4th Annual Paint the Town Red Kick Off Event

On the rooftop patio of Riley’s today, Jim Russell CEO of United Way of Peterborough and District was joined by Campaign Chair Gwyneth James, Paint the Town Red founder Michael VanDerHerberg, and Riley’s owner Jim Kakouros. With the beautiful panorama view in the background, the quartet announced the launch of the 4th annual Paint the Town Red event.

On Wednesday July 13th,  21 participating local restaurants will be donating 25% of their daily sales to support the work of United Way to build a better future for everyone.

Says James, “You can tell the strength of a community by the number of its businesses that support social services organizations – a sector embodied by the United Way. Judging by the number of restaurants participating in Paint the Town Red, we are a very caring community and should be proud. My heartfelt thanks to all of them.”

Michael VanDerHerberg, the originator of the Paint the Town Red initiative added “when I think of Peterborough, the generous hearts, the passion to be inclusive, and the importance of breaking bread together, I thought it was a perfect partnership to have the restaurant community collaborate with the proud work of United Way in strengthening  the place where we live.”

Last year’s day of feting and feasting raised close to $10,000.00 and Riley’s in their inaugural year raised the second most money. Jim Kakouros stated, ““We are excited to join our neighbouring establishments and again be part of such a great local event.  Our community is very important to us at Riley’s and we’re proud to be supporting the United Way Peterborough.”

 

Come Dine on July 13th at one of the 2016 Participating restaurants:

Apollo Grill

Ashburnham Ale House

Black Honey Dessert and Coffeehouse

BrickHouse Craft Burger Grill

Brio Gusto Restaurant & Wine Bar

Cosmic Charlie’s Café

Dolce Vita Resto

Electric City Gardens

Kawartha Dairy – scooped ice cream only

La Hacienda Mexican Restaurant

Marty Moos

Natas Café

Night Kitchen

Olde Stone Brewing Company

Planet Bakery

Rare Grill House

Riley’s

Sam’s Place

Silver Bean Café

Soupcon Bistro

St Veronus

Follow us @UnitedWayPtbo and help spread the red #PaintPtboRed

Join the event group and invite your friends on Facebook: Paint The Town Red – Facebook Event

Social Posts

🚚 Moving thousands of school supplies to fill more than 400 backpacks for local students is made easy thanks to the help of our wonderful friends @autoconnectsales 

✏️Thank you to Cheryl, Martin and the whole team for your support our of Backpacks for Success program. Your generosity makes a real difference in our community!
🎉 PTBO & COUNTY, SAVE THE DATE! 🎉

We’re kicking off something special. 85 years of United Way Peterborough & District and we want you to be there! 

Join us for our 2026 Campaign Launch, presented by Miskin Law [@miskinlaw] as we officially launch this year’s campaign and celebrate the incredible community that has carried the work of United Way forward for 85 years. ❤️

We’re especially excited to welcome 2026 Campaign Chair Tiffany Arcari [@_thetiffanyshow] whose leadership will help guide this year’s campaign, alongside Jason Seguya, our new CEO, as he joins our community for his first Campaign Launch in his new role. Let’s make it a special one😁📣!

📅 September 17, 2026
⏰ 12:00 - 1:30 [doors open at 11:30]
📍 Healthy Planet Arena

More details — including tickets — at the link🔗 in our bio!

85 years united. One community. A campaign to remember.
✨ Half the world is under 30. In Canada, that’s 35% of us.

Young people aren’t just the future, they’re changemakers right now. 💪

On #InternationalYouthDay, United Way Peterborouh & District celebrates their leadership, their courage, and their vision for a better world. 🌟💛
🎒🚗 What a day! We filled the Fords and our hearts @autoconnectsales

A HUGE thank you to everyone who came out to Fill the Fords on Saturday, donated supplies, volunteered, sponsored the event, grabbed a BBQ lunch courtesy of @kingstmarket, enjoyed some ice cream from @central_smith, and helped us celebrate the incredible generosity of our community.

We’re so grateful to Auto Connect Sales, our sponsors, community partners, volunteers, media friends, and every single person who helped make this day possible. Your support will help local students start the school year feeling prepared, confident, and ready to learn.

But we’re not done yet! 🎒

There’s still time to help. If you haven’t had a chance to donate, we’re collecting new backpacks and school supplies at the United Way Peterborough & District office and at participating community collection locations until THIS FRIDAY, August 14!

Every backpack, every box of crayons, every notebook and every donation helps us get closer to ensuring local students have the tools they need to succeed.

✨Comment “BACK TO SCHOOL” and we’ll send you the full list of participating businesses running supply drives.
Exciting News! 💫 The Reaching Home deadline has been extended!

Applicants now have until Wednesday, August 19 to submit your proposals.

Please keep in mind: 
👉 Applications will be reviewed based on alignment to the following community priorities:
• Creating, preserving, and enabling equitable access to housing
• Eviction prevention
• Outreach
👉 Funding covers the period October 1, 2026, to March 31, 2028
👉 New application deadline August 19, 2026

ℹ️ What is Reaching Home? It's a community-based program aimed at preventing and reducing homelessness across Canada. This program provides funding to communities to help them address their local homelessness needs.

Apply today at uwpeterborough.ca
We 💙 GM Financial!

A huge thank you to our friends at GM Financial for dropping off our first Backpacks for Success donations of the season! We’re so grateful for partnerships like these in our community. 

💡 As part of their workplace drive, employees received a work from home day in exchange for making a donation. What a creative way to encourage workplace giving!

Our Backpacks for Success supply drives wrap up on August 14, but there is still time to help! Join us on August 8 at Auto Connect Sales for our Fill the Fords event. We’ll be there from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. collecting school supplies, so stop by, say hello, and help us fill the Fords! 👋🎒
We’re growing, evolving, and looking for an experienced Director, Finance & Administration to join our Senior Leadership Team.

This is an opportunity to help shape the future of United Way Peterborough & District by providing strategic leadership across finance, administration, governance, and organizational operations, ensuring we remain a strong and sustainable partner for our community.

📍 Peterborough, ON
💼 Full-time
💰 Starting salary: $83,106; salary range up to $93,536
📅 Apply by August 14, 2026

Interested or know someone who’d be a great fit? Visit our website [link in bio] to learn more and apply, and please help us spread the word by sharing this opportunity within your networks.
❤️Won’t you be our neighbour? 

Stay tuned, @_thetiffanyshow will be sharing the full story (and her inspiring Campaign Chair speech) soon. You won’t want to miss this!

#CertifiedNeighbour #UnitedWayPTBO
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