Through the Full Circle Project, GFL's Kitchener, Ontario team has been partnering with Marillac Place to help local moms.
“We wanted to partner with a local women-based charity and champion the women within our community,” GFL’s General Manager Heather Roper said.
Marillac Place is a charity that supports new mothers and mothers-to-be facing homelessness in the Waterloo region by providing a safe living environment, teaching parenting and life skills and developing supportive relationships.
They offer a safe space for mothers and their children to recover and rebuild to ensure a successful future.
Women who go to Marillac Place receive 24-hour guidance and support, have access to healthy meals, continue their education and help activate the life skills they need to care for themselves and their children.
They have 10 bedrooms and can accommodate up to 10 women and 11 children.
“Marillac Place runs several incredible programs to help mothers develop the skills needed to be successful in finding housing and moving forward with their lives," Inside Sales and Ops Support Jennifer Cabral-Yocom said. “Many of their programs help women learn to manage their money.”
One of the ways they do this is by offering a boutique stocked with donated and new products for their residents to shop in. The Kitchener team donated socks, underwear, pajamas and baby clothes to the boutique.
By contributing to the house and completing chores, the women earn points equivalent to dollars for their boutique store.
Marillac Place holds an annual holiday clothing drive to collect donations for their boutique. The Kitchener team volunteered at the 2022 drive and looks forward to participating again this year.
The Full Circle Project was delighted to donate CAD $5,000 towards supporting their programming, services and operations.
“As the Executive Director at Marillac Place and a single mother, I believe in the important work we are doing in our community to make a positive difference in the lives of young mothers and children who are facing homelessness,” Marillac Place Executive Director Tammy Northam said. “We could not do it without critical support from our generous community members such as GFL.”