The Society of Sharing: Inner-City Volunteers, a charitable organization, was incorporated as a non-profit agency in 1981. The Society of Sharing was formed by the parishes of Pastoral Zone One in downtown Toronto, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and by various Catholic Social Agencies including: Good Shepherd Refuge, St. Michael's Hospital--Detox, Catholic Family Services, and the Council of Catholic Charities. In that year, volunteers were recruited and the friendly visiting program was established to offer emotional support and friendship to lonely, isolated clients, including seniors and disabled, through volunteer visits.

In 1987, the Society of Sharing worked with the Metro Toronto Housing Company to create the 'Senior Tea and Talk Group' at a downtown seniors' residence.

To celebrate the first ten years of service, in 1991, a special large print cookbook was compiled for seniors which is still being sold today. A video entitled 'Time to Share' was produced for training and recruiting volunteers in 1993 with an Ontario Trillium Foundation grant.

In 1996 the Society of Sharing moved to its current location at 10 St. Mary Street to provide a more central location for volunteers.

The Society of Sharing celebrated 20 years of service to the community in 2001. In that year, the brochure was updated to add current information and reflect a more contemporary presentation.

Twenty-five years of Caring and Sharing were celebrated with a gala fundraising dinner in 2007.

Over the years many Society of Sharing volunteers have been honoured for their years of outstanding volunteer service with special awards.

Copyright: Society of Sharing: Inner-City Volunteers 2007