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YWCA CAMBRIDGE UPDATES
JUNE 2025
Your bi-monthly pulse on programs, events and inspiration with YWCA Cambridge.
In This Issue:
Greetings from Kim
Upcoming Events:
🌙 Take Back the Night & Feminist Night Market
❤️ Walk A Mile
Celebrating Changemakers: Congratulations, to the 2025 Women of Distinction
Art, Healing and Connection: Collaborative Painting at the Shelter
Creativity in Action: SHYFT Youth Make Their Mark
Free Summer Camps at The W! 🌞
New Child Care Facility Groundbreaking at Joint-Use School
Summer Camp Update
Indoor Yard Sale was a Fashionable, Fundraising Success
Community Generosity in Action: Thank You to Our Recent Donors
New CMHC Report Highlights Gender Gaps in Housing Need
Open Letter: Repeal Bill C-2, The Strong Borders Act
YWCA in the News
Dear Friends and Supporters,
I'm thrilled to share another update on the incredible work happening at YWCA Cambridge.
Our recent Women of Distinction Awards were a resounding success, celebrating seven remarkable leaders and raising over $11,000 to support our vital programs. It was a true testament to the power of our community.
Looking ahead, mark your calendars for the return of Take Back the Night on September 18 – a powerful youth-led rally and march open to everyone, accompanied by another Feminist Night Market featuring local vendors. And this October, get ready for our signature Walk A Mile event, raising critical funds and awareness to end gender-based violence.
Our shelter continues to provide around-the-clock support, and we're so grateful for the overwhelming community generosity, from essential donations to collaborative art sessions fostering healing and connection.
These achievements are only possible with your unwavering support. Thank you for being a part of the YWCA Cambridge family as we continue to empower women, girls, and gender-diverse people in our community.
Together, we are making a profound difference.
Warmly, Kim Decker CEO
UPCOMING EVENTS
🌙 Take Back the Night & Feminist Night Market
🗓️ September 18, 2025 | 🕙 6 – 9 PM | 💲FREE 📍The W – 20 Dickson St Cambridge
Join us for the return of Take Back the Night, a powerful evening of community, action and celebration. This youth-led rally, march and market celebrates, supports and empowers survivors, while reclaiming our right to safety and speaking out against sexual and gender-based violence.
This year’s event will feature:
🪧 A rally and community march 🛍️ A Feminist Night Market with local artists, makers and small businesses 🤝 Community booths and interactive activities
All are welcome — bring your friends, your voice, and your energy.
We’re thrilled to announce the return of our signature event, Walk A Mile in Their Shoes, this fall! Get ready to gather your team, step into action, and walk in solidarity with survivors to raise funds and awareness for YWCA Cambridge’s vital programming and emergency women’s homeless shelter.
Stay tuned for our official Save the Date, arriving in your inbox later this summer.
We’re hitting the streets! Look out for YWCA Cambridge at local community events throughout the summer — stop by our table, say hello, and learn more about how you can get involved. Follow us on Instagram to see where we’ll be next!
Celebrating Changemakers: Congratulations, to the 2025 Women of Distinction
On June 11, we hosted our most successful Women of Distinction Awards to date — thanks to our incredible community of supporters, sponsors, and attendees!
With 200 guests in attendance, 24 inspiring nominees (read all about them here), and 7 remarkable award recipients, the evening was a beautiful celebration of leadership, courage and community.
In the lead-up to the event, our team worked tirelessly behind the scenes to bring together every detail, from venue planning, recipient communications and ticket sales, to coordinating an incredible silent auction and door prizes. And it all paid off: together, we raised over $11,000 to support YWCA Cambridge’s critical work in the community!
Highlights from the Night:
✨ A packed house with 200 attendees 💐 24 outstanding nominees and 7 remarkable award recipients 🎶 Two powerful musical performances 📸 A lively photobooth that captured the fun and spirit of the evening 🧺 22 generous silent auction packages — with special thanks to our Board for curating beautiful baskets 🤝 Support from 5 generous sponsors and 9 in-kind partners 📲 Our highest social media engagement for any event to date!
Women of Distinction Award Recipients:
CJ Janzen Cindy Ofunne Jess Fry Krysanne McLean
Special Category Recipients:
Young Trailblazer Award – Puneet Chinna President’s Award – Emily Pyke Lifetime Achievement – Louise Lawrie
We are beyond grateful to everyone who helped make the evening such a success — from those who nominated community changemakers to every person who donated, bid, cheered and showed up.
Let’s continue celebrating the work of women and gender-diverse leaders in our community and keep the momentum going!
We’re already thinking about our 2026 event! If you want to sponsor or have someone to nominate, let’s get in touch today!
SHELTER UPDATE
Since opening, our shelter staff team has been growing and working diligently to navigate complex community needs. Staff are providing around-the-clock support to residents with care, compassion, and resilience.
We’ve also received an incredible outpouring of community support and in-kind donations. From toiletries to clothing essentials, your kindness is making a direct impact. Let’s keep the momentum going!
🔴 Current priority needs: new underwear (all sizes) and ankle socks!
Art, Healing and Connection: Collaborative Painting at the Shelter
In a meaningful bridge between YWCA Cambridge’s services, we recently welcomed The W facilitator and local artist Alana Decker into our shelter space for two collaborative painting sessions — one with shelter staff and one with residents.
These sessions were about connection, expression, and care, creating space for staff and residents alike to slow down, reflect, and build community through creativity.
The first session brought our shelter team together to co-create a bold, vibrant painting that will soon hang in the front entryway of our shelter to become a daily reminder of the heart and humanity behind their essential work. In the second session, shelter residents were invited to contribute to a more intricate group piece. The work represents something powerful: shared experience, expression, and healing through art.
To complete the collection, Alana also created a third original commissioned piece for our space — a visual reflection of the care, resilience and creativity that lives within our shelter community.
These sessions are a shining example of how YWCA Cambridge’s programming isn’t siloed — but interconnected, responding to the holistic needs of the people we serve. From the creative empowerment of The W to the compassionate care of our shelter staff, we’re building bridges between programs to foster belonging and joy.
🎨 Stay tuned: all three artworks will soon be on display in our shelter space. 💜 Learn more about our Women’s Emergency Homeless Shelter and see the latest updates:
Our SHYFT (Shaping and Helping Youth Form Tomorrow) programs have been buzzing with creativity, reflection, and connection this spring. Here’s a quick look at what participants have been up to:
🤝 Dream It, Be It x SHYFT
We wrapped up a meaningful 6-week partnership with Soroptimist International of Cambridge, blending their Dream It, Be It curriculum with SHYFT’s arts-based, youth-led approach. The final art gala at The W showcased the power of creative expression, goal setting, and community building.
🎨 Words Matter Mural
At St. Andrew’s Public School, SHYFT youth are co-designing a mural as part of the school’s Words Matter campaign—celebrating how language can shape identity, influence others, and spark change.
💬 Affirmation Posters
SHYFT groups also created personal affirmation posters, inspired by the songs, words, and people that lift them up. These visual reminders now brighten our program space with positivity and strength. Focus in the last few weeks for some groups leaned to working on self-esteem and confidence, belonging and social connections to others, and how we can have a role in shaping these things.
Small Steps to Success (SSTS) and SHYFT programs will pause over the summer and return in the fall (September). We are still accepting inquiries over the summer months.
This summer, The W is offering five weeks of free summer programming for girls and gender-diverse youth!
Each week will feature hands-on, art-based projects, youth-led discussions, and community outings that give participants a chance to explore big ideas and express themselves – all while connecting with others in a supportive and inclusive space. Youth will also get a taste of our SHYFT programming, which helps build confidence, self-awareness and community leadership skills.
We’re also thrilled to announce an additional week of programming, thanks to our partnership with the Sexual Assault Support Centre (SASC)! Together, facilitators from The W and SASC will be delivering a brand-new summer camp:
Empower & Allyship — a program for high school-aged youth (ages 14–17) of all genders encouraging youth to become leaders in ending gender-based violence.
This week will focus on:
💬 Consent and healthy relationships 🌐 Online safety and bystander intervention 🤝 What it means to be a strong ally 💡 A youth-led community project to share what they’ve learned and take action to end gender-based violence.
Registration is now open, and space is still available!
New Child Care Facility Groundbreaking at Joint-Use School
On May 22, we proudly participated in the groundbreaking ceremony for the New Cambridge Joint Elementary School at 605 Wesley Boulevard, which will house our newest child care centre.
This joint project between WRDSB and WCDSB is the first shared elementary school in Waterloo Region—and YWCA Cambridge is thrilled to be the child care operator. The purpose-built centre will offer 88 licensed spaces and expand access to high-quality, inclusive early learning in South East Galt.
Expected to open in September 2026, this new space will serve as a hub for families, designed with connection, collaboration, and community in mind.
Summer Camp Reminder
🌈 The W Summer Camp
Free summer programming for cis and trans girls, gender-diverse and two-spirit youth (ages 8–14).
Indoor Yard Sale was a Fashionable, Fundraising Success
On May 3, The W was buzzing with energy for our Indoor Yard Sale, beautifully curated by the one and only Lynn Spence. From new and nearly new fashion to accessories and homewares, every rack offered something special and stylish!
This unique event also featured the last-ever opportunity to shop WIGG inventory in person, giving long-time supporters a final chance to take home a piece of the beloved brand.
Thank you to everyone who came out to shop, donate, and support YWCA Cambridge. Proceeds from the day go directly toward our mission.
And a special thank you Lynn Spence & friends for being such a huge supporter of everything we do.
Community Generosity in Action: Thank You to Our Recent Donors
We are incredibly grateful to our generous community partners who have recently stepped up in meaningful ways to support our work.
A heartfelt thank you to:
Rotary Clubs of Cambridge, whose Boots and Bands event raised an incredible $8,000 in support of our programs
Little Mushroom Catering, who hosted a fun and tasty Tapas & Trivia night, raising $300
Cambridge Today Cares, for their generous $1,500 donation toward local impact
Women Influencing and Impacting Toyota (WIIT), for contributing $500 to help us continue empowering women and girls in our community
We are also deeply thankful to our in-kind supporters:
Two Men and A Truck, for helping with essential shelter items
The FOCKin Social Group, whose recent Pillow Drive brought comfort and care to shelter residents in need
ADVOCACY
New CMHC Report Highlights Gender Gaps in Housing Need
The housing crisis in Canada doesn’t impact everyone equally; it hits women and gender-diverse people the hardest.
According to a new report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), women are more likely than men to be in core housing need, meaning their home is unaffordable, overcrowded, or in need of major repairs.
📊 In 2022:
9.8% of women in Canada were in core housing need, compared to 8.4% of men
Among renters, the gap is even wider: 21.3% of women renters vs. 18.2% of male renters
Racialized women experienced core housing need at nearly double the rate of white women (16.8% vs. 8.5%)
Single mothers were significantly more impacted than single fathers (21% vs. 15.5%)
For seniors 75+, the gap grows: 14.6% of women vs. 8.7% of men
But these disparities are not accidental; they are driven by the gender wage gap, lower pensions for older women, and higher poverty rates among racialized women. They are the result of systemic inequalities that shape who can afford to live with safety and stability.
At YWCA Cambridge, we see these realities every day. Through our emergency shelter, advocacy efforts, and programming, we’re fighting to ensure that everyone has access to safe, affordable housing and that gender equity remains front and centre in the conversation.
Housing isn’t just a basic need — it’s a feminist issue and it’s a human right.
Open Letter: Repeal Bill C-2, The Strong Borders Act
As a member of the YWCA Ontario coalition, we joined a coalition of civil society organizations from across Canada in raising urgent concerns about Bill C-2, The Strong Borders Act.
In an open letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney, Honourable Gary Anandasangaree, Minister of Public Safety, and Honourable Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, we expressed our deep concern that the federal government is putting refugee claimants, immigrants and migrants at risk with Bill C-2. We call on the Federal government to:
❌ Withdraw Bill C-2 ❌ Withdraw from the Safe Third Country Agreement between Canada and the United States of America
Every action you take—big or small—helps us build a community where women, girls and gender-diverse individuals are respected, valued and equal. Here’s how you can make a difference today:
💛 Donate: Help us to provide safe shelter, empowering women’s and youth programs, and to be a strong voice for gender equity. Make a Gift Today »
🔁 Become a Monthly Donor: Join a community of changemakers fueling sustainable impact all year long. Sign Up for Monthly Giving »
🎟️ Attend an Event: From Women of Distinction to community workshops and fundraisers, your presence matters. See What’s Coming Up »
🎉 Host a Fundraiser: Celebrate a birthday, milestone or community event by fundraising in support of our programs. Email Us with Your Idea »
There are so many ways to stay in the loop and be part of the YWCA Cambridge community be sure to follow us on social media for real-time updates, stories and opportunities.
Have a question or idea? We’d love to hear from you. 📧 Email us at info@ywcacambridge.ca
Together, we’re building a stronger, more equitable Cambridge—thank you for being part of it.
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