Editor’s note: As of October 1, 2024, the Motorcycle Ride for Charity raised $53,818.10, which surpassed the ORCF’s original goal of $52,000.

On September 12, 2024, the Ontario Realtors Care Foundation (ORCF) is holding its 17th Motorcycle Ride for Charity.

With a mission to enable and empower realtors across Ontario to fundraise in support of shelter-related causes in the communities in which they live and work, ORCF funds registered charities that improve the quality of Ontarians’ lives by providing refuge, a haven or another type of protection from the effects of hunger, the elements, abuse, disabilities and illness.

The event

Participants will choose to ride one of two routes this September. At the end, they’ll meet to end their day together in Peterborough over dinner.

While the full itinerary is still coming, the Eastern and Western routes are:

• Ottawa — Smiths Falls — Kingston — Peterborough
• Kitchener — Barrie — Peterborough 

Previous years help but need still great

In 2023, ORCF granted out over $1.8 million dollars in funds to over 170 organizations to support individuals who need it the most. This included the Motorcycle Ride for Charity’s best year ever, when it raised approximately $49,000.

And the need is great. In Ontario:

• 45 per cent of tenant households spend 30 per cent or more of their total income on shelter — the highest rate in Canada.
• Food bank use has increased 42 per cent over the past three years and a third of those visitors are using this service for the first time.

Source: Association of Municipalities of Ontario

Goal for 2024

This year, ORCF has set an ambitious goal to raise $52,000, which it will use to support shelter-related causes in Ontario.

“In 2023, the Foundation made a major impact on shelter and food insecurity in Ontario by donating $1.8 million to over 170 charitable organizations. But the need is great, and we can do more,” Shannon Ketelaars, ORCF’s executive director, explains.

She notes that skyrocketing housing costs and food inflation are causing more households to choose between feeding their families or putting a roof over their heads. “Now more than ever, it’s important that our community stays connected and comes together to build awareness, raise much-needed funds and discuss the positive impact that realtors and our industry can make through the work of the Ontario Realtors Care Foundation,” expresses Ketelaars.

Get more information, register to ride or pledge a rider here.

Image: Ontario Realtors Care Foundation, event final stop and dinner

The London and St. Thomas Association of Realtors (LSTAR) supported the 16th Ontario Realtors Care Foundation Motorcycle Ride for Charity, which raises financial support for causes related to shelters in Ontario.

Adam Miller, LSTAR’s 2023 chair, explains, “LSTAR Realtor members have deep roots of supporting shelter-related organizations. With inflation and affordability challenges, charitable organizations are needed more than ever to help our neighbours in need.”

Events in London

The two-day ride across the province aimed to do just that. LSTAR helped out by hosting the riders at an end-of-day event on day one, followed by a kickoff breakfast the next morning.

Close to 35 riders started in Whitby and ended in Windsor, also riding through Brampton, Guelph, Brantford, London, Sarnia and Chatham.

Most funds raised in event history

This year’s ride was the most successful in its history of over a decade and a half. The provincial event has raised over $46,000 so far (donations are still being accepted through the charity’s website).

“We couldn’t have gotten there without each rider’s fundraising efforts and the support of all Ontario real estate boards and associations, including those along our route representing Central Lakes, Toronto, Guelph, Brantford, London and St. Thomas, Sarnia-Lambton, Chatham-Kent and Windsor-Essex,” expresses Shannon Ketelaars, executive director of the Ontario Realtors Care Foundation, about this year’s ride.

She says, “We also had incredible sponsors, like Appraisal Institute of Canada’s Ontario arm and #Mindshare101. Bringing all of these incredibly philanthropic stakeholders in the real estate business together gave us results beyond our wildest dreams. The funds raised will go a long way toward supporting shelter-related charities in Ontario.”

Photo shows participants in the 2023 Motorcycle Ride for Charity at LSTAR headquarters
Credit: Stacey Rodas