November 2023 - We Care Wednesday

Knitting pattern designer and educator, Tiffany Wong, reached out to us to inquire about any available We Care Wednesday spots for the fall of 2023. Tiffany is a Board Member at the YWCA Cambridge and wrote not only an educational but moving post honoring AANHPI Heritage Month this past May, highlighting the YWCA Cambridge Executive Director, Cassandra Ling and Advocacy and Youth Leadership Manager, Puja Kranz-Howe.

 

 

YWCA Cambridge is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. Their mission resonates with us and we are honored to be supporting them through the We Care Wednesday initiative this November. Since their founding in 1891, the YWCA Cambridge has been an advocate for human rights and has provided safe, affordable housing and support services for women and girls. YWCA Cambridge has 103 units of single-room occupancy (SRO) housing for individuals who identify as women in the Tanner Residence. As well as a 10-room shelter for homeless families at Renae’s Place, their Family Shelter; and youth programming on a mission to cultivate self-love, self-expression, and leadership skills for middle and high school Cambridge youth. In addition, YWCA Cambridge provides space for community groups to meet in the heart of Central Square, and serves as a welcoming place for women of all ages to find shelter, support, and opportunities to learn and grow. The YWCA Cambridge is one of the oldest and largest providers of affordable housing for women in the Cambridge area. In 2022, they directly served 200+ people at the Tanner Residence and Renae’s Place for Homeless Families, many of whom received staff support in their successful search for stable housing.

 

We encourage you to check out volunteer opportunities at YWCA Cambridge. Volunteers may get involved on an as-needed or regular basis. Passionate about sharing your love of craft? You can volunteer as a teacher-tutor-mentor! As a non-profit organization, YWCA Cambridge depends on gifts from individuals, corporations, and foundations to help them continue to impact the lives of hundreds of individuals each year. Your gather here Wednesday purchases in November will help them continue doing essential work in the community. As always, consider making a direct donation or become a recurring donor and help them budget for the future.

YWCA Cambridge's Racial and Social Justice Advocacy department directly served 344 individuals through programming while providing testimony in support of bills aligned with their mission, including events on black maternal health, Sex Education & Anti-LGBT Bills, and Housing: A Mental Health Necessity, while providing testimony in support of bills aligned with their mission. We are excited to play a smart part in helping them continue doing important and essential work towards a more just and inclusive future for all.

*Since launching the We Care Wednesday initiative in January 2017 we have donated over $72,918 to a variety of nonprofits and mutual aid funds doing essential work in our community as well as other places. From the Mayor's Disaster Fund to BAGLY to Movement Voter Project and Found In Translation. We select organizations that we feel represent not only our commitment to a better, more equitable world but also our desire to "do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can."