Close 2 Home marks milestone at first Casino Night

October 29, 2026 · 0 Comments

Mayor Groves reflects on community at fundraiser

By KATHRYN FRASER

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

On October 23, Close 2 Home Caledon hosted their Casino Night Fundraiser to raise funds to support adults with special needs.

The mission for Close 2 Home stands on one main question that they want to be able to answer for families of adults with special needs: “Who will care for my loved one when I no longer can?”

The event was hosted at the Caesar’s Centre in Bolton and marked the first time that Close 2 Home held an all-in casino night event.

Attendees started the night with a buffet dinner and drinks to enjoy before Co-Founder Liana Cancian addressed the audience, thanking everyone for their participation.

Cancian spoke about the importance of the event to help raise funds to provide for the families trying to fill the gap and make it easier for parents to know that there will be support for those they care for when they are no longer able.

“With very limited government funding available to meet these needs, families are often left trying to fill those gaps. Parents are growing older while providing care, often without a care plan,” said Cancian.

She went on to speak about Close 2 Home and the importance of the night.

“Our vision is to create a home for adults with developmental disabilities [where they] can live alongside their peers and receive the support they need. We are proud to share that with the support of our community and in partners, we have connected with an investor who is willing to work with us to help make this home a reality. This is an incredible step forward, but a home needs more than just walls and a roof; it needs ongoing support, care and resources. The funds raised tonight will help make the day-to-day support possible,” said Cancian.

Mayor Annette Groves was next up at the podium and gave her final speech as Mayor of Caledon to those in attendance.

Throughout her remarks, Groves acknowledged and thanked the members of Close 2 Home for all of their hard work.

“Thank you all for coming out and supporting this very worthy cause,” she said. “It takes very special people to do this. The special needs community has always been very close to my heart, and the ladies are very tenacious, they don’t stop. They’ll keep calling you until you pick up that phone…and do something. I always say, when you start your day visiting some of these individuals, you will always have a great day. The rest of your day will always be filled with laughter and sunshine.

“I encourage all of you to take the visit sometime to these groups with these individuals and really understand and see how blessed we are and how we should not complain, because all they do is they give you love. I thank all of you for doing what you have done.”

Ending her speech for the night, Mayor Groves concluded that although she will no longer be Mayor of Caledon, her support for Close 2 Home does not end here.

“It’s been 26 years that I have served this community. It has been in honour and a privilege to serve this community. As I retire, I will leave you with this: legacy is not what we build for ourselves. Legacy is what we build for others to stand on. With that, I thank you for being there for me for 26 years, and I will continue to be there for you after I retire,” said Groves.

After the speeches were finished, poker, roulette and blackjack tables were open for attendees to try their hands – and possibly take home a win.

In addition to card games, there were also a number of other competitive contests for players to try their luck at.

Two of these games included hitting a nail into a wood table in one hit, as well as one main highlight of the night: the prosciutto-holding contest where players had to hold up 6.7kg of prosciutto with a straight arm and be timed to see who could hold it the longest.

The line for the prosciutto-holding contest was quite long and many members tried their luck, and each turn cost $10 to enter.

The winning time for the prosciutto-holding contest was two minutes.

Reflecting on the event, Cancian said she was grateful to all that attended the event and is hoping that this will be an event that Close 2 Home holds again.

“It’s very moving to know that everyone’s out there to support something that they believe in. It’s a cause near and dear to my heart. So, it’s very touching to know that there are other people that see the cause and believe in it and are there to support you,” said Cancian.

For more information about Close 2 Home, visit www.close2homecaledon.ca.