giving back.
A few years ago when I was in Joshua Tree I saw this beautiful sign outside of a restaurant that was more or less like the logo above. The sign totally moved me and sparked this idea for me to recreate the sign, put it onto a shirt and sell the shirts to raise awareness on each topic that was currently being addressed. All the proceeds would then be donated to different organizations that would help with each of those topics. The BLM movement of 2020 is what finally pushed me to follow through with this idea and I finally created something that we could all wear proudly and become a group of people who speak up for the things we believe in and want to create positive changes for.
The first shirts I made in 2020 ended up raising $3100, with $2100 being donated to The BC Community Alliance (BCCA), a community based organization dedicated to combating the structural inequities created by anti-black racism. This organization resonated with me the most, as they're trying to find the root cause of anti-black racism in the school systems here in BC and want to implement black history to the school curriculum to help educate the kids. The youth is our future and I truly believe that if everyone would have been educated on this from a younger age, things would be a lot different now (visit https://bccommunityalliance.com/ for more info or if you'd like to help volunteer). I also reached out to my friend Kendall Gender, a huge supporter and advocate in the LGBTQ community, on where I could donate the rest of the money to. She lead me to the https://dmsvancouver.com/ website where you'll find a few organizations that need our help. Through there, I decided to donate $1000 to Rainbow Refugee, a Vancouver based community group that supports people seeking refugee protection in Canada because of persecution based on sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression (SOGIE) or HIV status (visit https://www.rainbowrefugee.com/ if you'd like to find out more info)
The second collection of sweaters I made in 2021 ended up raising $400 that was donated to Spirit North, a national charitable organization that uses land-based activities to improve the health and well-being of Indigenous youth, empowering them to become unstoppable in sport, school and life. Through the transformative power of sport and play, our participants learn important lessons, discover untold potential and build the confidence and courage needed to overcome the hardships Indigenous youth often face (visit https://www.spiritnorthxc.ca/who-we-are to find out more about them).
The third collection of sweaters made in 2022 ended up raising $1963 that was donated to our local Squamish L, as a charity working to reclaim and celebrate the culture of the Lil’wat and Squamish Nation, creating meaningful employment to Indigenous youth. (visit https://slcc.ca/supportus/ for more details)
In 2023 I designed a collection of tote bags and ended up raising $660 that was donated to ​The Palestine Children's Relief Fund. Over the past three decades, PCRF has become the leading nonpolitical, nonprofit organization, deploying thousands of volunteer doctors worldwide to hospitals in the Middle East. These efforts provide aid to tens of thousands of sick and injured children and include training for local medical professionals. Through their Treatment Abroad Program, more than 2,000 children have received specialized care abroad at no cost-care they would otherwise be unable to obtain locally. Additionally, they offer a comprehensive range of humanitarian aid projects and programs tailored to address both the holistic and immediate needs of the communities they support. (visit https://www.pcrf.net/ for more details)
Thank you so much to all of you who have purchased any of my We Welcome. pieces in the past - it means the world to know that you are listening and wanting to make a difference with me. The movement is real and we are making a change together. Keep spreading that love.​
Nathalie ♥
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"Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person" - Mother Teresa