Community Investment

While medical treatment in Canada is free, receiving medical care also comes with a high cost for those who must travel a long distance to receive care. Hope Air flights serve as a vital alternative to patients who would otherwise have to travel four to 12 hours or more to their medical appointments. In 2024, the second annual Haul for Hope plane pull at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport raised more than $100,000 in support of Hope Air’s mission of providing families in need, from coast to coast, with the travel and accommodations needed to access medical care far from home.

“I want to thank our friends at PortsToronto, longstanding partners of Hope Air, for their ongoing support of our mission to ensure that no patient is left behind in getting access to vital medical care. This year, we were proud to welcome participants to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport with PortsToronto as our hosts for the inaugural Haul for Hope fundraising event. In 2023, Hope Air provided 24,973 travel arrangements in 2023, an increase of 144% over the previous year. None of this travel for nearly 3,000 patients happens without our committed airport partners who support in so many ways, and who act as a gateway to care for people traveling into downtown Toronto.”

-Mark Rubinstein, Chief Hope Officer, Hope Air

Hanlan Boat Club is a rowing club located on the banks of Toronto’s Outer Harbour, dedicated to inspiring and supporting participants on their rowing journey in an inclusive, safe, and fun waterfront environment. In 2024 PortsToronto supported Hanlan Boat Club’s Pedal and Paddle Summer Camp.

Scientists in schools is a Canadian science education charity dedicated to sparking children’s interest in STEM. PortsToronto is proud to support Scientists in Schools by bringing STEM classroom workshops to schools in the Toronto waterfront area.

The Toronto Waterfront Festival is a unique, one-of-a-kind, three-day event that positions and promotes Toronto locally, nationally and internationally as a waterfront destination by providing on-water, on-land, heritage and cultural programming. PortsToronto has supported this important waterfront festival since 2014.

Aloha Toronto brings a taste of Hawaii to Toronto, providing a day of fun on the water for individuals with autism spectrum disorders. Beneficiaries participate in surfing and stand-up paddleboard workshops in this one-day event, which PortsToronto supports.

PortsToronto supports this unique two-day festival, which celebrates all things maple at Sugar Beach on the Toronto waterfront. The festival features maple delicacies, interactive activities and workshops, giveaways and much more.

Nuit Blanche Toronto is an annual all-night celebration of contemporary art, which has featured thousands of art installations since its inception in 2006. PortsToronto partnered with the Waterfront BIA and Waterfront Toronto in 2023 to bring this celebration of contemporary art to the city’s waterfront.

This textile art project, on display at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, fuses art and poetry to tell stories and celebrate Black history. Bordered with African fabrics from many nations, and centred by the shape of the African continent, the quilt features 30 tiles designed by grade four students at the TDSB Waterfront School.

PortsToronto provides funding to support the Waterfront Neighbourhood Centre’s arts programming, allowing the offering to be expanded to at-risk youth aged 13 to 17. Room 13 Toronto is the Canadian member of an internationally known visual arts program, which implements a resiliency-building strategy that encourages peer mentorship, studio management, entrepreneurial spirit and team-building. We also support the Community Connect Garden, where residents can attend organic urban gardening workshops, share their own gardening tips or simply enjoy the outdoors at the Waterfront Neighbourhood Centre. Participants plant vegetables and herbs that are shared amongst them at this free-of-cost program.

“PortsToronto has been a longtime partner of Waterfront Neighbourhood Centre (WNC). Their contributions to our Community Connect Garden and our Youth Multimedia Studio Program have made a significant impact on our community programs and services. Our Community Connect Garden is able to provide access to fresh and diverse food options to those in our community that struggle with food security. Youth who participate in the Multimedia Studio Program receive the benefits that contribute to their personal, social and academic development while fostering creativity and self expression. Through PortsToronto’s ongoing support, it has assisted WNC in addressing social issues, promote positive change and build a stronger, more resilient waterfront community.”

-Natasha Francis, Executive Director, Waterfront Neighbourhood Centre

PortsToronto supports The Bentway Conservancy, a not-for-profit organization and a registered charity, which provides much needed recreational space in an otherwise unusable area that will benefit our neighbours and the larger Toronto community. The project includes an ice skating trail, an amphitheater, a large green lawn, landscape features, and various event spaces all located under the Gardiner and sitting over 45 feet above ground.

Broad Reach Foundation offers free life-skills and job training education for at-risk youth in the Greater Toronto Area, building confidence, leadership and teamwork through sailing.

Swim Drink Fish is a non-profit working to create a swimmable, drinkable, fishable future by connecting and empowering people to stop pollution, protect human health, and restore natural habitat. Musicians, artists and philanthropists gathered to support their cause at the annual Swim Drink Fish Gala, which raised over $585,000, to which PortsToronto was proud to contribute.

PortsToronto has also supported the Swim Guide, which works to provide the public with up-to-date recreational water quality information.

As part of this collaborative initiative, researchers collect and analyze the anthropogenic debris including plastics and microplastics captured by PortsToronto trash traps to determine the origination of some of these materials. This process, in turn, better informs the Trash Team’s solutions-based research and community outreach program, which ultimately seeks to increase waste literacy and prevent plastics and microplastics from entering waterways in the first place. 

The Wish program is one of the largest distributors of toys to children in need in the Greater Toronto Area. In conjunction with Ornge and Nieuport Aviation, PortsToronto raised more than $10,000 for the campaign in 2023, and we were able help thousands of children and teenagers in our community this holiday season.

To help fight food insecurity, a donation drive was held at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport in November 2023. Passengers and employees donated to the Daily Bread Food Bank’s efforts to support vital food programs across Toronto. With donations matched by the airport, the contribution exceeded $25,000. Additionally, PortsToronto staff also had the opportunity to assist the food bank’s Operations team at their Production Hall, sorting over 4,300 lbs of onions.

PortsToronto was proud to support Indie88 and Socks4Souls Canada’s initiative to provide socks and monetary donations to individuals experiencing homelessness across Southwestern Ontario. This initiative aims to help beneficiaries take better care of their feet which allows them to access food, shelter and other social resources. Socks for the Streets donated over 300,000 pairs of socks in 2023.

PortsToronto partnered with the Black Aviation Professionals Network (BAPN), a non-profit organization that aims to encourage and promote black talent in the field of aviation and aerospace within Canada. The Stargaze gala allows attendees to meet like-minded professionals and network with other students, graduates, and industry leaders, and celebrate the contributions of black aviation professionals to inspire the next generation.

Established in 1993, the Ontario Aerospace Council (OAC) is a not-for-profit organization that works to enhance the recognition of the province’s aerospace capabilities. The organization fosters relationships between academia, industry, governments, researchers and associations to facilitate industry growth. Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport supported the OAC in 2023.

Human trafficking is one of the fastest growing crimes in Canada. We are committed to raising awareness and helping to disrupt human trafficking in our community. PortsToronto allied with #NotInMyCity and Toronto Police Service to provide an education program for staff and partners at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport to help disrupt human trafficking in Canadian airports.

In the 2023 holiday season, PortsToronto hosted three Angel Trees at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, in collaboration with our partners at Nieuport Aviation. Each of these was adorned with hundreds of acrylic angels symbolizing survivors of human trafficking.