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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, M ar ch 8 , 2 01 8 |12 OPINION KSM Kerr Street M ission Oakville's Mission of Hope T " » • * T h e i m p o r t a n c e o f w o m e n ' s f i n a n c i a l i n d e p e n d e n c e V o lu n te ers are the Heart o f KSM . Kerr Street Mission is able to come alongside our families in need thanks to the support of our generous donors, community supporters and our amazing volunteers! Volunteers make a tremendous contribution to the work of KSM. Their help makes it possible for us to provide help for today and hope for the future. We are blessed to have 120 active program volunteers at KSM. They fill various roles in our kitchen. They support our youth programs. They act as reading buddies. They work in our food market. They organize our warehouse. They support our partner programs. They make a difference each and every day. Last year our volunteers gave us a combined 20,000+ hours of their time. Their love and commitment for all those we serve is truly inspiring. "We truly couldn't do what we do without their help. Their kindness, effort, time and com passion makes what KSM what it is. They give us the greatest gift we can receive and we are so thankful for their support" -Devon Goodman, Volunteer Coordinator Please consider making a donation to support the work of Kerr Street Mission. Your support is important and will us improve programming and respond more effectively to the needs of the many in our community that are struggling to make ends meet. To learn more about Kerr Street Mission go to www.kerrstreet.com or call 905.845.7485 K e r r S tr e e t M is s io n 485 Kerr Street, Oakville P: 905.845.7485 Charitable Reg. No. 897106845RR0001 The m ingredient of earning power is education, writes Watson OAKVILLE - Every year on March 8 people around the globe celebrate International Women's Day - a day devoted to the economic, cultural, and political achievements of women, and the furthering of gender parity. PETER WATSON Column In Canada the 2018 theme is #MyFeminism, which is fitting as our prime minister is a self- proclaimed feminist. At January's World Econom­ ic Forum in Davos, Swit­ zerland, the participants lined up to hear Justin Trudeau speak on wom­ en's equality. In his speech he made reference to #Me- Too, Hollywood's Time's Up and the Woman's March. He also said there was ". still much room for improvement." His words rang true as only one-fifth of the dele­ gates were women, and the forum's 2018 Global Gen­ der Gap Report showed the gap widening. It will now take 217 years to reach worldwide gender equali­ ty, up from 170 years. Being financially inde­ pendent is an important ingredient of total inde­ pendence. The main ingre­ dient of financial indepen­ dence is earning power. The main ingredient of earning power is educa­ tion. One of Canada's chal­ lenges is pay equity. Statis­ tics Canada shows women make 74 cents to every dol­ lar a man earns. Oxfam Canada reports it is possi­ ble for a Canadian woman to work full-time and still live in poverty. A strong trend over past decades shows more Cana­ dian women are pursuing post-secondary education. However, despite Cana­ dian women representing 60 per cent of university graduates, those degrees have not resulted in more key decision-making posi­ tions such as CEOs. Status of Women Minis­ ter Maryam Monsef was also at Davos, and sat on a panel to discuss gender, power and sexual harass­ ment. Here again, more at­ tention is needed. According to the Cana­ dian Women's Foundation half of all Canadian wom­ en have experienced at least one incident of phys­ ical or sexual violence af­ ter the age of 16. True gender equality may be a long way off, but those who believe they can make a difference are a de­ termined group of women and men. Including our prime minister. Financial indepen­ dence based on a strong ed­ ucation is an important in­ gredient in that success. The other is getting in­ volved. Join the conversation at #MyFeminism. - Peter Watson, of Peter Watson Investments MBA, CFP, R.F.P., CIM, FCSI, offers a weekly financial planning column, Dollars & Sense. He can be con­ tacted through www.peter- watsoninvestments.com. ^ H alton h a lto n .c a (j 311 in YnulllliB REGION MULTI-YEAR A CCESSIBILITY PLAN At the next meeting of Halton Region's Accessibility Advisory Committee, Regional staff will present Halton's draft Multi-Year Accessibility Plan, 2018-2023. The plan is a requirement of Ontario Regulation 191/11-Integrated Accessibility Standards and sets out how Halton will meet its regulatory compliance obligations. We invite interested members of the public to attend and provide feedback. Date: Thursday, March 15,2018 Time: 1 to 2 p.m. Place: Halton Room, Halton Regional Centre 1151 Bronte Road, Oakville For more information, please contact: Gabrielle Baldazzi, Senior Policy Advisor Telephone: 905-825-6000, ext. 7485 TTY: 905-827-9833 Gabrielle.Baldazzi@halton.ca Halton is h e lp in g local businesses g o g lo b a l Halton Region's new Global Business Centre is officially open for business. The GBC is a hub of free resources and support for local, small to medium sized businesses in Halton that are looking to export, scale up and take advantage of national and international market opportunities. New and unique services include export counseling, market entry support, seminars and access to information on networking and grant opportunities. Learn more and connect with us at halton.ca/goglobal or call 311. M eetings at Halton Region, 1151 Bronte Rd., Oakville, L6M 3L1 Visit halton.ca/m eetings for full schedule. Mar 20 9:30 a.m. Health & Social Services Mar 21 Mar 21 9:30 a.m. Planning & Public Works Mar 28 Gary Carr Regional Chair 1:30 p.m. Administration & Finance 9:30 a.m. Regional Council s Please contact us, as soon as possible, if you have any accessibility ^ needs at Halton Region events or meetings. http://www.kerrstreet.com http://www.peter-watsoninvestments.com http://www.peter-watsoninvestments.com mailto:Gabrielle.Baldazzi@halton.ca The importance of women's financial independence