At January member’s meeting at the Peterborough Holiday Inn last night (January 11), the Women’s Business Network of Peterborough (WBN) announced a $21,019.75 donation to YWCA Peterborough Haliburton.
The business organization has been supporting the YWCA Crossroads Shelter since 1983 and, every December, holds a fundraising Holiday Gala and Auction. In 2016, WBN raised its fundraising goal to $20,000 to respond to the urgent need for support during the busiest on record for the YWCA.
“Thirty-three years later, our members continue to step up to the fundraising challenge,” says WBN President Mary McGee, “opening their wallets and their hearts to support something that is making a big difference in lives of women in our community.”
YWCA Peterborough Haliburton Executive Director Lynn Zimmer and Special Events Coordinator Nicole Pare accepted the cheque from WBN Program Directors Louise Racine and Sana Virji.
The funds raised at the Gala will support the YWCA’s Nutritional Well-Being program at Crossroads Shelter, which provides healthy food, supplements and vitamins to women and their children 365 days a year, at a cost of $10.88 per person, per day. The program also helps families learn about meal planning, food preparation, and principles of nutrition.
“The kitchen is the heart of the Crossroads Shelter,” Lynn Zimmer explains. “It’s where women prepare breakfast and lunches for themselves and their children, where informal cooking lessons can happen any day, where kids can learn to cook and women can share stories and conversation over a snack or a cup of coffee or tea.”
Last year, YWCA prepared and served 26,331 meals for women and children living at Crossroads Shelter, a temporary home where women and children can escape domestic violence and rebuild their lives. Food is a key ingredient in helping families feel comfortable.
