20 Winterbrook – Community Hero: Holiday Edition

The goal was to make the holidays just a little brighter for those in need, and the holiday spirit and a caring community led to exceeded expectations. “I was shocked by the generosity,” says Ian Andre Espinet, Founder of the 20 Winterbrook Charity.

Ian grew up participating in charity events and community work, and 20 Winterbrook is the brainchild of wanting to formalize the efforts. In a swift week and a half, Ian was able to team up with community organizations like Agincourt Family Association and Tropicana to run the Adopt-a-Family project.

Together, the organizations easily collected everyday items like pots, pans, bedsheets, clothing, and toys. This year, the goal was to reach out to the community to bring some dreams to life by joining together to collect wish list items for six families. Charity efforts were so successful – thanks to the generosity of local Scarborough members – that closer to 12 families were recipients of the holiday drive.

Asked what motivated him to kick start this project, Ian simply replied, “To be honest, I wish it was some genius thing… I saw a homeless person at the corner of Kennedy and 401 as I was getting off the exit. I saw one at Metro asking for money. I saw one at Agincourt.” After seeing so many less fortunate individuals within his own neighbourhood, he knew he just wanted to make a difference.

This is the first in what is hopefully multiple, on-going collaborations, throughout the year. Some charity ideas brewing up for Ian: Back-to-School and a female personal hygiene drive.