Photo Courtesy of Crista Renner

June 24^th marked the end of the 10^th year of meetings for 100 Women Who Care Guelph!  Once again, we had a full room of attendees.  The meeting kicked off with a thank you to our generous meeting space sponsors – Sandra Lastovic at Skip the Bank and Delta Hotels.

We celebrated our 3 year and 5 year pin recipients (22 members for 3 years and 25 members for 5 years) and one of our recipients was in attendance and recognized.   Currently membership is at 176, with 170 pledging donations.  Our “thermometer” update reflected $496,516 donated to date, and with donations pouring in at the close of the meeting, we crossed the $500,000 threshold.

Our three nominated charities were:

• Hope House Guelph (www.hopehouseguelph.ca)
• Guelph Community Health Centre  – Pathways to Remembering (www.wgdrugstrategy.ca/donate)
• Chalmers Community Service Centre (www.chalmerscentre.ca)

Hope House Guelph: Nominated by Terrie Jarvis, Presentation by Jaya James

Jaya spoke about the impact that lack of affordable housing is having on our community.  Guelph is one of the most expensive cities in Canada in which to live, and many people are having to choose between shelter and food.  Hope House Guelph helps to address this food insecurity through their 9 food markets.  Jaya shared that many of the donations received through other charitable organizations are carbohydrates.  Hope House Guelph augments these donations by providing milk and eggs.  Their supplier is Equality Foods where they receive wholesale pricing and a 22% discount. In the last year alone there has been a 34% increase in demand and over the last 4 years expenses have increased from $50,000 to $300,000. If selected, the donation would go towards supplying these essential foods for 4-5 months (approximately 3000 people).

Guelph Community Health Centre – Pathways to Remembering: Nominated by Dianne Dance, Presentation by Jean Hopkins and Karen Lomax

This was the second time this year that Guelph Community Health Centre – Pathways to Remembering was presented. Jean and Karen reminded us of the terrible toll from drug poisoning death.  Last year 27 people in Guelph lost their lives in the last year, an increase of 17% over the previous year.  Their loved ones deal not only with tremendous loss, but also face the stigma often associated with drug poisoning death.  Karen shared her personal story of how community support can make an incredible difference.  Pathways to Remembering is a memorial meant to give a sanctuary to remember and grieve loved ones, and also provide a signal to the community that we stand together in support.  To date $17,000 of the required $50,000 has been raised to build the memorial.  If selected, the donation would be used towards completing the memorial in time for Overdose Awareness Day in August 2025.

Chalmers Community Service Centre: Nominated by Ali Jukes, Presentation by Janet Wood

Janet shared that Chalmers Community Service Centre began 27 years ago supporting single men in the downtown area.  In 2014 this grew to supporting families, and now 60% of the guests at Chalmers Community Service Centre are children.  Their services include nutritional food, hygiene products, Christmas bags, and clothes mending and tailoring.  Janet spoke to the growing food insecurity in our community and the need for fresh produce. Demand has grown by 30%. If selected, the donation would be used to provide groceries to their guests as they are currently having to turn people away.

Our Chosen Charity

Hope House Guelph
https://www.hopehouseguelph.ca

If you haven’t sent in your $100 donation yet, please do so by July 8th.  Remember there are two ways to make your donation:

1) Online at our 100WWCG Fundraising Page (please add $4 for processing fee)

OR

2) Send a cheque to Liz Brant (made out to Hope House Guelph) at 10 Wood Duck Court Guelph ON N1C 1B1

Thank you from Guelph Wish Fund for Children (our April charity)

Jessica Hill from Guelph Wish Fund for Children, our selected charity in April, updated the group. The charity was also featured in the Globe and Mail.  Jessica shared the impact the $15,500 donation made:

• Aria suffers from a rare form of epilepsy.  Her family was able to purchase a monitor that would alert her family and doctor of seizures.  Previously one of her parents had to sleep with her.
• Macy loves camping.  Through the donations, her family was able to purchase a camper trailer.
• Weston, who is a wheelchair, can navigate his home more easily based on changes his family was able to make.
• Owen received a rock-climbing wall and water table in his home.
• Liam fulfilled his dream by taking the movie site tour of his favourite films in Hawaii.

She thanked 100WWCG for the gift of love, hope and joy that comes with precious memories.  For Jessica’s full comments, please click here. 

Photo Courtesy of Crista Renner

Thank you for your continued generosity, involvement and passion!
The 100WWCG Team
Sharon, Tannis, Lisa, Peggy, Dianne and Denise

Meeting Kick Off and Updates

The meeting began with a thank you to the sponsorship and generosity of Delta Hotels and Sandra Lastovic from Skip the Bank for covering the costs of the meeting room. This allows us to come together as a group, which is such an important part of 100WWCG.
 
Joining us for the meeting were 6 new members (WOW!) and some women considering involvement.   We had 24 members receiving their 3 year pin and 26 members receiving their 5 year pin (Congratulations ladies!  We’ve included a picture of some of the recipients in attendance below).  To date we have 179 members and 173 pledged nominations and total funds donated have reached $477,516.  The goal of 100WWCG is $500,000 so we are thisclose!

The Three Nominated Charities

Here is a quick overview of the charities that were nominated for the meeting and the presentations:
 
Guelph Chamber Choir – Nominated by Megan Hodge & Presented by Sya VanGeest
Sya began by reminding us that music and harmony can draw us together. The Guelph Chamber Choir seeks to do this through two main streams – through their programming and performances and through their community outreach program, Sing Out.
 
Sya explained that the donated funds would be used to support a concert within the Sing Out outreach program called “Can Your Hear Me”.  This concert would feature the work of diverse and marginalized composers, and funds would go towards covering the costs of three key components: Clinic workshops between the composers and the performers, purchasing the rights to perform the musical scores already planned (which also benefits the composers), and commissioning two additional original works for the concert.
  
Guelph Wish Fund for Children – Nominated by Margo Conlon & Presented by Jessica Hill
Started in 1984, the mandate of Guelph Wish Fund for Children is to fulfill wishes and provide support to children under the age of 19, residing in Guelph or Wellington County, who are living with a significant illness, life-altering injury or a rare and debilitating syndrome.
 
Jessica outlined that each child accepted into the program receives $10,000 and that the funds are used for a variety of needs (each vetted and approved by the Executive Director): travel, a wish or experience, purchasing medical equipment, and lost income to name a few.  Jessica shared the stories of children currently in the program and her own heartbreaking experience of losing her 14 year old daughter.  The donation funds from 100WWCG would be used to support the children and their families and 100% of the money would be used here.
 
Guelph Community Health Centre- Nominated & Presented by Barb Tremblay (she was joined by Jean Hopkins for Q&A)
Barb began her presentation with the staggering statistics of drug poisoning in our community.  In addition to their grief, she shared the impact of stigma and judgement families and loved ones left behind face.
 
A project to build a memorial called Pathways to Remembering was initiated.  The purpose of this memorial is to provide a peaceful place to remember loved ones that offers dignity and respect.  It is also a reminder to the community that we all know either an individual or their loved ones who have been touched by this tragedy.  The memorial has been designed and will cost $50,000.  A total of $16,000 has been raised to date. It is the hope that the memorial will be completed by August in time for Drug Poisoning Awareness Day.  Donated funds from 100WWCG would go towards funding the rest of the memorial costs.

Our Chosen Charity

Guelph Wish Fund for Children
https://www.guelphwishfund.com/

If you haven’t sent in your $100 donation yet, please do so by April 23rd.  Remember there are two ways to make your donation:

1) Online at our 100WWCG Fundraising Page (please add $4 for processing fee)

OR

2) Send a cheque to Liz Brant (made out to Guelph Wish Fund for Children) at 10 Wood Duck Court Guelph ON N1C 1B1

Thank you from Master Gardeners of Ontario (our January charity)

Danielle Gignac joined us to provide an update on the progress of the Master Gardeners, which was chosen by our members at the January meeting.

Our donation was used to create a program for Grade 3 students which educates them about the opportunities of growing food gardens with their families.  The program encourages kids to learn life skills which will be beneficial in the long term and funds were used to build kits for approximately 20 classrooms, including educational information for starting and maintaining vegetable gardens – along with a raised planter, full spectrum grow lights, soil, trays, seeds, and necessary tools. Danielle shared that this program will now be ready to launch on April 15th!  You can read Danielle’s full comments here.

Thank you for your continued generosity, involvement and passion!
The 100WWCG Team
Sharon, Tannis, Lisa, Peggy, Dianne and Denise