News Corporate Social Responsibility
Maple Leaf Foods, TD Bank donate millions to support front-line health care

Employers across Canada are lining up to support front-line health-care workers in the battle against COVID-19.

Donations are pouring in for the Frontline Fund, organized by hospital foundation leaders from 100 hospitals across the country, as a way for Canadians and corporations to help arm workers with the supplies, supports, research and funding they need to fight the pandemic, support northern communities and indigenous health. More than $8.5 million has already been committed.

“The situation our frontline healthcare workers are facing is unprecedented,” said Caroline Riseboro, president and CEO, Trillium Health Partners Foundation, a member of the steering committee for The Frontline Fund. “They are working around the clock, at risk of contracting COVID-19. They are isolating themselves from their families to avoid spreading the virus.”

“They are tired, anxious, and under relentless pressure to keep fighting. And yet, every day, they go back to work to protect us. We need to protect them, too.”

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There are three pillars the money will be used to support:

• Supplies: From personal protective equipment (PPE) like masks, disinfectants, and disposable clothing; to life-saving ventilators and testing equipment; to the digital infrastructure needed to enable virtual patient care, frontline healthcare workers need more tools to win this battle and keep Canadians safe.
• Supports: Being on the frontlines of this pandemic takes a huge toll. Gift cards, peer-to-peer mental health support, and hotel rooms near the hospital will help our frontline workers protect their families, get much needed rest, and prepare themselves for the effort ahead.
• Research: Hospitals need funding to conduct vital research like clinical drug trials to discover therapeutic breakthroughs and intense vaccine development efforts.

TD Bank Group has already donated $1 million, Maple Leaf Foods has contributed $2.5 million and the CMA Foundation kicked in $5 million.

“Our governments are doing everything they can to help, but they can’t do it alone,” said Michael McCain, CEO of Maple Leaf Foods. “Our health-care workers are not just on the front lines — they are the last line of defence against COVID-19 and without them, we are hopeless. We need to do everything we can to support them right now.”

Andrea Barrack, global head of sustainability and corporate citizenship at TD Bank Group, said its commitment to the community is more important than ever.

“The Frontline Fund provides an opportunity for all of us to give our healthcare workers and hospitals a fighting chance through this pandemic,” she said. “In addition, through our global corporate citizenship, the TD Ready Commitment, which leverages the power of our business, philanthropy and human capital together, TD will be matching colleague donations directly made to The Frontline Fund, along with other on-the-ground organizations that need it the most.”

Individuals and corporations can donate to The Frontline Fund by visiting FrontlineFund.ca. The first round of fund disbursements will take place on April 30, 2020.