September 25th, 2025 • Volume 1 • Issue 17

Gino Spada, owner of G&M Fitness Health Club in Port Colborne, has been in business now for 40 years and has been giving back to the local community and abroad for decades. “Our members are proud to be members of our health club because they realize that a portion of their membership dollars go to helping the less fortunate in Niagara and around the world.” The charities that have benefited from G&M’s efforts over the last 40 years are the Heart and Stroke Foundation, the Canadian Cancer Society, the Children Believe Charity, the S.O.S. Villages Charity, the Hospital for Sick Kids in Toronto, Operation Smile Canada and most recently the Save the Children Charity. Pictured here is a cheque presentation made recently to Operation Smile Canada. To date, G&M Fitness Health Club has donated nearly $50,000.00 to these charities.

When asked what motivated Mr. Spada to support this particular charity, he replied, “This one hits home. I know firsthand what it’s like to look in the mirror every morning and see a problem that everyone else will see, which made for a very challenging upbringing”. But the real motivation for his support of this particular charity was the opportunity to create smiles. “My late wife, who we lost to cancer in 2018, did something every single day regardless of circumstances… she smiled. I will continue to create smiles on behalf of the wonderful memory of my wife for as long as I live.”

“These types of efforts will also serve to show the community how a small business, family-owned and operated for 40 years, can make a difference in the lives of literally thousands of people locally and around the world.”