With its community partners the YMCA of Three Rivers Guelph helped raise over $16,000 on International Women’s Day to support female-focused programs in its facility.
The Guelph Y partnered with Innovation Guelph and featured this year’s Women of Distinction to virtually celebrate women in the community in an event that showcased a women vendor marketplace, networking opportunities and six women making positive change in the community across fields such as youth mental health, medicine, anti-racism, equality, and academia.
“Taking our International Women’s Day event online this year proved to be very successful with over 200 attendees. We received incredible feedback and we were pleased to feature the Women of Distinction along with our women-led marketplace,” said event co-chair Diana Train in a news release.
The March 8 event featured keynote speaker Kate Beirness, a Canadian TV host and sportscaster, in which she shared her experiences in a male-dominated industry including being barred from locker room interviews and covering the Toronto Raptors 2019 NBA Championship.
Proceeds from the event will support three Guelph Y programs that focus on uplifting local women: Safe Sisters, Teenage Parent’s Program and Encore.
Safe Sisters provides drop-in programming for girls in Grade 7 and Grade 8 where they discuss safety and well-being in today’s online society. The free Teenage Parent’s Program provides a non-judgmental safe space for teen parents and pregnant teens where they can receive support, information and resources. Encore provides exercise and educational programs for women who have experienced breast cancer.
"We were so thrilled to be able to partner with IWDGW to celebrate women in our community in a particularly difficult year. We were in awe of the accomplishments of our Women of Distinction,” said Jodi Petitpas, manager of development from the YMCA of Three Rivers.
“The Y is so grateful for the support of our community to be able to raise this incredible amount of money that will truly create a positive impact for our female-focused programs. Thank you to Innovation Guelph for collaborating with us."
