Standard Community Chest ceases

By Sean Feagan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

After 65 years, the Standard Community Chest is closing for good.

The Standard Community Chest started in 1955 as a community effort to requisition funds for charitable causes. Since then, the charity has held annual donation drives in the village. Each year, the collected funds were donated to charities, as chosen by the group’s directors or as specified by donors. 

In March, the Standard Community Chest directors announced this year’s campaign and all future campaigns would be cancelled. They decided to stop because the organization’s role of collecting donations has been replaced by other means, explained Twila McKinnon, president.

“Over the last few years, we’ve decided we’ve kind of been outgrown by progress – times have changed,” she said, adding it is now easier for people to donate to their charity of choice. Because people can make donations directly to organizations by mail, the internet, or through sponsorship or other campaigns, the door-to-door approach by Standard Community Chest volunteers is obsolete.

The decision to close was made during the charity’s director’s November 2020 meeting. There are some things for the organization to finalize, said McKinnon, including formally exiting its corporation and registry.

The group’s legacy will live on, however. Throughout its time, the Standard Community Chest has supported many other charities, including the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, the Cancer Foundation, the Policy Foundation and the CNIB Foundation. The organization has seen hundreds of directors in various roles working to help these causes throughout the charity’s history.