Victoria Women's Transition House thanks you for your support and interest this year. December is always a very busy month, both at the Community Office where we gratefully receive thoughtful donations and generous gifts, but also on our Crisis Line, at our Emergency Shelter and throughout all our counselling and support services. Intimate partner violence continues to affect the lives of many in our community, threatening women's safety and security. Our supporters allow us to provide resources, tools and a sense of hope to those moving forward after experiencing violence and abuse.

Holiday Season at the Shelter

Holidays can be a challenging and overwhelming time to stay at a transition house – some residents may feel relieved to spend the holidays in a safer place, but many others have made the difficult decision to avoid family gatherings for the safety of themselves and their children. Not everyone shares the same holidays or traditions, so staff at our Emergency Shelter work hard to ensure that everyone staying at the Shelter at this time of year has the opportunity to be involved with a variety of celebrations. Thanks to a group of volunteers from BCI the house is looking festive. The group spent time putting up decorations, and even making some of their own to add to the decor. The Shelter feels cheery and welcoming for those families who will spend their Holidays there.

Our Crisis and Information line remains open throughout the holidays, and all year round, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please note that our Community Office will be closed on Monday December 25 & Tuesday December 26, and on Monday January 1, 2024. 

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence is an international campaign that aims to both reflect on gender-based violence and put an end to it. Taking place each year from November 25 – December 10, this year the Canadian theme was: Listen. Learn. Act.

We asked our staff and volunteers for their input sharing some of the ways that Victoria Women's Transition House challenges gender-based violence, and how others might become allies to our work. These messages were shared though our social media networks throughout the 16 days of activism. Here are a small sample – check out the rest on Facebook, Instagram, X or LinkedIn!

Calling all Goddesses!

Already thinking about goals for 2024? The Goddess Run takes place again on Sunday, March 3rd at Elk Lake. You can register to walk or run 5 km or 10 km. It’s a fun, supportive event with a wonderful atmosphere (and great post-race treats). The Goddess Run is also a significant fundraiser for Victoria Women’s Transition House.

If you don’t want to take part there’s also the option to donate to support another runner. We have Charity Champion Chanterelle (pictured) running for VWTH this year, her fundraising page shares her story and link to donate.

Thank you to everyone who has already made a donation to our Winter fundraising campaign; we continue to seek funds in support of our Emergency Shelter, counselling and support services for women and their children. Last year we received over 3,000 calls to our 24/7 Crisis and Information Line and provided safe accommodation at the Shelter for 208 women and children fleeing violence and abuse – and these numbers are only increasing. Currently we are at about 50% of our Winter fundraising goal of $316,000. Can you help? 

A Gift of Securities

Maximize your tax savings with a donation of stocks or securities to Victoria Women’s Transition House. Due to proposed changes to Federal tax laws scheduled to come into effect January 1, 2024, it may be advantageous for you to make a gift of stocks or securities before the end of 2023. Please speak to your financial advisor or tax planner for more details. Donating is easy. Simply complete the Victoria Women’s Transition House Gift of Securities form with your broker. This form is also available on our website. 

It was 1974 when the first Emergency Shelter was opened by Victoria Women’s Transition House, which means that 2024 is our 50^th Anniversary! This milestone will be marked in a number of ways over the coming year, with opportunities to remember our history, recognize and honour the people who have ensured our continued success, and spread the word about the work that still needs to be done to create communities free of intimate partner violence.

As we prepare our anniversary plans, we would love to hear from you! Do you have memories that you would like to share? Were you a past member of staff, volunteer, board member or client? Please add your contact information to our “Alumni” list through the form on our website – you can share a story with us there too!

You can also email communications@vwth.bc.ca to share a story, memory, or to let us know what VWTH means to you.

Dance Victoria

Clients and their children as well as VWTH staff and volunteers were very grateful for the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful Ukrainian Shumka Dancers' Nutcracker at the Royal Theatre. Thanks to Dance Victoria's community program, Nutcracker Kids, tickets to the annual festive staple were made available, ensuring a magical start to the Holiday season.

(Shumka Nutcracker photo credit: Gregg Ingram)

Victoria Symphony

Another wonderful community supporter - Victoria Symphony - have provided tickets to our clients to performances during their 2023/24 season. This new “Share the Music” program enables cultural experiences that might otherwise be challenging to access – Thank You!

Thrifty Foods – Coverdale

A donation drive to collect toys, games and gifts for our clients for the Holidays was a huge success. Thank you to the caring staff at Thrifty Foods - Cloverdale Store for making so much effort to encourage customers to add their donations for Victoria Women's Transition House. Over 100 toys, games and gifts were donated along with 40 gift cards. These items will make a big difference to our clients at this time of year. Store Manager Kurtis, along with Thrifty's staff Helen and Darcey, delivered the goods, received by VWTH's Deborah.

In Case You Missed It...

Here are some articles that we recently shared on social media:

• Violent misogyny is now classified as ideological extremism by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service. The Canadian Museum for Human Rights has this excellent explanation of the misogynist world of the manosphere, including resources: Online misogyny: the “manosphere” | CMHR (humanrights.ca)

• Domestic violence is a significant public safety issue, why is it missing from the conversation about crime and declining public safety then? Thoughtful coverage from CTV Vancouver shares insights from the BC Society of Transition Houses and references a recent homicide investigation in Vancouver. NEWS BLOG: IPV in the media | Victoria Women's Transition House - Shelter for Abused Women

• Canada’s Supreme Court to be majority women for first time - congratulations to Mary Moreau, and to Canada. “Given the situation of women and intolerance, and unfortunately issues of equity that continue to plague women in this country, I think it’s quite critical that at our apex court, we finally have a majority of women,” Justice Minister Arif Virani Canadians must 'see themselves' in justice system, says top court nominee Mary Moreau (thestar.com)

• On Remembrance Day we highlighted the significant contribution that women have made to Canada's security, including Elsie MacGill, the first Canadian woman to receive an electrical engineering degree, and the first female aircraft designer. The Veterans Affairs Canada website has lots of stories like Elsie's, it's worth a read! Elsie MacGill - Veterans Affairs Canada

• The Walrus hosted the Canadian Women's Foundation for an inspiring event exploring gender-based violence and "how we can all be allies to abuse survivors and agents of safety and care from the ground up." The Walrus Talks Gender-Based Violence is now available to watch on YouTube - highly recommended. The Walrus Talks Gender-Based Violence - YouTube

Territory Acknowledgment

It is with much respect to the Lekwungen and SENĆOŦEN speaking peoples of the WSÁNEĆ, Esquimalt, and Songhees Nations, on whose traditional territories the Victoria Women’s Transition House Society is located, that we make this acknowledgment with the expressed shared hope to live in communities free of intimate partner violence.