The director of a local women’s centre says increased provincial funding helps a lot.
Kelly Regan, the minister responsible for the Advisory Council on the Status of Women, announced roughly $205,000 in annual funding for Strait Area Women’s Place Wednesday.
Marina Martens, the executive director of the Leeside Society, which operates Strait Area Women’s Place, says the new funding will allow them to keep operating without going into the red, while also expanding their services.
Martens says the additional $135,000 nearly triples the annual funding for Strait Area Women’s Place, up from the $70,000 they were receiving previously.
“It was already costing us over $140,000 to operate,” she says. “This allows us to not be going into the hole every year.”
Martens says they’re grateful for the additional support.
She says the money will help them better support members of the community.
“It’s wonderful- we wouldn’t have been able to keep doing this if we hadn’t (received the increase) because we’d been relying on fundraising to keep the doors open,” she says. “(We’ll) keep offering the services that we’re offering, expect that we’re able to offer more of them, and we’re able to add another full-time staff person.”
Martens says the increase brings Strait Area Women’s Place funding in line with similar women’s centres in the province.
