The Flag Shop Provides Doggie Daycare for a Good Cause
Top Left: Crystal feeding our fur babies; Bottom Left: Our EVP’s adorable Ruby; Right: Our President’s beloved Mocha (who’s been with us since Day 1), counted during inventory
A few weeks ago, one of our customer service reps, Graham, asked if he could bring his girlfriend Vanessa’s dog, Ollie, to work on Tuesdays. It turns out that Vanessa would be busy on Tuesdays sewing a traditional star blanket in preparation for the 28th Annual Women’s Memorial March. To make this happen, she was looking for a temporary doggie daycare solution. This is where we came in! The Flag Shop is a family business – and that includes all of our fur babies, who come to work with us every day: Lizzy, Mocha, Nike, Ruby, and Fuzzbie. So, of course, Ollie’s in great company!
Ollie with Graham and Tatyana
The Star Blanket
The special star blanket is an expression of love and healing which will be presented to a family member of one of the missing women. When The Flag Shop President, Susan Braverman first heard about the reason that Ollie needed daycare, she said, “Having Ollie at work on Tuesdays is just one way we can help out, supporting the efforts of others who are getting ready for the march.” She added, “I’m so grateful to have a way to share this event with others, because this march is about honouring missing and murdered women, and helping to make sure that our lost sisters are never, ever forgotten.”
The 28th Annual Women’s Memorial March is coming up on Thursday, February 14th, 2019. In 1992, an Indigenous woman was senselessly murdered on Powell Street, which hits close to home for us. This sparked action by the people of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside (DTES). What began from outrage and grief, turned into a constructive expression of caring and compassion for the lost women and girls of Coast Salish Territory, DTES. This is how the march began, nearly 30 years ago. The sad truth is that, even today, women of the DTES, and in particular Indigenous women, continue to face violence and abuse and death.[1]
The Staggering Truth About Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls[2]
According to the Government of Canada Department of Justice (DOJ), as of 2017, of the total population of missing women in Canada, 10% are Indigenous. According to DOJ findings, 6,849 women were murdered in Canada between 1980 and 2014, and of those, 16% were Indigenous. Of these women, 53% lost their lives at the hands of a family member. The highest number of cases of murdered Indigenous women between 2001 and 2014 were reported in Nunavut, Northwest Territories and Yukon. In Yukon alone, the numbers of homicides were 12 times higher for Indigenous women, compared to non-Indigenous women.
Marching for an Important Cause – Their Spirits Live Within Us
If you would like to join this march in honour of murdered and missing women, here is what you’ll need to know:
On Thursday, February, 14th, family and community members will gather in remembrance at 10:30 a.m.
The march will start at noon from Carnegie at Main and Hastings in Musqueam, Squamish, and Selilwitulh territories. For additional information, please visit: https://womensmemorialmarch.wordpress.com/.
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Sources:
[1] https://womensmemorialmarch.wordpress.com/
[2] https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/jr/jf-pf/2017/docs/july04.pdf