Newsletter

The Internal Examiner
Ridge Meadows Women’s Centre

March 2008

Well it looks like the Universe is throwing us another curve ball.  The house which we have occupied for the past 5 months has proven to be unsafe.  We had a number of men come out to look at providing necessary rennovations to the deck and our outbuilding for programs.  The deck was built over a 5 ft deep root cellar and is falling into the hole.  The water from the deck has been seeping into the foundation of the house for 10-15 years.  Thus, making it impossible to rebuild the deck or to make a safe new deck.  The outbuilding has mold in the walls and is structurally and electrically unsafe and so cannot be used. 

It has been such a struggle this year and having to find a new place to move again is going to be extremely and financially difficult.  We are busy brainstorming options so any input or suggestions from the community will be greatly appreciated.  Please click on the contact information section and you can email us or call.

January 2008

Well what a year of changes it has been at the Centre. To begin with, we were given notice to vacate our home at 12229 Harris Road where we had operated for 12 years. This was devastating news as we had been operating for years without any core funding. We were watching other Centres close their doors or cease being Centres for women. We were very proud that we had such a supportive community backing us. Now it seemed that another level of government was sharpening their axe.

We tried to cooperate and negotiate with Don Maclean (Mayor of Pitt Meadows) but to no avail. The decision was final. In desperation we went to the people who signed petitions and rallied with us to try to make City Council see just how important our service is to the people. Again, they denied us but offered a few more months of lease if we refused to allow the Meadow Ridge Food Bank to distribute food from our Centre. This came as a surprise because the Friends in Need Food Bank had distributed food and bread from our Centre for years without any intervention from Council. The Meadows Ridge Food Bank stepped in to fill a need in the community when the F.I.N. foodbank stopped giving us bread to give out and when the senior citizen from Port Coquitlam could no longer share and deliver bread from their community after having open heart surgery.

Was it worth it to stop food distribution to the people for 3 more months in our Centre? We didn’t feel it was. In fact it felt like we were being punished for helping people have access to food which wasn’t available on Friday, Saturday or Sunday anywhere else in the community. Who would question the fact that people may need a few extras like soup, bread or cereal to get them through?

We were then faced with the dilemma of closing our doors or finding a new home in the community. A staunch supporter who lives part of the time in Vancouver and part time in Ottawa came to our rescue…and not for the first time either. He offered to pay three months full rent for us and then 9 months partial rent for the next year if we could find a place. The hunt was on for a suitable building.

A phone call from another supporter suggested we look at a farm house north on Harris road. It seemed ideal and the rent was affordable. $1650.00 as opposed to the $4000.00 comercial fees. We accepted it on the spot.

With the help of Vancity, their moving crew, our Board, volunteers and staff, we were able to make the move after spending 3 weeks cleaning and painting our new home. It was an exhausting and stressful time but we felt it was worth every moment to keep the Centre running.

Then came the news that the house, barn and cottage had been used for a grow operation which had destroyed the furnace. We were being slowly gassed and the threat was once again evident that we would have to close our doors. Scott from CR Martin Heating came to our rescue by purchasing and installing a new furnace. Suddenly the air was clear and the headaches suffered by staff were gone. Once again we opened for business and set out to plan a Christmas party for 90 children and their families.

Again disaster struck only this time it was sent by nature. I arrived one morning to find an unwanted guest had set up residence in the Centre. He was about a foot long with an even longer (so it seemed) tail and as he focused his beady little eyes on me I knew he wasn’t going to give up without a fight. Grabbing a large bowl I chased him around the kitchen while he dodged, spun and hissed at me. Our battle ended with him scurrying under the stove (which still doesn’t work) and into the crawl space under the house. We served him a Christmas dinner of rat poison (which is entirely against my principles but what could I do after fighting so many battles to keep the Centre open.?) Ben, as we so aptly named him, still ended up with the final affront to us. He died under the house and we spent our volunteer appreciation lunch with both doors open and fragrant candles burning to try to keep the smell from overwhelming us.

Christmas was then upon us and the day of our annual Christmas party was set. Vancity put up an Angel Tree for gifts, community members donated money, gifts for moms and Christmas baking. The party was a success and many families were helped through the season with food and our “Shopping for Mom” program and many extras they would not otherwise have been able to afford. A group of women made stockings for all the children, and provided face painting at the party and helped with every facet of coordinating the events. The Maple Ridge Alliance Church provided the venue, fully decorated for Christmas, Peter Tam provided the music and caroling and two photographers from Vancouver provided beautiful family portraits at no charge for each child. Santa arrived to give out gifts and everyone left feeling cared for and honoured.

We looked forward to the new year and waited expectantly for news of our tax number approval which we had submitted last February. We expected to hear in January but the news came early. The Federal Government stated quite clearly that women are not considered a charitable cause. Tax number denied! This will make it extremely difficult for the Centre to compete with other organizations for funding grants for programs and services. Some funders will not even allow us to submit an application without a tax number. 

Now we look to the new year with trepidation as we are faced with a year lease, no financial stability and no source of income. However! We are women and we don’t give up easily. We are counting on the community to assist us in our quest to provide services to all families in our community. We are starting a “Healing Through the Arts” program for women and children. We are counting on artists to come forward to offer their services, community members to donate money to “send a mom or child to the Healing Centre” and volunteers to offer their time in keeping the Centre open through fundraising events and help growing our herbal and vegetable gardens. This Centre belongs to everyone and we know that this wonderful community will not let it end like this. We’ve come so far, I know we can take this a step further to empower women and children to be all they can be with dignity and pride. Our community is only as strong as it’s weakest link. Let’s strengthen it together.