How this food bank is helping Torontonians get resume experience in Mount Dennis

No Canadian work experience. No local references. What are some steps newcomers can take to find work in Toronto?

North York Harvest Food Bank (NYHFB), located in Mount Dennis at 116 Industry St., asked the same question before starting its anti-poverty strategy, the Leadership in Logistics (LIL) program.

The four-week program combines hands-on warehouse experience with a paid pathway to employment at Canadian Tire’s distribution centre, as well as heavy equipment certification.

Ryan Noble, executive director at NYHFB, says NYHFB had a training partner, The Learning Enrichment Foundation, who shared the same building space and already had an industrial skills program.

They were in contact with Canadian Tire — a long-time corporate supporter of NYHFB, who had trouble hiring people with warehouse experience.

They started the Leadership In Logistics program in 2021 with NYHFB partners and warehouse space.

“More than half of food bank users in Toronto right now have full-time employment. And that’s telling us that the economy and the job market aren’t working for people in the way we need them to,” Noble says.

So, NYHFB brought together all the pieces to create the program as it exists today.

Ahmed Hamza, a Weston resident and 2025 program graduate, says the experience helped him gain practical experience working in a warehouse setting and receive valuable certificates from people who want you to succeed.

He was hired full-time at the Canadian Tire Distribution Centre. “The program gave me the skills and confidence to succeed in my role,” he says.

Hamza credits his Canadian Tire supervisor and shift manager for, “Their trust, guidance, and support [playing] an important role in my first year and in my continued career development in Canada.” : Provided by Ahmed Hamza.

“It helped me a lot to start building my career in Canada,” Hamza says while reflecting on his time in the program.

Tony Musa from Fairbank Village also described how the program was a valuable learning opportunity for him. He was originally looking for volunteering opportunities at NYHFB before discovering their LIL program.

Before joining, he had no experience working in warehouses; now he builds and closes orders, palletizes and accompanies drivers on pickups while earning his certification on heavy machinery like forklifts.

“I think the program will be an opportunity for others too,” says Musa.

He didn’t know a food bank could offer a program like LIL. “I didn’t know that a food bank like this could give me an opportunity to work with other companies such as Canadian Tire until I was here.”

Noble says the program has supported over 90 people in partnership with Canadian Tire.

“There’s about 30,000 visits to food banks in the North York Harvest Network, but for those 90 people, having the opportunity to come in, work with us in a four-week paid internship, and then have a career pathway to full-time employment with decent conditions, benefits, opportunities for career growth, that can be a life-changing intervention,” he says.

People interested in LIL can apply through NYHFB’s screening intake form and email them for more information.