Two-Year Dream Becomes Reality as Toronto Celebrates the Grand Re-Opening of the Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs, Miles and Kelly Nadal Youth Centre

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Jan. 26, 2012) -

Editors note: A photo for this press release is available on the Canadian Press picture wire via Marketwire.

After two years of extensive renovations, the Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs today announced the grand re-opening of the Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs, Miles and Kelly Nadal Youth Centre. The state-of-the-art, multi-floor facility, remaining at its 101 Spruce Street location - where it has served the community since 1936 - will continue to provide a safe, supportive and fun space where children and youth from the Regent Park community can experience new opportunities, build positive relationships and develop confidence.

The Club, which stays true to the heritage principles of the original Gerrard Club building and the surrounding Cabbagetown neighbourhood, doubles the previous space and boosts daily enrollment from 125 to 180. Generous donations include $1 million from the Kiwanis Club of Toronto along with a $300,000 annual program funding commitment, matching RINC funding from the provincial and federal government. The Miles & Kelly Nadal Youth Centre adds an entirely new floor to the building, the result of a $1 million donation from the CEO of MDC Partners Inc. and a $800,000 commitment to support the Club's programs over a 10 year period. The new facility offers local area children and youth a range of challenging activities to build positive relationships and develop self-confidence, including:

• Rogers Technology Centre
• Loblaw Companies Fitness Room
• BMO Amphitheatre
• Junior Creative Arts Room
• The Lowes Kitchen
• TD Bank Junior Reading Room
• Gymnasium
• Performing Arts Floor
• Recording Studio
• Dance Studio
• Indoor Climbing Wall

"Today is an important day for the youth and families of Regent Park, our neighbours and for all the residents of Toronto. I'm proud of the effort, dedication and generosity of our many donors and volunteers in bringing the vision of our new Club to life," said Ian Edward, executive director, Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs. "The re-opening of the Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs, Miles and Kelly Nadal Youth Centre provides more than just supervised, after-school care - it represents a centre of hope for one of Toronto's most vibrant communities."

"My family and I feel privileged to have the opportunity to invest in some of the great future leaders of tomorrow," said Miles Nadal, CEO, MDC Partners Inc. "Regent Park is one of Canada's most dynamic neighbourhoods, and home to a generation of youth with the talent and energy that will shape the future of Toronto for years to come. We are making a long-term commitment to this community and we are honoured to play a role in helping provide a safe place where local youth can grow, learn and realize their full potential."

"The Kiwanis Club of Toronto has supported the Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Club with annual funding for over 65 years," said Joe Elkerton, president, Kiwanis Club of Toronto. "When we decided to make the lead gift of $1 million dollars over two years towards the capital campaign, we knew we needed a great partner to make this dream a reality. We are so grateful to Miles and Kelly Nadal for joining us."

Today, the Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs serve over 1,100 young people in Toronto's downtown west and downtown east communities. Since its inception, the Club has helped over 50,000 young people reach their full potential. In 1937, the Kiwanis Club of Toronto purchased an old church in the city, well located as an after-school refuge for 'at-risk' children. In 1933, T.P. Tommy Loblaw, a Toronto Kiwanis Member, left a sizeable legacy to the Kiwanis Club of Toronto to be used to help the children in the city. Since then, many other members have left legacies, enabling the Kiwanis Club of Toronto to not only operate the first Boys & Girls Club on Spruce Street, but two other locations in midtown and west Toronto.

In 1992 Toronto Kiwanis Boys and Girls Clubs incorporated and became a separate charitable organization. The Kiwanis Club of Toronto still plays an important role in their annual gift to support the operational funding of the Club's programs.

The Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Club would like to thank the many donors who made the new Club possible, including Miles & Kelly Nadal; the Kiwanis Club of Toronto; the Province of Ontario; the Government of Canada; the Ontario Trillium Foundation; Rogers Communications; MDC Partners; the E.W. Bickle Foundation; Lowe's Canada; Loblaw Companies; Wonder+ Cares; BMO; Forzani Group; TD Financial, Capital C; and the Norman & Marian Robertson Foundation.

About Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs

The Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs (the Club) is a member organization of Boys & Girls Clubs of Canada. Founded in 1936 by the Kiwanis Club of Toronto, the Clubs have been providing a safe place for after-school, evening and school break programs. The Club serves 1,100 children and youth in the Regent Park, Cabbagetown and Trinity Bellwoods communities annually. With a rich 75-year history the Club has helped over 50,000 children discover, develop and achieve their full potential by providing a continuum of after-school programs and services for children and youth between the ages of six to 18. The Club, a United Way member agency, is a leading non-profit provider of programs that support the healthy physical, education and social development of Toronto's children and youth. Sixty-nine percent of the Club's families earn less than 20 thousand dollars annually. For more information about the Toronto Kiwanis Boys & Girls Clubs please visit www.believeinkids.ca.

For more information on the Kiwanis Club of Toronto please visit www.torontokiwanis.ca.