THUNDER BAY — Citing financial pressures and "a challenging fundraising landscape," for all charities, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada is closing its office in Thunder Bay and 23 other Canadian cities.
Regional spokesperson Erin Killoran says the public expects the organization to be as efficient and responsible with donor dollars as possible, and to ensure it has the greatest amount of funds available for its work.
"The decision to close physical office spaces was a result of that," Killoran told Tbnewswatch on Wednesday.
She said that in recent years, more and more donations to Heart and Stroke have come in through its online platform.
"Similar to retail and banking, things that have worked in the past aren't working the same way, so we're evolving and changing the way that we do things to keep up with the way that Canadians want to interact with us," Killoran said.
Other offices being closed in northern Ontario include Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie.
Two full-time staff in Thunder Bay will lose their jobs after Aug. 24.
The foundation will retain one home-based employee who will work on community fundraising and with volunteers.
Killoran said that model has worked well for Heart and Stroke in other locations.
"It allows us to have more (money) available for funding research and doing advocacy work," she said.
