A local charity is celebrating 85 years of making a difference in the community.
Goodwill Industries Essex Kent Lambton was founded in 1933 and opened its first retail store in 1939 on Victoria St.
Since then, the foundation has expanded to two career centres, five retail stores, and 12 donation centres which employ around 250 people.
CEO Kevin Smith says they help thousands of people every year in a number of different ways.
"It's not just at our career centres, but it's also with the development of services. It's with the Ontario Disability Support Program where we placed over 1,434 individuals into jobs this past year," says Smith. "So we have a great partnership with our local employers. Anyone that's looking for work, we really want to get them back into the workforce."
Smith says a partnership with Libro Credit Union has helped Goodwill serve the community, and with expansion work being done at the London Rd. shopping centre.
The foundation hosted an exclusive luncheon on Thursday to celebrate the milestone.
