It’s because of women like you, members of the Junior League, that voluntarism is alive and well in Canada!

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY 2016

IWD
The Junior League of Halifax is participating in an event to recognize International Women’s Day, in conjunction with the Canadian Federation of Junior Leagues (CFJL).
This year members are donating gift baskets to Adsum House for Women & Children. Adsum is a non-profit, community-based organization that provides services to women, children and youth who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. It works to improve the quality of life for individuals and families who are marginalized in the community. http://www.adsumforwomen.org/
Junior League of Halifax volunteers are making gift baskets from Adsum’s “wish list”. 
Members are collecting donations of the following items to help fill the baskets:
  • Gift Cards – coffee shops
  • Make up
  • Bus tickets
  • Face cloths
  • Women’s underwear, all sizes and styles
  • Flip flops
  • Tampons
  • Re-usable coffee mugs
The League will be presenting the gift baskets to Adsum on International Women’s Day, March 8.

 

 

More about CFJL

Some interesting facts from a recent Imagine Canada survey:

  • Canada’s nonprofit and voluntary sector is the 2nd largest in the world; the Netherlands is the largest; the United States is the 5th
  • there are an estimated 161,000 nonprofits and charities in Canada, classified into 15 categories based on their work: 21% are involved with sports and recreation, 19% are religious organizations, 12% work in social services, 10% are involved in grant-making, fundraising and voluntarism promotion, 9% are arts and culture organizations, and 8% are focused on development and housing. The remaining categories comprise 5% or less of all incorporated nonprofit and voluntary organizations
  • the majority of Canadian charities are small, grassroots organizations
  • half of all nonprofits/charities are run entirely by volunteers
  • the volunteer sector represents $79.1 billion or 7.8% of the GDP (larger than the automotive or manufacturing industries) 2 million people are employed by these organizations representing 11.1% of the economically active population
  • volunteers contributed almost 2 billion volunteer hours to organizations – the equivalent of 1 million full-time jobs
  • more than one quarter (27%) of Canadians over the age of 15 volunteer for a charitable or nonprofit organization

The Canadian Federation of Junior Leagues (CFJL) was established more than 30 years ago to serve as the link among Junior Leagues in Canada.  It also represents the unique perspectives and needs of our Canadian Leagues to the Association of Junior Leagues International and represents the collective voice of Canadian Junior Leagues to external stakeholders.

Today, five Canadian Junior Leagues (Halifax, Toronto, Hamilton-Burlington, Calgary and Edmonton) are busy tackling several critical issues in their communities. To address childhood obesity and create healthier families, some Leagues are facilitating healthy eating workshops and cooking classes as well as working with youth to prepare them for a 5 kilometer race. Others are focusing their efforts on improving the educational success of young women affected by poverty, or working with adolescents to educate them on healthy living, developing positive body image and promoting positive self esteem.  All are providing members with top-notch training, helping to develop women as effective community and civic leaders.

There’s no doubt that Junior League members are making a difference and contributing to Canada’s position as a leader in voluntarism. Since 1912, when the Junior League of Montreal became the first League in Canada, Canadian Junior Leagues have been instrumental in initiating and funding new and innovative  community programs, providing hundreds of thousands of volunteer hours and several millions of dollars of financial support.

As the Canadian Federation of Junior Leagues facilitates the potential for increased impact through collaboration, sharing of valuable resources and best practices, I encourage you to utilize the connections that exist within our Canadian Leagues. There is much to share and learn from each other that will help ensure our ongoing success.

Susan Simpson
National Coordinator (2014-2016)
Canadian Federation of Junior Leagues
www.cfjl.org