Several dozen women got together at the Nelson and District Women’s Centre on March 8 to celebrate International Women’s Day.
“I feel joyful because it is such a long time since we have been able to gather together,” said board member Donna Macdonald, “and we are finally doing that today. And I am joyful because I see a real mix of ages of women, a lot of younger women, and us older ones can pass on some learning and then we can all work together.”
Macdonald said the group would spend the morning singing some women’s movement songs and then “just chatting, because that is what we have been missing.”
She said International Women’s Day has been celebrated for over 100 years.
“But our work is not done, and many of the issues that women faced in 1911 are the same: inequality in wages, poverty, violence against women, all of those are very much with us. A woman’s work is never done.”
She said the centre has just launched an online silent auction as a fundraiser. There will be about 100 different items, ranging in price from $5 to $800, and the bidding has started on a great variety of items.
“Anne DeGrace novels to Zipline passes, placemats to precious metals, books to bodywork,” Macdonald said. “The businesses and artisans in the area were so generous.”
The auction can be found at www.32auctions.com/nelson-womens-centre and will be accepting bids until March 12 at 8 p.m.
bill.metcalfe@nelsonstar.com
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