Toyota Canada is enjoying its 60th anniversary this year and is celebrating the milestone with a national tour.

On Aug. 20, company officials stopped in Cambridge at the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada plant, which has been building cars for nearly 36 years, to celebrate the 11-millionth vehicle the facility has produced.

That milestone vehicle was a white Woodland Edition RAV4 Hybrid.

“We’re proud that Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada has played such an important role in the company’s success for almost 36 years,” said Frank Voss, president of TMMC, in a news release. “In 1988, the year that we opened our first plant in Cambridge, our team members built just 153 Toyota Corollas. Today, we’re Canada’s largest automaker, building over a half million Toyota and Lexus vehicles every year for the North American market. We’re so proud to be celebrating this 11-millionth vehicle milestone.”

TMMC has two production lines in Cambridge and a third in Woodstock, which, together, employ more than 8,500 people.

For Toyota Canada, this is its “kanreki” year (60th anniversary), which features a celebratory coast-to-coast road trip with stops in every province.

“In Japanese culture, a person’s 60th birthday is known as ‘Kanreki’ and represents a ‘rebirth’ – an opportunity to reflect on one’s life, take stock of the present, and prepare for the future,” said Stephen Beatty, corporate secretary at Toyota Canada, in the release. “As Toyota marks its 60th year in Canada, our cross-Canada road trip is doing just that, while also taking time to recognize the many Canadians who have contributed to the company’s success – including the thousands of team members who’ve contributed to TMMC’s success over more than three decades.”

Hospital donation in Scarborough

In other Toyota Canada news, the company announced a donation of $500,000 to Providence Healthcare in Scarborough, Ont. on Aug. 19.

The money will be used for the modernization of the existing Toyota Canada Motor Skills Clinic.

Established in 2006, the clinic brings outdoor mobility settings indoors by creating a space that includes real-life elements, including a vehicle, wheelchair cut-outs, streetlights, a paved sidewalk, and curbs.

“Many of the patients undergoing rehabilitation at Providence – whether they are recovering from a stroke, critical illness, orthopedic surgery or an amputated limb – feel like they are facing an impossible road ahead,” said Dr. Ashley Verduyn, vice-president of medical affairs and chief of Providence Healthcare, a site of Unity Health Toronto, in a news release. “Thanks to Toyota Canada’s generous support, they and their families can approach their recovery journey with confidence. Thank you, Toyota Canada, for helping us break down barriers to accessibility.”

The renovated clinic will incorporate new technologies, including advanced simulations through virtual reality and artificial intelligence.