Grandmothers Go Country At Verona Fundraiser

Oct 10, 2013

For their third fundraiser of the year, members and supporters of Grandmothers by the Lake, the local chapter of the Stephen Lewis Foundation's Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign, donned cowboy hats and kicked up their heels in support of their African grandmother counterparts at a country-style fundraiser at the Verona Lions hall on October 5.

Chair of the group, Adele Colby, recently returned from a special tribunal hosted by the Stephen Lewis Foundation in Victoria, B.C., where six African grandmothers told their stories. Together with two expert witnesses from projects on the ground in Africa, they made their demands known to the four tribunal judges, who included Gloria Steinem, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, Joy Phumaphi and Theo Sowa. They stressed the fact that important changes need to be made at all levels of government in their countries so that their rights can be “promoted, respected and protected ” as they continue, often with the odds stacked against them, to care for the generation of African children orphaned by Africa's HIV/Aids pandemic. The African grandmothers are demanding their rights to “property, bodily integrity, income security, freedom from violence and quality health care” and are aiming to see “improved laws, funding policies, consultations, cultural practices, greater access to justice as well as freedom from discrimination based on their sex, age, and HIV status”.

The tribunal resulted in a “call for action” in the hopes that the necessary remedies be “secured as an urgent priority for the grandmothers at the local, national and international levels.” In her speech Colby expressed the continued inspiration she gains from hearing the stories of these African grandmothers. “I feel very excited about these women that I met. They are a representation of the new woman in Africa and let's not forget that it is these women who are raising the future generation in Africa. It is therefore incumbent upon us to support them and give them what they need in order to carry on.”

To date over 8000 grandmothers from all across Canada have raised over $19 million for The Stephen Lewis Foundation who have in turn funded over 300 projects on the ground in Africa.

The Verona fundraiser included a homemade chili dinner with all the fixings, a lesson in square dancing from Ottawa's Graham Ingram, and live musical entertainment courtesy of the Sunshine Soul Band as well as a silent auction. Anyone interested in finding out more about Grandmothers by the Lake can contact Adele Colby at 613-375-8845.