Slaight Family Foundation Donates $15M To United Way
A $15-million donation from The Slaight Family Foundation to United Way Greater Toronto is breaking new ground in support for seniors as the largest individual gift in the United Way’s history.
By External Source
The Slaight family and affiliated Foundation has once again shown its great generosity with a new program, this time designed to help seniors in the GTA.
A $15-million donation from The Slaight Family Foundation to United Way Greater Toronto is breaking new ground in support for seniors as the largest individual gift in the United Way’s history.
The Allan Slaight Seniors Fund connects vulnerable seniors with community support to help them remain in their homes and continue to be active participants in their neighbourhoods. A first of its kind, the fund bridges the gap between the healthcare system and families by connecting seniors to United Way’s network of community agencies.
The $15-million gift over six years will focus on the needs of seniors who have difficulty accessing health and social services because of poverty or other barriers. Community agencies provide critical support to help seniors stay healthy longer and close to home. The United Way’s network of social, recreational, and peer programs is aimed at reducing the isolation many of them experience. The Allan Slaight Seniors Fund will both expand this network of supports and make it easier to access them by coordinating programs available in their communities, and in integrating these services.
“The Slaight family are game changers,” said Daniele Zanotti, President & CEO, United Way Greater Toronto. “In 2009, the family broke ground with a foundational gift to United Way’s Youth Challenge Fund. Today, this trailblazing gift from The Slaight Family Foundation is helping the GTA reimagine how we can support and empower seniors to remain active, vibrant and connected in their communities.”
The gift builds on Allan Slaight’s decades-long legacy of giving and community service. Staring in 1979, he volunteered for nine years with the United Way Greater Toronto Board of Directors. As chair of the 1985 United Way campaign, he led the organization to a record-breaking result and the highest year over year in the non-profit charity’s history.
“More than anything, this gift honours my Dad,” said Gary Slaight, The Slaight Family Foundation. “His commitment to United Way’s mission to create opportunities and connection for everyone has always been important to our family. We think there is much more to be done to take care of the elderly in Toronto and we believe that the solution starts with community. We are pleased to honour Allan’s history and commitment to the work of the United Way with the creation of the Seniors Fund.”
Seniors are the fastest growing age group in Ontario – and that population is expected to double by 2041. Today, 34-percent of the province’s seniors call the GTA home.
Since the Foundation’s launch in 2008, the Toronto-based charity has committed gifts in the neighbourhood of $200 million to various causes.
About Allan Slaight:
He started his career at CHAB AM in Moose Jaw and rapidly parlayed his entrepreneurial flair with his knowledge of radio to create Canada's largest privately owned multi-media company, the Standard Broadcasting Corporation. He sold the majority of his broadcasting assets to Astral Media in 2007. He has served the public interest as a trustee and or director for organizations such as United Way, Women's College Hospital, and Shaw Festival. He was also instrumental in bringing the Toronto Raptors to Toronto and developing the Air Canada Centre. Among the many honours received, he was inducted into the Broadcast Hall of Fame in 1997, and in 2001 was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada. He continues to live life to the fullest and maintains a life-long interest in conjuring.
