Ingersoll Rotary Club opens charitable warehouse to fight food insecurity

The Ingersoll Rotary Club has opened a new facility, supporting people facing food insecurity. CTV London’s Reta Ismail reports.

The Ingersoll Rotary Club officially opened the Ingersoll Rotary Charitable Warehouse on Monday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, marking the start of a new chapter in local community support.

The newly renovated building on Ingersoll Street South was transformed with help from local businesses and volunteers. It will serve as the permanent home of The FOOD Project, a coalition of charitable organizations working together to combat food insecurity in the region.

The idea for the warehouse was first proposed by former Ingersoll Mayor Ted Comiskey, who wanted to create a space where volunteers could assemble Christmas hampers for families in need.

“Ingersoll stepped up to the plate, the businesses, commercial residents. It took no time at all for us to put together that $120,000, because they knew the project was worth having to help the community,” said Comiskey, who now serves as a Warehouse Committee member on the Rotary board.

The Rotary Club signed a long-term lease with GM Canada to repurpose the former CAMI gymnasium into a 6,000-square-foot warehouse, and renovations began in the spring of 2025.

Paula D’Orazio, chair of The FOOD Project, said the facility will house several charitable groups working together to expand their reach.

“We’re going to put Ingersoll on the map, is how we feel! We’re really excited to have this opportunity,” said D’Orazio.

“We are probably nine to 10 charitable organizations that are joining a coalition kind of thing. And we’re all moving in together.”

Rotary members said the warehouse will provide a centralized, stable hub for food services in the area, helping meet growing community needs now and into the future.