Dawn’s Story

Rasha talks about how participating in women's empowerment programs helped her build a network and share her culture.

I heard about the Learning Exchange from my case worker at the Teen Resource Centre. She suggested I check it out and see if the programs might be helpful for me. I wanted to finish high school, so I met with someone at the Learning Exchange and they told me about the G.O.A.L.S. program. It was interesting to me because it was different from the schools I had gone to before. 

About a year ago, I was referred to the Power Up program by Social Development. My favorite part was the expectation that we were responsible to be there. I treated it like a job. I got up in the morning, got my coffee ready and went. One of the topics that really stuck with me was on joy. I had not considered the idea that you could be happy for the sake of being happy. I wanted to find my happiness. Since then, I have taken WEN’s Self-Esteem course. This came at the perfect time in my life because I had just left an abusive relationship. The support of everyone there kept me going. I got my power back. I am currently taking the Stress Management course. I’ve become even more involved in the Learning Exchange. I graduated from WESLinks before Christmas and am now enrolled in WorkLinks. My son and I are planning to host a cultural workshop and talking circle so the learners can discover more about First Nations. I’m excited to give back. When you walk into the building, you feel like you are coming home. Everyone there is working together to help you. You put your mind to it, you commit, and you will get what you want out of the programs.