Tkaronto Turkey Day - Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society hosts its 4th annual holiday turkey hamper give-away
TORONTO, Dec. 18, 2024 /CNW/ - This Friday, December 20th, Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society (TWHLS) will host our 4th Annual Tkaronto Turkey Day.
With financial support from BMO and the Aboriginal Labour Force Development Circle (ALFDC) - Reaching Home, we will be giving out 600 hampers containing a family-sized turkey and traditional "sides" to assist Indigenous client households and local community members with food security support for the holiday season.
Event Details & in-person media opportunities:
- Staff and volunteers will prepare the hampers on Thursday, December 19th, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the TWHLS Main Office– 413 Dundas Street East, Toronto, ON, M5A 2A9.
- Pre-registered clients can collect their turkey hamper on Friday morning from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the TWHLS Main Office – 413 Dundas Street East, Toronto, ON, M5A 2A9.
- On Friday afternoon, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., all community members are invited to pick up a hamper at our future Lodge site – 2217 Kingston Road (corner Cliffside Dr), Scarborough, ON, M1N 1T7. No registration is needed for pickup at the Kingston Road location. Hampers will be distributed first come, first served, while supplies last.
- Note: The hampers are heavy and may require a folding cart to carry. Thunder Woman staff and volunteers will be on hand to help load hampers into carts or vehicles at the pickup locations.
Background Information:
TWHLS aims to reduce the over-representation of incarcerated Indigenous women by addressing the root causes of their vulnerability, including homelessness, housing insecurity, and breaking the vicious cycle of intergenerational harm. Thunder Woman's Food Security and Basic Needs Initiative provides local First Nations, Métis, and Inuit households with direct assistance to navigate issues of day-to-day affordability.
Our Tkaronto Turkey Day has become an annual community event for the winter solstice and holiday season – overcoming exclusion and isolation by bringing all people together and putting food on families' tables.
Testimonials:
"Through the generosity of multiple donors, TWHLS is thankful to be able to share our bounty with others in need, just as our Ancestors did. However, it is a shameful reality that many First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities still go hungry, houseless, and without clean water on our own Land." Patti Pettigrew, Founder & Executive Director, Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society
"The team at Thunder Woman Healing Lodge, whose mission is to break the cycle of Indigenous women's over-representation in Canada's prisons, providing a safe place to reclaim wellness, is nothing short of inspiring. As a banking partner and ally, BMO is proud to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life by supporting progress for Thunder Woman's clients with banking solutions, donations and volunteering." Dan Adams, Vice President, Indigenous Banking, BMO
"The Aboriginal Labour Force Development Circle is proud to work alongside Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society through Reaching Home: Canada's Homelessness Strategy. This partnership embodies our shared commitment to empowering Indigenous women and families, ensuring they have access to safe housing and vital resources to restore healing, balance and growth through Indigenous led initiatives. ALFDC looks forward to continuing to support this absolutely essential For-Indigenous-By-Indigenous resource for the community: TWHLS!" Glenda Maracle, Executive Director, The Aboriginal Labour Force Development Circle.
About Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society: Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society (TWHLS) is a community-driven initiative formed in response to the urgent need to break the cycle of Indigenous women's over-representation in Canada's prisons. We believe the best way to achieve this is by creating opportunities for us to heal and thrive. Based in Toronto and Indigenous-led, TWHLS provides community-based, culturally appropriate services for First Nation (Status and Non-Status), Inuit, and Métis 2SLGBTQIA+ women exiting corrections or before the courts and survivors of intergenerational trauma.
For more information on Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society or about our Tkaronto Turkey Day, please call (647) 598-4520, visit twhls.ca, or email [email protected]. Charitable donations to support Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society and its programs can be made at twhls.ca/support-us.
About Aboriginal Labour Force Development Circle: Incorporated as a non-profit organization in 1998, the Aboriginal Labour Force Development Circle (ALFDC) is comprised of First Nations communities, both on-reserve and in urban areas, that have come together to support mutual social and economic development in the areas of employment, training, childcare, and housing/homelessness initiatives.
The Aboriginal Labour Force Development Circle is the Indigenous Community Entity responsible for administering the Indigenous Housing and Homelessness Stream funds within Toronto for the federal Homelessness Strategy, Reaching Home. A Toronto Indigenous Community Advisory Board, made up of key member agencies in the Toronto area, assists the ALFDC in decision-making to ensure the needs of Indigenous people experiencing homelessness within the community are met.
About BMO Financial Group
BMO Financial Group is the eighth largest bank in North America by assets, with total assets of $1.41 trillion as of October 31, 2024. Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a diverse team of highly engaged employees providing a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management, global markets and investment banking products and services to 13 million customers across Canada, the United States, and in select markets globally. Driven by a single purpose, to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life, BMO is committed to driving positive change in the world, and making progress for a thriving economy, sustainable future, and inclusive society.
For information about BMO's Indigenous Banking Unit, click here.
SOURCE Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society
For media inquiries: Patti Pettigrew, Executive Director, Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society, [email protected] / 647-880-5410
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