Past Programs

About the Program

“EDUTAINMENT” is geared towards education and entertainment combined into one session to increase the level of interest and involvement. This activity will not lead to direct earning but will enhance learning which is one of the goals of the project. The events will be organised to reach out to stay-at-home moms and young women giving them an opportunity to gather in a safe and enabling environment. The project will pay for venue rental ($500 per event) and honorarium for Topic Speakers ($100 per speaker per event) and bus rental ($400 per event) for participants who lack transportation. Red Shawl will make in-kind contribution towards food and refreshments, prizes and other items of interest.

Outcomes

The aim is to provide an opportunity for stay-at-home moms to learn about various careers and programs that they can pursue.
Career Talks for young women mostly high school to first year college students (Ages 16-20 years) will be invited to learn about careers like fashion design/art, non-traditional trades in conservation/environment/forestry studies and mushroom farming. Topic Speakers will be invited from the relevant business and/or educational institutions. The presentations will be geared towards highlighting pre-requisites for admissions, required paper work and career choices that would be available in each field.

Help us make our next "Edutainment" Program a Success

Contact us to find us about our next program or Click below to donate and support us.

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Peshawar Project

We Will Not Forget – 22 September 2013
Women and Children Care, Peshawar, Pakistan

“On 22nd September 2013, as hundreds of parishioners were leaving All Saints Church, Peshawar, Pakistan after worship, many of them women and children, a pair of suicide bombers blew themselves up killing 78 people including 34 women. Red Shawl in collaboration with Pentecost Church of Pakistan undertook a project to take care of women, children and young adults widowed or orphaned in this, the deadliest attack on Christians yet.

Red Shawl's Ongoing Support

On 9th May 2014, Red Shawl officially launched the “We Will Not Forget” initiative, a 5 year campaign designed to help the terrorist bomb victims of Peshawar to improve their lives. After a rigorous search process, Janson Yousaf based out of Peshawar was selected as the Red Shawl Coordinator to be our feet on the ground and establish direct liaisons with the affected families. Janson has been a cornerstone of this project and has met patiently with each family and completed detailed questionnaires helping us to understand the family size, source of income, type of housing and education available to them. Based on the assessments, rent for housing was identified as the most basic unmet need, followed by support with school uniforms and books, and the ability to take care of the family in case of medical emergencies.

We are so excited to report that support for rent was initiated for 30 children representing 13 families. All selected children have lost a father or both parents in the blast. Children ages range from 1 to 27 years and include 13 girls and 17 boys. We are confident that this funding would decrease the financial burden, improve the overall wellbeing and allow these families to continue to live with dignity and respect. Further, we have committed to supporting Robina Shaheen, a single courageous working mother spending half of her salary on medical needs of her daughter paralyzed in the blast.

As part of Red Shawl’s ongoing support for this community, a day event was sponsored on 11th September 2014 that was attended by all 13 beneficiary families, representatives of our partnering Church of Pentecost, local diocese, and Hands of Love NGO. It was a fun filled d of participation in a Bible quiz, singing and listening from the word of God. It was also a time of pondering and thinking of all the martyred and injured in All Saint’s Church blast. The event was also the venue for distribution of the first payments for the families.

We at Red Shawl are inspired by the faith and commitment of our donors to make a difference in the lives of these children and women. Please know that your ongoing and generous donations will help us to continue the work that has been started. Thank you so much for your support.

Help us make the "Peshawar Project" a Success

You can make a monthly pledge to support this program. Click below to donate and support us.

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New Immigrant Assistance

Donating Household Items and Clothing

Red Shawl board members and committee members donated household items and clothing for a new immigrant family. This family had arrived in Canada running from a life threatening situation and had no resources available to establish a home with basic comforts. Red Shawl donated, small furniture, bedding, dishes, cooking pots, small electronics and clothing for the family.
Red Shawl board members Dr. Esther Masih-Khan, Romila Mello and Dr. Saima Dean visited the family and brought the donations with them.

Joseph Colony Assistance

Arsenal of 120 Due to Religion Houses In Pakistan

Joseph Colony arsenal gad caught international attention as 120 houses were burnt t ground due to a small feud due to religious persecution. Red Shawl collaborated – donating $400 - with other local charities for the “first response” which went towards food and clothing for the survivors.

Typhoon Haiyan

Philippines

Devastation caused by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines was an exceptionally powerful typhoon which caused havoc in portions of South east Asia particularly the Philippines. Red Shawl participated in the fund raising efforts held at the Gateway Center Mississauga; the Filipino community had gathered in support of World Vision Canada for fundraising for the Haiyan victims.

Red Shawl donated $400 to World Vision Canada to be pooled with their funds and matched dollar to dollar by our government.

Alter & Earn Program

What is the Alter & Earn Training?
Red Shawl’s “Alter and Earn” training program is a customized 11-week course that provides developing skills in clothing alteration. The first 10 weeks will focus on acquiring essential tools in sewing. The last class will focus on giving the participants information on how to start a home-based business, preparing a business plan and options available for funding their new venture. The classes will run for a duration of 3 hours. This training will familiarize the students with both residential and industrial sewing machines and provide hands-on experience altering pants, skirts and blouses.

How does the training work?
Building skills by focusing on the concepts and terminology used within the industry.
Each candidate will develop a portfolio, with photos of their work and create a “look book” for themselves which will feature their best work for future endeavours.
The candidates will choose their own niche market like school/hospital uniforms, lady’s clothing, men’s clothing, kids clothing etc.

Benefits after “Alter & Earn” training?
Alter & Earn Training is just the start, after the training candidates can:
Simply continue or start work with a retailer as an Alteration Seamstress and keep updating their portfolio regularly.
Start a home-based business as an Alteration Seamstress.
Take full courses for tailoring.
Go to school for fashion design.

Who can Apply?
Women with a flair for fashion and design and who want to learn about fashion techniques, running and managing a fashion business. The following criteria are required to qualify for the training:

Women with low income – earning $10 or less per hour or get insufficient working hours (less than 20 hours per week). Immigrant women.

To apply please downlad application HERE and complete then email to info@redshawl.org.

Help us make "Alter & Earn" a Success
You can make a monthly pledge to support this program.

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Driver & Thrive

We want to make sure women are ready for the road

Driver ED is becoming harder for women, they are missing out on this pricy Rite Of Passage.

Students, New immigrant women in Canada and those with precarious employment, live from paycheck to paycheck, they cannot money aside for driving lessons. It's a seemingly endless cycle for families looking for financial help: They are redirected to seek funding from "local agencies," which, in turn, suggest that families inquire with the services. There simply are no funds offered to support low-income students, women and newcomers who want to take driver's Ed.

Red Shawl will run a ‘Drive and thrive’ program which will provide up to twenty (20) women per year who are in need/low-income with access to driving lessons. Any applicant for the program will need to have been in Canada for less than 2 years or be a single mom or low-income or students who cannot afford driving lesson cost.

The program teaches the women how to drive. Women who can drive:
- Have increased possibility to get around for groceries, child’s school, chores, etc.
- Build self- confidence
- Have Increased possibility to find work (many jobs require driving ability
- Ministry approved BDE course leads to reduced insurance
- Can Spares husband’s or other adult’s time, who drives them around

Red Shawl will pay for the course fees for the selected women to receive driving lessons with qualified driving instructors from Ministry of Transportation approved driving schools. The driving lesson package will be based on the Beginner Driver Education (‘BDE’) curriculum, which includes 20 hours of in-class instruction that is highly interactive and activity based, includes student group work, updated instructor reference materials, etc. as well as 10 hours of one-on-one in-car training, which includes knowledge-based scenarios, and advanced hazard recognition), and preparation for the G2 driving exam. A certificate of course completion will be provided to the participants from the driving school.

Lessons Package with a Ministry approved BDE Instructor
20 hours in-class
10 hours one-on-one in-car-training
Free home, work or school pickup

Interested send us an email: info@redshawl.org

Help us make our next "Driver & Thrive" Program a Success
Contact us to find out about our next program or Click below to donate and support us.

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Clothing Drive

Clothing drives are and an ongoing effort by Red Shawl and we collect clothes through out the year.
We collect, pack, ship and donate ethnic Shalwar kameez suits/saris/shawl etc. to the less fortunate in Pakistan. Next time you clean your closets, put your gently used clothes aside that you no longer want to wear and bring them to our next event.
In the past we have collected and donated warm/summer clothing for children and adults to Haven on the Queensway; a nonprofit charitable organization providing humanitarian relief to people in the GTA community by meeting their physical and emotional needs.
Suits and sets of formal ladies clothing and ladies handbags had also been collected for the pastor’s wives of small churches in GTA. In the past Red Shawl has collaborated with Church on the Queensway to distribute clothing to pastors and their families.

Help us make our next "Clothing Drive" a Success
Contact us to find us about our next clothing drive or Click below to donate and support us.

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Community Research Symposium

Please Join Us Friday March 3rd, 2017: 1:00 to 3:00 PM
Mississauga Convention Center; 75 Derry Road W, Mississauga

The study entitled ‘A Gender Based Analysis of Income Security and Economic Prospects of Newcomers in Peel Region’ has been completed and we are ready to share the results.

Learn & Ask : Newcomers’ experiences of employment and income security and ways to improve services responding to the needs of Newcomers in Peel Region.

Presenters
Qualitative Analysis: Dr. Ginette Lafreniere
WLU Quantitative Analysis: Dr. Eliana Suarez: WLU
Recommendations and The way Forward Dr. Zari Gill : Red Shawl

Please Reply to Kathy McConnell if you are able to attend:
mcconnell.kathyruth@gmail.com or 905-330-7363