SHEfound Action: A Journey from Self-Sacrifice to Self-Empowerment
I remember a time when every day was a battleground—one that I fought not just for myself, but for the youth and children, for the families that depended on my silent strength. Back when I worked at a nonprofit battling youth homelessness, I carried wounds you couldn’t see: the exhaustion of sleepless nights, the ache of sacrificing my own dreams for someone else’s survival. I am a mother of two, and I’ve felt the slow, steady burn of giving everything—my time, my health, my hope—until even my spirit began to fray.
It’s not a single moment but a lifetime of moments that have led me to where I stand today at WINS. In our work, we see it again and again: mothers, with hearts large enough to hold entire families, are forced into a constant act of self-sacrifice. Statistics reveal a harsh truth—Canadian women spend more time on unpaid work at home than men. On average, women spend about 3.6 hours a day on housework and care tasks compared with 2.4 hours for men. Nearly three out of four part-time workers are women, and about one in four of these women cut back their work hours mainly because they care for children. Moreover, mothers earn only 85 cents for every dollar that fathers make (Source: Canadian Women’s Foundation, 2019). These numbers aren’t just figures—they represent the heartbreakingly common sacrifice of mothers who forgo their own needs and dreams so that their children might have a proper meal, a chance at a dream, and a better future.
I ask myself, and I ask you: Why can’t mothers receive the same opportunities and care as the caregivers they so lovingly become when it is a 24/7 job, if you think of it? How can you dream big if all you can think about is trying to survive?
At WINS, we are striving to reimagine what support for women—especially mothers—should look like. Our programming is built on the conviction that addressing women’s basic and emotional needs is not an optional extra, but a fundamental right. We offer employment training designed especially for mothers who have been out of the workforce for too long, held captive by the necessity of full-time childcare. And yet, the challenges we face are daunting. Our employment services waitlist has ballooned to 230—an overwhelming demand that now stretches our response time from 3 months to an estimated 4–6 months. Programming activity requests have surged by 48% as of January 2025, and the year has just started.
Financial strains extend beyond our programs into the everyday lives of women in low-income families. Consider the recent changes to the Alberta Child Care Subsidy—where families once paid between $0 and $75 per month for childcare, they now face costs ranging from $230 to $325. For many, this increase makes childcare unattainable. This isn’t just a budget adjustment; it’s yet another obstacle standing between a mother and her aspirations.
Every statistic, every policy change, every heartbroken story echoes one truth: women, particularly mothers, are forced into relentless cycles of self-sacrifice. They endure burnout, they forgo personal ambitions, and all too often, they are left without the support they so desperately need. As I witness these challenges through my work at WINS, I am reminded daily of the profound injustice that exists when the needs of caregivers are ignored.
Why can’t mothers receive the same opportunities and care as the caregivers they so lovingly become when it is a 24/7 job, if you think of it? How can you dream big if all you can think about is trying to survive?
This International Women’s Day, under the banner of SHEfound Action and in the spirit of Accelerate Action, I call on all of you to stand with us. Educate yourself, advocate for genuine gender equity, and support organizations that are on the frontlines of this work. If we continue at this pace, some estimates suggest it will take five generations from now to achieve full gender parity. We cannot, we must not, wait that long.
Compassion is not a luxury—it is a necessity. Let us ensure that mothers are not forced to choose between their own well-being and the needs of their families. Let us create vibrant communities where women have access to their own finances, where they can pursue their goals without sacrificing survival for sustenance. Let us build a future where every woman’s potential is celebrated rather than sidelined.
Now is the time to act. Together, we can accelerate change. Let us transform self-sacrifice into self-empowerment and ensure that every mother, every woman, is seen, heard, and valued.
Join us in this journey. The time for action is now.
Your point about mothers earning only 85 cents for every dollar fathers make is devastating, and your question about how you can dream big when you're just trying to survive perfectly captures the weight so many of us carry. I recently used an age calculator tool and realized I've spent over a decade in that exact cycle of silent sacrifice. Reading about WINS' approach gives me real hope that this narrative can finally change.
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