Help EFryNB build the Gathering Space

Elizabeth Fry Society New Brunswick is renovating its main level on Adelaide Street. We are introducing the Gathering Space that will offer an expanded area to craft, create, connect, ground, trust, and grow.

This space will offer a safe welcoming environment for women and gender-diverse persons, who may be or are criminalized, to come together and connect through communal cooking, baking, and other creative activities.
The walls are down, the room is painted, electrical and flooring replaced.

Now, we ask for your support to bring the room to life by adding a full kitchen with a fridge and stove together with all the necessary supplies to make a community kitchen functional.

Tuck Studio has contributed $10,000 as PHASE ONE to kick off the renovations for the Gathering Space. At EFryNB, we believe every person, given a chance, can make a positive change for themselves and their families. We invite you to join EFryNB and Tuck’s commitment to support our most vulnerable citizens and take action to build a community of acceptance.

 

Here is what $25,000 raised for PHASE TWO will bring us:

- Kitchen and storage cabinets: $19,950

- Stove: $1500

- Fridge: $1700

- Kitchen Supplies: $1400

- Sink/Faucet: $400

 

PLEASE DONATE NOW
AS A REGISTERED CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION, EFRYNB WILL ISSUE YOU  A CHARITABLE RECEIPT.
To facilitate this process, please email your name and address to [email redacted]n.com

 

Through COVID, we experienced the benefits of community and the value of connection. This is especially true for people who have been subjected to social exclusion and criminalization.

For almost two years we have lived in a world shaped by a pandemic, a detached surreal world. Some days it is not so bad; feeling we are a whisper away from ‘normal’. Other days it is a struggle, feeling far from seeing the end. These experiences are much harsher for criminalized people who feel socially excluded and alone.

Stigma thrives where accepted norms end, but humanity exists beyond. Social measures do not account for effects of trauma, intergenerational cycles, poverty, or criminalization.

A simple act of giving from a place of community, A GATHERING SPACE, and connection can provide a sense of inclusion to someone who feels alone! A space where everyone is equal, where humanity and grace surpasses all.

 

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HOW WILL YOUR DONATION HELP?

 

READ ON:

 

Meet Lilly.

 

Lilly was incarcerated for several years for a crime committed to protect her children. Over time, friends and family faded from her life. She was released back into the community in the middle of a global pandemic, released in a strange city with no ID, no money, no medication, no friends, and no family. There were many travel restrictions in place, and many limitations to supports and services. EFryNB connected with Lilly and worked with her to re-connect with all the services we take for granted: Medicare, ID, income assistance, smart phones. After years of living in an institution, Lilly is attempting to re-connect with other people, and learn who she is outside of her prison persona. By allowing her to connect with others in a supportive context rather than in isolation, she can integrate into society, rather than being forced into the hardships of homelessness, social isolation, and desperation. In EFryNB’s new GATHERING SPACE, Lilly can connect with other women, cook together, craft together, and re-connect with herself. Lilly is the voice of one woman from our EFryNB community. Her story is unique, but her struggles are shared by many others we support daily.

 

EFryNB is a woman-centered non-profit charitable organization. We engage with women and gender-diverse people who may be affected by the justice system. Complex issues such as poverty, homelessness, gender-based violence, mental health and addictions may result in criminalization and social exclusion. EFryNB is committed to working with those who reach out to us through innovative programming, justice system reform, counselling, housing, and individual capacity building.