Avante Women’s Centre
December seems like a relatively short month for activities, but what a busy time of year! Our big annual holiday event, the Christmas Potluck Supper and Toonie Fair, will be held on Wednesday, Dec. 12th at the St. James Anglican Church hall in Bedford (40 rue du Pont). Welcoming all members and friends, this will be a potluck supper, so bring one of your favourite dishes to share, and don’t forget a couple of toonies to participate in our very popular drawings for a variety of donated items. If you have a treasure you could part with to include in the activity, all items are gratefully accepted that evening and represents an annual fundraiser for Avante. The more treasures we have, the more treasures you get! Always lots of fun, so please join us.
Our regular programming continues with 2 more Tuesdays “Open Til 8”s.” On Dec. 4th, Nancy will host a potluck supper with a Tip of the Day from 6 to 8 p.m. Evening meals can be sometimes boring and lonely, so we’re offering a chance to gather for a meal with friends. Simply bring a dish with a tip of the day or a life hack you swear by to get the conversation rolling!
The following Tuesday, December 11th, Christine will be leading a team of ladies to do a good deed for someone locally, as the “Good Deed Breed” from 6 to 8 p.m. Please contact Christine for more details.
As a new policy, we offer free daycare for our evening activities at the centre, but we require 24 hours notice.
On Wednesday, Dec. 5th our Health Matters: Revisited workshop in Bedford will be from 10 a.m. to noon with the DVD presentation of “Let’s Talk About Proteins”. Protein is a major component to strong muscles so we can maintain strength, agility and balance. It also plays a major role in our immune system that protects us from being sick. But our bodies don’t produce or store proteins, so we must eat proteins daily to stay healthy. Learn the hows, whens and whys from Dorothy Moffat, a specialist in nutrition in a prerecorded Telehealth Video Conference offered through the CHEP and CHSSN programs.
The following day, December 6th, is a commemorative day for the 1989 massacre at École Polytechnique in Montreal, of 14 women, singled out and murdered just because they were women seizing an opportunity to move into a traditional man’s domain. Have things changed for the status of women since then? Has this tragic event had any impact on the plight of women? Join the discussion after our monthly Soup Café; a free bowl of homemade soup and casual conversation at noon.
December 13th will be a “BYOSP” (bring your own project) with Gayl from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., so if you have a project you need encouragement or guidance with, now’s your chance.
A reminder that we will be doing a DIY of Christmas Swags in Knowlton at the Lac Brome Community centre on Monday, December 10th. This event had advanced registration and is now full.
Please note that our centre will be closed for the holidays as of December 21st until January 7th.
Avante Women’s Centre strives to provide services to English speaking women in Brome Missisquoi. We offer workshops, courses, and individual counselling sessions in English as well as information on resources and referrals to other social services in our area. Our centre is located at 15 rue du Pont in Bedford, and we can be reached at (450) 248-0530 weekdays from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. We can also be contacted through our website, www.avantewomenscentre.org and Facebook page.