One morning, seven years back, a voice in Jodi Williams’ head said: “You can’t wake up here and be 40 years old.”
She had been trying to leave an abusive relationship for years.
That day, she took her kids out to get groceries and never went home. She came to Victoria from the Lower Mainland, found a transition house but soon lost a job, and couldn’t get another.
So she went to Bridges, a community agency dedicated to helping women with a history of trauma and abuse find employment, and began a transformation that would change the path of her life for the better.
“I consider Bridges the greatest gift I was ever given,” said Williams, who is now a Bridges board member and the manager and fund developer of the South Island Dispute Resolution Centre.
Williams is one of the thousands of women Bridges has helped since the organization was hatched by a handful of dedicated people in 1987.
The non-profit society is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year with a free, open-invitation party Nov. 2 at the Victoria Public Market, 1701 Douglas St.
“We wanted to have an event that is accessible and brings everyone together — our graduates and the community,” said executive director Victoria Pruden. There will be snacks, speeches and live music.
Pruden said the organization has a lot to celebrate. First, it has survived 25 years when so many other groups serving women have disappeared.
“We are blessed to have passionate women in this community, committed to anti-violence work,” she said. “That’s how we started and if we didn’t have that core carrying us through tough times, we would have shut down many times.”
They will also celebrate their accomplishments. The program and its resource books have provided a model for bridging programs across the province. The concept incorporates trauma counselling, self-exploration and mentorship with education, career training and goals.
“Bridging helps women overcome the impacts of abuse on employment. It helps them work through the process of healing,” Pruden said. “Every class, there is this amazing transformation that happens, this click of self-confidence.”
Bridges has expanded its employment program online, serving women in remote communities. The organization has also started a self-employment program and recently partnered with the Tsawout First Nation to launch its first on-reserve bridging program.
“We’re reaching more women who might have been isolated. It’s very exciting,” Pruden said. She hopes to expand the programs and wants to see a marketplace for graduates’ wares. She also hopes the society can find a bigger space than its Cook Street office, and maybe one day own a building.
“It’s one of the many dreams we have,” she said.
Arlene Wells, one of the five Bridges founding mothers, will be at the anniversary celebration. She had a background in adult education dating to the mid-1980s and said the need for such a program hit home when a social worker told her about a mother who returned to her abusive husband, who killed her.
Wells and fellow founder Joan Krisch enlisted several community members to brainstorm. The program was going to be called the Abused Women’s Project, but they later chose the name Bridges. It was inspired by a Marge Piercy poem about overcoming obstacles.
“I’m very proud of the work that’s been done. Not just the women who went on to win awards and PhDs, but also the women who overcame obstacles like always being on welfare and now having a job, or owning their first home,” Wells said. The stigma around abuse has softened since Bridges began, she said, but the economic barriers for women are still strong.
“I hope Bridges continues to get the support it needs, from the government, business and community included.”
The celebration takes place from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. For tickets, telephone 250-385-7410 or go to bridges25years.eventbrite.ca.
