Dozens turn out to 'Walk a Mile in Her Shoes' in Barrie

BARRIE, ONT. -

Dozens turned out in Barrie Saturday to show support and raise awareness for gender-based violence.

After more than a year with no in-person gatherings, the Women & Children's Shelter of Barrie held a scaled-down version of one of its most prominent fundraisers.

"This is our first Walk a Mile since the beginning of the pandemic, so we are just really proud to be coming together and walking in support of ending violence against women," says Katie Taylor, the development manager for the shelter.

While the event typically sees participants of all genders wearing high heels as a symbolic gesture, this year, those involved were encouraged to dress up in other ways, including wearing capes. There were concerns over sharing shoes during the pandemic.

"It's so beautiful to have a combination of awareness, of the education, the advocacy and of course the necessary funds in order for us to continue to provide the necessary services and supports that we do," Taylor says.

One of the participants was Sarah Cunningham from the Rama First Nation. She made a shawl to bring awareness to the women murdered by violence last year.

"The white ones represent the women, and the red ones represent the indigenous women that were murdered last year," says Cunningham. "It's 1 in 5 Indigenous women that were murdered out of the 160 women."

This year's goal was $50,000, which will go towards helping the 27-bed shelter achieve its mission of helping those most in need.

"We are helping women through court and legal support, through transitional housing," says Taylor. "We are councillors for life, whether it's individual or group counselling. We have our survivor program, and a big group of those women are here today supporting us."

Due to the pandemic, the event switched venues to the Mapleview Community Church and was limited to 100 people.

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