Diabetes Canada is encouraging Canadians to join their annual 40 Days, 40 Items challenge. 

"This is our third year of running it," said Sean Shannon, CEO and president of National Diabetes Trust, Canada’s largest charitable clothing collection service supporting Diabetes Canada. "It was a creative idea, a new twist on helping to encourage people to do something good, but also to declutter their house, their closets and kind of do it out of this time of year, which is getting close to spring cleaning time, but also sort of playing upon the Christian tradition of giving something up for 40 days pre-Easter."

Sean says the hope is that people will go through their homes and look for gently used clothing or small household items to donate.

"It's just kind of a different way of getting people to do it, and you could do it with family members. You can do it with your kids."

Net proceeds from items donated will go to Diabetes Canada to fund important diabetes research and support kids with type 1 diabetes to attend Diabetes camps designed with their needs in mind. 

"There are camps that we help sponsor across the country, where kids have the ability to go to a camp with other kids who also have type one diabetes and get a chance to just be a kid," said Shannon. "It's one of the wonderful uses of the funds that do get generated."

All items collected can either be dropped off at one of the many Diabetes Canada donation bins. Alternatively, arrangements can be made for a free home pick-up. 

A list of items that can be donated, donation drop-off spots and contact info for home pick-up can be found at declutter.diabetes.ca.

The 40 Days, 40 Items challenge runs until March 24, 2024.