Impact In The Kingston Community: Lionhearts Inc.

Written By QSIA Marketing Team 23/24

December 17, 2020 • Justin Kuppers

As Kingston continues to see an increase in COVID-19 case numbers leading into the winter months, many questions about what is to come are unknown. As tighter restrictions are looming on the horizon, many businesses are being hit with the harsh reality that regular operation is far away and their profits will not be returning soon. Likewise, Kingston's most vulnerable population is becoming more and more isolated, with government restrictions making it increasingly difficult for non profits and charities to provide their food and shelter services. However, non profits like Lionhearts Inc. have not let this stop them as they continue to work tirelessly to provide for those who need it most.

What is Lionhearts Inc.?

Lionhearts Inc. is a non profit organization started in 2014 by a small group of friends to help the marginalized and disenfranchised population in Kingston, Ontario. Lionhearts' primary purpose is to collect food and clothing donations from partner businesses who care about reinforcing local organizations working on the front-lines to help their communities. Their work has grown in response to the Kingston community's needs through many donation programs, partnerships, and considerable distribution efforts. In 2019, they were able to distribute 2 million dollars worth of food to the homeless population, which is a tremendous achievement. Regularly, Lionhearts Inc. partners with agencies to obtain spaces to distribute aid. However, COVID-19 restrictions have shut these businesses down and left Lionhearts without the means to provide their services to those who need them more than ever.

How they are responding?

In response to COVID-19, Lionhearts has pivoted its efforts to focus on distributing goods through the COVID-19 Street Project solely. Their COVID-19 Street Project started outdoors at McBurney Park, but this location is no longer feasible for them to continue their vital work with the cold weather setting. This problem created Lionhearts' opportunity to rent out Stages Nightclub and transform it into a food distribution hub. The partnership allows for Stages to continue to generate income for their otherwise shut down business while also providing the non profit with a large enough space to continue operations and comply with social distancing rules and other COVID-19 regulations.

At the start of November, the Kingston City Council approved support funding to transform Stages nightclub into their food distribution centre. Lionhearts would not have otherwise had the necessary funds to move operations indoors, and the city recognizes the dire need to support all citizens during these challenging times. The budget provided will help Lionhearts Inc. cover the rent costs for six months to distribute food throughout the winter. Furthermore, the annual drop-in program will move to Stages to help people get out of the cold in a safe environment and provide access to necessities.

How can we get involved?

Since opening on November 14 at Stages, Lionhearts have been feeding meals and giving out clothing every day from 6:00 - 7:00 PM. As of December 13, Lionhearts' COVID-19 Street Project initiative has served 168,435 meals since the start of the program, with numbers continually growing. However, it is vital to acknowledge that the Street Project has been so successful because of the communities' continuous need for support through these challenging times. Other Kingston support services were closed due to a lack of donations and volunteers due to the impact of COVID. COVID-19 has not eliminated the vulnerable population in the Kingston community. It is more critical now than ever to support the non profits who are continuing to work every day to help.

If you want to donate or get involved, please use the link below to go to Lionhearts Inc.'s website to learn more about what they do and the best way for you to help. For the month of December, the Pulse Program, which is part of Lionhearts Inc., will triple all their donations, so any help you can give will go even further than before. 

Lionsheart Inc. is just one non profit making a difference in Kingston, but we hope if nothing else this blog post has inspired you to find other non profits in Kingston or your community that are making an impact as well. It is crucial to support our community, and working with non profits is a fantastic way to do so. 

Take care, 

QNP

QSIA Marketing Team 23/24
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