

 For November and December, we have the following volunteer shifts where the volunteers bag and sort toys and sort food and other items (clothing, houseware, etc.). 

  • Morning volunteer shifts: Monday to Friday (9am-12pm)  

  • Afternoon shifts: Monday to Friday (1pm-4pm) 

 My Impact volunteer portal, volunteer forms and orientation document:

  1. Register: Please create an account/register your name with the MyImpact volunteer portal. Fill out the ‘Availability’ screen, then click ‘Submit application’.  (IMPORTANT: Please follow the registration instructions included in the attached Corp-Salvation Army Food and Other Sorting Group Volunteer Sign-Up Package.)

  2. Sign up: Please sign in under your name with the MyImpact volunteer portal. To select the date(s) and shift(s) that you wish to do, go to the ‘Opportunities’ tab – select ‘Opportunity Calendar’ -- this view presents a list of the shifts per day in the calendar. Select a date, then select the shift and click on the ‘Sign up’ button. You can also go to the ‘Schedule’ tab to see the shifts you have signed up for. You can also click on ‘Remove’ to remove yourself from a shift.

  3. Forms: Please fill out the 2 Volunteer forms and bring them to your first volunteer shift:  1. Volunteer Waiver of Liability and 2. Volunteer Confidentiality Agreement. (Note: Ignore the ‘Group Volunteer Registration’ form – not applicable for the individual.)

  4. Orientation: Please read the Food and Other Sorting information overview prior to the session prior to your first volunteer session.

Location, Parking and Entrance: Salvation Army Ontario Distribution Centre is located at 150 Railside Road, North York, M3A 1A3. (Major intersection: Lawrence Avenue and DVP.) Volunteer parking is in the Korean Community Church parking (1st driveway entrance). Accessibility parking is located near the main entrance (2nd driveway entrance). Please enter by the Salvation Army Main Reception.

For any inquiries; contact the volunteer management team at the Ontario Distribution Centre:

Julie Santilli, Manager of Volunteers, Ontario Distribution Centre   
(julie.santilli@salvationarmy.ca)   
  
Sherryann Boyce, Volunteer Coordinator, Ontario Distribution Centre  
(sherryann.boyce@salvationarmy.ca)  

To every volunteer, our Happiness Heroes, thank you for being a part of our TSA ODC ‘Behind the Shield’ volunteer program, through your selfless service.