Spring Newsletter 2015

Upcoming Events
Table of Contents
e
Din r
inner
Finer
D
Finer Diner Dinner: Remember when you had to wait three minutes
for the TV to warm up? When the five and dime actually sold things
for a nickel and a dime? Remember when you didn’t have to look for
your car keys because they were… in your car. Do you remember a
time when you knew your neighbours? Put on your poodle skirts
and saddle shoes and join us for a trip back in time, down memory
lane on Friday, June 19th at the Lancer Restaurant for a “dinerclassics-gone-gourmet” food and wine pairing experience. Tickets
are available to purchase online at ywcaniagararegion.ca/events for
$85. Come out for an evening of fun, as we go back in time, rock on, and help your neighbours.
For tickets and more information, contact Rachael Forgeron, 905-988-3528 ext 3247
No Fixed Address: On August 14- 15, we will have our signature fundraiser No Fixed Address at
the Pen Centre. It is a 24 hour Live-In-Your-Car-A-Thon where participants will gather pledges
from friends and family and take part in an event that gives them a taste of what it is like to have
to live out of their car. Registration opens May 19, 2015 at www.nfaniagara.com.
Park It At The Pen! End Homelessness.
Admin Office & St. Catharines Shelter
183 King Street
St. Catharines, ON L2R 3J5
T: 905-988-3528 | F: 905-988-3739
Niagara Falls Shelter
6135 Culp Street
Niagara Falls, ON L2G 2B6
T: 905-357-9191 | F: 905-357-9161
Online
www.ywcaniagararegion.ca
www.facebook.com/YWCANiagaraRegion
www.twitter.com/YWCA_Niagara
Charitable #10822 9816 RR0001
Spring Newsletter 2015
[Open Me]
Keeping YOU on the front lines.
Client Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Donor Spotlight. . . . . . . .. . . . 1
Corporate Donor Spotlight 2
Estate Planning Seminar . . . 2
Donations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
ChangeIt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Volunteer Spotlight . . . . . . . 3
Mission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Upcoming Events . . . . . . . . . 4
Spring Newsletter 2015
Donor Spotlight
Jeff became involved with the YW when he
and his 16 year old son took a trip through
the YW’s Cardboard House at the mall.
As they walked through the end of it, Jeff
watched his son empty, and then donate the
contents of his wallet. “No one should have
to live without shelter” his son said.
As the Principal of St. Paul’s Catholic
High School, Jeff is well aware of their
mandate: make a long-term difference in
the community. On the spot, Jeff decided
to make that commitment to the YW by
becoming a monthly donor.
Keeping YOU on the front lines of the work of the YW
Meet Lauren --- Client Profile
Strength comes in all shapes and sizes. In this case, a petite, shy and soft spoken mother
of four named Lauren. Growing up in Grimsby, Lauren, a Personal Support Worker (PSW),
always dreamed of one day becoming a nurse. But, sometimes life gets in the way; and
Lauren found herself stuck in an abusive relationship with four children, and a pile of
student debt to top it off. Inner strength helped her to leave; but finding – and keeping –
housing for a family of five in Grimsby is not easy. Grimsby has the highest cost of living in
the Niagara Region, and soon enough, Lauren’s $1400 rent cheques were falling further and
further behind. She found herself faced with yet another hurdle to climb: eviction.
Being unemployed - unable to find work because daycare options were at odds with her
PSW working hours - coupled with a diabetes diagnosis and a sick daughter, Lauren had 60
days to find a home she could afford. Moving into a shelter would mean taking her children
away from their schools, and as a single mother, her only support systems – including
her own mother – were in all Grimsby. Thankfully, Lauren’s Mother discovered YWCA
Grimsby Affordable Housing Partnership’s (GAHP) Off Site
Transitional Housing Program, where Lauren was introduced to
Cheryl, her Support Worker. Cheryl was always there to listen and
offer gentle support.
Finally with an affordable place to call home and Cheryl’s support,
Lauren was able to start taking control of her life. She signed up
for not one, but three budgeting workshops to work on her student
debt and another to teach her to make weekly meal plans. For the
kids, there was the community garden where they each planted
their own vegetable. All summer long they tended their garden and
watched the veggies grow. At the end of the year, they picked what
they had and made a big salad as a reward. Lauren was so proud
when her youngest daughter remarked that they had “made this
salad out of nothing”.
L2R 3J5
Jeff Smith is a monthly donor to the YW
Personally, Jeff will always remember that
moment with his son. But as Principal of St.
Paul’s, his favourite moment with the YW was
when the Cardboard House came to their
school.
Continued on insert
Today, Lauren feels like herself again. She has gone back to school,
and is now eligible to apply to a nursing program. She has a steady
job, can afford a baby sitter so that she can go out with her friends,
and even recently got engaged! Every day she teaches her children
the lessons she has learned throughout her time in the Off Site Transitional Housing
Program. One day a week, she draws one of her children’s names from a hat. Their treat? To
pick what they want for supper and learn what it costs and how it’s made. They learn that
ice cream is a treat when there’s room in the budget, and that ribs, while delicious, are just
simply too expensive to make.
Before coming to YWCA GAHP Lauren felt like all she was, was a mother.
Today, “I feel self-sufficient and independent, I feel like Lauren”.
St. Catharines, ON
183 King Street
FRIEND OF THE YWCA NIAGARA REGION
You Shine --- Corporate Donor Spotlight
Sex Trade On My Terms --- Program
By the time a woman is ready to move into our Off Site Transitional Housing Program,
she has often already had a long journey. When Nadine suddenly had to relocate to
Niagara Falls, she had no support; she had hit bottom. Her journey at the YW started
with the incredibly courageous step of coming to one of our Emergency Shelters,
looking for help. With the support of our Advocates, she was soon able to connect with
community agencies and to participate in our Life Skills workshops. A brief stay at our
Emergency Shelter was enough to provide her with the tools she needed to transition
into the Off Site Transitional Housing Program. Today - only eight months later - Nadine
has found secure full time employment and is assuming her lease.
It is another cold night in April when I get into my car. I turn the seat heater
on high and try to prepare myself for stomt. It stands for “sex trade on my
terms” and is a new program the YW offers. It is a weekly drop-in for women
who engage in survival sex work. stomt provides them with a space where they
can warm up, get some food and a hot drink, or even just talk. “This program
Have you been named as the executor of a will?
Do you know what is expected of you?
Recent federal budget estate laws have changed
and you need to be aware how they affect you.
Join us for an information session with
Christopher Durdan, Estate Lawyer at McBurney,
Durdan, Henderson and Corbett and Jay Newton,
Investment Funds Advisor at Newton Financial.
This is the first session in a series of three, starting
May 19th at 7pm at 183 King Street in
St. Catharines.
Next session: September 22, 2015, Estate Planning
with Ian Fraser.
If you would like more information, contact Nicki
Inch at 905-988-3528 ext. 3237
YW.
Thank You --- Donations
After we asked for Christmas donations in our last newsletter, we received a lot of
support and were able to have a wrapped Christmas gift under the tree for each and
every person in our programs. We were overwhelmed by your support and thank you
kindly.
We would also like to
thank everybody who
has been donating food
during a time of great
need. Our kitchen staff
could not be more
grateful for the many
food items that have
been donated in
the past few weeks.
Your donations
help us serve more
than 4,500 meals
each month for the
women and children
in our Emergency
80% of our kitc
hen budget co
nsists of donati
Shelters in St. Catharines
ons
and Niagara Falls.
It All Starts With A Little Change --- ChangeIt
The YW is now a partner agency of ChangeIt®. ChangeIt® is an automated online charitable giving
program that offers donors a simple and secure way to donate small amounts of change to your favourite
charitable organization with every debit transaction. ChangeIt® enables you to round up your debit
transactions, creating Virtual Change®, and automatically direct this Virtual Change® to the charitable
organization you choose! Your receipts remain unchanged and your account will only be charged monthly
according to your preferences, including your maximum monthly donation and choosing your favourite charities!
To register for the ChangeIt® Program and to support the YW with this great new tool, please visit
www.ChangeIt.com today!
The YWCA Niagara Region relies on generous donations from our community to help women and their families break the cycle of poverty
and homelessness and create a life that includes financial stability and permanent housing. And it’s never been easier to help make this
possible. Donate online at www.ywcaniagararegion.ca, send your cheque to 183 King Street, St. Catharines, ON L2R 3J5 or give us a call to
pay with credit card at (905) 988-3528 x.3237.
We are always looking for in-kind donations as well. Please check out our website for our up-todate “High Needs” list, or feel free to call to see what our urgent needs are.
Hope
allows women to come into a space and know that they are safe from
judgement and oppression. All women need to feel safe no matter what
their choice of job is”, explains Krystal Snider, Life Skills Coordinator at the
Walker Industries is the reason the YW was able to give Nadine a second chance in
life. Walker Industries’ financial support over the past years towards the YW’s Housing
Programs has helped thousands of women in the Niagara Region to transition out of
homelessness. Thank You for you continued support!
Estate Planning Seminar
Meet
Donate
I take a deep breath as the
car comes to a stop in the
parking lot of St. Barnabas
Anglican Church, who
provides us with the space
for this important program.
What am I supposed to
expect? It is one thing to
hear about sex trade and to
read about it in the papers
but this is different. I am
nervous as I enter the small,
cozy room, where Krystal sits
around a table with a few
other women. Everybody
smiles as I walk in, but the women quickly go back to their activities. Krystal
always brings in new ideas and today, most of the women are drawing. Colourful
pencils are spread out all over the table. The woman next to me tirelessly
traces every line on the paper and soon, the drawing seems to shine with
colour. She is so calm. She talks about long gone dreams of becoming a famous
singer one day. “Didn’t we all have that dream as little girls?” she asks.
The women share their traumatic experiences the way I might chat with my
girlfriends about a new recipe I tried - as if it was the most common, normal
thing. This happens right in front of my door. Here in my city. The same city,
where my kids go to school, where I live in my big house, where I go to work. It is
as if there were parallel universes in one and the same city. Because my reality
has nothing to do with the reality that these women face every day.
A second woman is making a bracelet. She seems quiet. Every couple of
minutes, she stops and reaches for a slice of banana bread or some popcorn,
snacks that our kitchen staff prepare for stomt every week. “My daughter
received a full scholarship to go to university”, a dark-haired woman announces.
She beams as she shows us the picture of her with her daughter. “I don’t know
how she turned out to be so smart”, she says, as she nervously plays with her
hair.
It is late and time for me to go. What I feel as I get back into my car to
drive to my safe and warm home, is hard to describe. I am shaken
and confused by the injustice that happens right in front of my
doorstep. But above all, I feel grateful for this program and
grateful for the amazing team that prepares this drop-in every
week. To change lives. To make a difference.
Mission
“The YWCA Niagara Region is part of a national and worldwide
movement that is passionate about empowering women and their
families by providing safe, supportive housing and programs, and
creating opportunity for all women to reach their full potential.”
You Rock --- Volunteer Spotlight
Hope has been volunteering as one of the YWCA’s
Bingo Coordinators for over 4 years. A people-person,
Hope’s favourite part of the role is interacting with the
Bingo patrons and giving back to a community that
once supported her. 50 years ago, when she was just
18 years old, Hope stayed at the YWCA when she got
a job at the St. Catharines library. Once vulnerable
herself, Hope believes the most important thing she’s
learned from volunteering is that it’s the people that
help you when you’re at your lowest that make the
biggest impact in your life. “Be non-judgmental; that’s
the most important thing!”
In April, National Volunteer Week was celebrated all
over Canada. “A volunteer action is like a stone thrown
in a lake: its effect has a direct impact.”
At the same time, like ripples, volunteer efforts reach
out far and wide to improve communities. Undeniably,
volunteers rock! This is a time to recognize, celebrate
and thank our 165 YWCA Niagara Region Volunteers
who freely give of their time and skills in various roles.
From Management and Staff - Thank You!!!!