Toronto Star.com // Off on a good foot
West Queen West put its "GoodFoot" forward!
"...Jon Gauthier knows the TTC like the back of his hand. If he needs
directions around Toronto he taps the coordinates into his iPhone.
For the past six months, the friendly, tech-savvy Sudbury native
has been trekking all over the city, delivering packages for his
not-for-profit startup, GoodFoot Delivery — an environmentally friendly
courier company that employs people with developmental disabilities..."
"...It’s a novel idea and one that has the potential to make a big
impact in the city’s downtown core.
A few minutes spent in GoodFoot’s Queen West headquarters is all it
takes to realize that Gauthier, who has battled learning disabilities
his whole life, is delivering a lot more than office correspondence..."
"...“You go into places you’d never actually go,” he says of his forays
into the city’s MuchMusic and Virgin buildings. “It’s cool that I get
to be in major corporations.”
It all started last year, when Gauthier was going through a rough
spot..."
"...“I’m still struggling with development issues and I couldn’t get a full-time job anywhere. No one was hiring me,” he says earnestly.While he receives some income from the Ontario Disability Support Program, it wasn’t enough to live on. “It was a bit of a tough time for me,” he adds.."
"...Concerned, his sister, Kirsten, wanted to help Gauthier get back on
his feet. She had some extra space in the back of her graphic design
office and wanted the chance to be part of something that would give
back as well.
In January of this year, GoodFoot was born..."
"...The couriers do all their deliveries by hand, taking the TTC and, as the name suggests, travelling on foot. Prices are competitive, just like any other service in the city. Direct, 60 to 90 minutes, costs $10. Costs vary depending on where you’re going"..."
