When women view themselves through a lens of trauma, what’s reflected back can be distorted, so Bridges for Women Society tries to help them refocus.
Executive director Patricia Rawson says the society aims to help women who are affected by trauma but ready to rebuild to seek employment, return to school or start a business.
Bridges — one of many organizations helped by the Times Colonist Christmas Fund — offers students a six-month pre-employment program and counselling to prepare them for personal and professional success. “We walk alongside women, and we hold up a mirror so they are able to see themselves, all of their strengths and so many contributions that they have to offer the world,” said Rawson.
The clients are aged 19 to 70, with an average age of 30 to 40.
They may have experienced childhood trauma, intimate-partner violence, abuse or neglect, and want to reclaim their lives. Many are single parents. They have often had counselling and are now trying to re-enter the workforce, school or volunteer work.
It’s not intended for people who are in crisis, in the midst of an abusive relationship, struggling with substance use or without secure housing.
Many of the skills required for workforce success are practised throughout the program, said Rawson.
Trauma can deeply affect a person’s ability to seek and sustain employment, she said. Students might need to learn how to set boundaries or how to be more assertive or deal with conflict, “some of the skills that they may not know, or tools they may not have for the workplace.
Guest speakers share their experiences in the work world and clients are taught to create résumés and are connected to employers, work and education opportunities, and introduced to community resources.
Rawson recalls a woman who was so deeply traumatized, she couldn’t stay in classes that discussed cycles of violence. She would be triggered by certain subjects and have to leave the room. Eventually, she began to stay longer. Over time, she built enough confidence and self-awareness through the program that she chose to upgrade her education through Camosun College. Bridges has a partnership with the college.
The woman then took a program to train as a dental hygienist. “She ended up being top of her class, said Rawson. “She got a job and I think it started at $25 an hour.”
As well, the Indigenous Women’s Bridging Programs aim to inspire Métis, Inuit and First Nations women, living in reserve communities and in urban areas, to break the cycle of abuse and trauma through counselling, cultural education and employment training.
The combination of having been traumatized and then isolated during the pandemic has set some women back, said Rawson, noting Bridges for Women in-person classes had to move online.
Bridges for Women receives federal and provincial funding for its programs but “we are limited in some of the supports that we that we can actually provide to clients.”
Through the Times Colonist Christmas Fund, this year, Bridges will give its students $100 gift certificates.
“Women would come to our office who were laid off from their job and they’d have fed their children, but they weren’t able to feed themselves,” said Rawson. “This is one of the things that can make such a difference in people’s lives at this time of the year, to relieve some of that pressure.”
Money raised for the Christmas Fund is put to work in the community. Recipients this year also include the Salvation Army, Mustard Seed Street Church, Our Place, the Victoria Women’s Transition House, Nourish Cowichan and the 1 UP Victoria Single Parent Resource Centre.
During the Christmas season last year, donations went to 20 organizations in Greater Victoria, the Gulf Islands and as far north as Campbell River.
ceharnett@timescolonist.com
HOW TO DONATE
You can donate by going to the Times Colonist Christmas Fund fundraising page at timescolonist.com/donate. That will take you to the CanadaHelps website, which is open 24 hours a day and provides an immediate tax receipt.
Or mail a cheque to the Times Colonist Christmas Fund, 201-655 Tyee Road, Victoria, B.C. V9A 6X5.
You can also use your credit card by phoning 250-995-4438 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
