DECA: the year in review

In the year since last spring’s AGM, DECA has been busy! 2022 was a year of cautiously joyful returns to our pre-pandemic activities, which we will tell you about here, in advance of our AGM on April 3 at Hirut. Speaking of, have you registered yet? Click here: AGM RSVP

June

On June 11, the Danforth East Yard Sale came back with an impressive 206 households signing up and putting their flag on the map!

June-October
Over the summer, DECA along with Farmers’ Market Ontario, hosted the East Lynn Park Farmers’ Market. On Thursdays, booths were filled with fresh farm produce, local vendors, and breweries accompanied by live music, rotating community organizations and children’s activities. We welcomed the Kidpreneurs program, which the community enthusiastically supported.
September
In September the Danforth East Arts Fair brought us talented artists, live entertainment, community dance studio performances and more great food.

October

In October, we organized a municipal all-candidates debate and an engaged community filled the venue.

Screengrab from the video of the event (available on DECA’s Youtube channel, https://www.youtube.com/@deca-danfortheastcommunity1531)

November

The first night of November always begins with the Pumpkin Parade! Hundreds of pumpkins lined the path at East Lynn while neighbours chatted and kids enjoyed late-night playground privileges!

December

Our annual Festival of Lights returned with Shannon Butcher leading a singalong in the park and Community Fridges collecting food donations.

February

Some of our DECA board members and community members walked the Coldest Night and raised funds in support of Kennedy House Youth Shelter.

DECA is run by a dedicated volunteer board. We meet regularly and are excited about what’s to come. We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you at our AGM on April 3!

Become a DECA Board Member

Your 2022 Board (l-r): Raktim Mitra, Andrea Nichols Egan, Rebecca Green, Betty Zou, Fahreen Ladak, Jenn Macdonald, Jade Woodruffe. Absent: Audrey Kvedaras and Jordan D’Souza

A reminder that our Annual General Meeting will be held on Monday, Apr 3, 2023 at Hirut Cafe + Restaurant. 

Don’t forget to let us know if you are coming to the meeting! RSVP form

One of the key parts of the AGM is the election of the board for the 2023-2024 year. This year we are looking for a few folks to join us

Board Member Eligibility and Term 

To be a Board member, individuals must be members of DECA. Board members are elected for one-year terms.

Application Process

If you’re interested in being considered for a position on DECA’s Board, please submit a short blurb about yourself, that articulates your motivation for joining DECA and your ties to the community to info@deca.to by Mar 27, 2023. We we will introduce you at the AGM and members will vote at that time.

Visit DECA’s full constitution here:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1teLElTu7KrI52cwhVus733ZmmEoo7oGvj8fWad5d_7o/edit

Back in person! Join DECA at our Annual General Meeting

We are very excited to announce that this year’s Annual General Meeting will be held in person again at Hirut Cafe and Restaurant at 2050 Danforth on Monday, April 3 at 7pm (doors open at 6:30). A light buffet will be provided.

Please let us know if you can make it by clicking on the link to fill out the form below, where you can also tell us about any accessibility requirements. And if you can’t make it, the form has options for you to submit questions or comments that we can share at the meeting.

RSVP form for the AGM 

A reminder that as this is our AGM, you must be a member to attend. You can get or renew your membership at deca.to

As we near this annual general meeting, we thought it a good time to revisit and share DECA’s mission and guiding principles. From our constitution:

Mission: The Danforth East Community Association (DECA) mission is to build a stronger, more vibrant and walkable community, and to empower residents of our neighbourhood through community involvement.

Guiding Principles:

  • We are non-partisan;
  • We are inclusive and respectful of our diverse communities;
  • We strive to make our community safe for everyone;
  • We make efforts to participate in planning that affects this community;
  • We encourage revitalization that values inclusivity, diversity and environmental responsibility 
  • We will be a responsive, credible and representative voice for the community;
  • We work to protect the natural beauty of the neighbourhood; and,
  • We will facilitate the dissemination of important information to the community.

As always, we love to hear from you! email us at info@deca.to with any comments or questions.

Join us for the Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser!

It’s been a little over two months since we last posted here — apologies for the radio silence as day jobs, holidays and other responsibilities got in the way! We are back and really excited to share a community opportunity with you: a fundraising walk for Kennedy House as part of the Coldest Night of the Year nation-wide fundraiser.

You can register for the walk and join the Danforth East Community Team here:

Toronto Danforth Coldest Night of the Year  (click “join a team” at registration and search for DECA)

Here is the press release from Kennedy House:

Kennedy House staff, friends and family are walking to raise awareness and funds for youth experiencing homelessness

(February 7, 2023) Toronto, ON – On Saturday, February 25, 2023, staff, family and friends of
Kennedy House will be raising money for programs and services by walking in the Coldest Night
of the Year. This is the 7 th annual Kennedy House CNOY event and it will be hosted on the
Danforth, Toronto at 4pm. This fundraiser, held in more than 130 communities nationwide,
aims to raise funds and awareness for programs and services that support populations
experiencing homelessness, or at-risk of experiencing homelessness. Kennedy House walkers
and teams will be walking 2 or 5km to support the Kennedy House youth programs.

Together, we will brave the cold and walk with family and friends as advocates for youth who
not only need our support, but deserve it. We want to see leaders come out of this community
and show the next generation that forging a positive path can be done.
To walk, donate, or volunteer, visit https://cnoy.org/location/torontodanforth.

About Kennedy House
Kennedy House is a non- profit organization, which has been providing essential services to
youth and Families in the Greater Toronto area since 1971. We support, care for, and raise
youth up to become healthier and stronger individuals, which is achieved through a variety of
residential and community based programs. Our aim is to work with youth, and enable them to
grow as individuals whilst contributing and becoming active members of the community. Since
its inception, Kennedy House has helped over 14,000 youth through our programs.

For all CNOY updates, check us out on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter and follow the #CNOY23
conversations online!

DECA Board Meeting Tonight (Dec. 6 2022)

Join the DECA board online via zoom meeting tonight, Tuesday Dec. 6 at 7pm.

The zoom link:https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84993673126?pwd=QXZ6eGVGUUJRRHJWTy9MbzdUQTliZz09

Meeting ID: 849 9367 3126
Passcode: 136621

dial-in: 647 374 4685
647 558 0588

Tentative Agenda:
Introductions, minutes from last meeting
Tree-Lighting
Farmers’ Market
All-Candidates Meetings
Danforth Garage
Woodgreen Collaboration
Membership
New Business
Hope to see you there!

Tree-Lighting Singalong; Board Meeting Dec. 6

Tis the season for song and snacks!

That’s right, it’s tree-lighting singalong day! Come by East Lynn Park for 530 today to join  Shannon Butcher and friends from The Space to sing the holiday classics (lyrics posted at deca.to). Bring a mug to fill with Cocoro hot chocolate and grab a Celena’s cookie from the DECA tent. Big thanks to our sponsors at Trust Realty for the funding and to Councillor Bradford for the park permit. And don’t forget your food donation for the Community Fridges!

Next public board meeting: Dec. 6

Join the DECA board online via zoom for our next meeting, Tuesday Dec. 6.  The zoom link:https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84993673126?pwd=QXZ6eGVGUUJRRHJWTy9MbzdUQTliZz09

Meeting ID: 849 9367 3126
Passcode: 136621

dial-in: 647 374 4685
647 558 0588

Topics for discussion (formal agenda to follow)
Tree-Lighting
Farmers’ Market
All-Candidates Meetings
Danforth Garage
Woodgreen Collaboration
Membership
New Business
Hope to see you soon!