After having the privilege of speaking with the Executive Director of Guelph Wellington Women in Crisis (GWWC), Sly Castaldi, I have become acutely aware of the many services the agency provides. As an agency, first and foremost, the GWWC provides passionate support for violence against women. They operate a rape crisis centre, shelter supports, transition housing, family court support, human trafficking assistance, a 24-hour crisis support line, and even a rural women’s support program. Further, the GWWC implements four, fully staffed satellite offices throughout the Guelph-Wellington region. These offices are open on a daily basis and provide access to the aforementioned services, which are all free of charge. The agency, and Sly herself, is very proud of the vast ground that the agency is able to cover, both literally and figuratively.

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The GWWC prides itself on conducting its work through a very unique model. The framework which the agency operates is very inclusive and all encompassing. They understand the significant trauma that many women in need of support have been through and wish to not subject them to any further trauma such as having to navigate an often disorganized and very

confusing system. Rather, the GWWC is a ‘one-stop-shop’ for the women in crisis whom they

support; all the services required should be able to be accessed through GWWC programming. This is also true for their four satellite locations and it is something that fundamental to the agency, as is evident when Sly states that

“woman that live in the county deserve full service, not satellites.” Location is not the only

logistical concern of the GWWC, they have also implemented a program specific to women

55 years of age and older, as they understand the needs of women in this age group to be

different. Thus, in order to provide the most benefit to these women, a new program was

created specifically for them.

The involvement within the Guelph community and also its rural regions is another point of

pride for the GWWC. They understand the needs of each person are very different and that a

‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to dealing with women in crisis is not appropriate. They strive to

continue to hold such strong bonds with the various communities throughout their region and

provide adequate service to all the individuals that they serve.

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The GWWC understands that there are challenges associated with the complex work they do

and continues to provide the highest level of support while simultaneously working diligently to

mitigate such challenges. The shelter support offered by the agency, for instance, takes place

in one of the oldest shelter buildings in the region. The layout of this building does not lend itself to a lot of privacy for their clients as there are many shared rooms and shared bathrooms, which can create issues in a communal sense. Additionally, the support programs offered by the GWWC are often overburdened. The agency itself takes on a significant amount of fundraising, however, the funds appropriated from such efforts are often used toward ensuring the bottom line has been met rather than creating new programs and services.

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Sly reinforced that by adding that the GWWC covers “cradle to grave, sexual and domestic, and human trafficking services, women don’t have to compartmentalize their needs.” Moreover, the GWWC wishes to make support services as accessible as possible for every woman. The aim to focus not just on providing support, but to also battle the larger, systemic issues and advocate for better systems, as well as to hold current systems accountable. The mandate of the GWWC is to end violence against women, and they understand that simply providing services is not enough to end epidemic that is the current state of violence against women in our society.

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Sly stated that she agreed when asked “do you think feminism as a theoretical foundation/philosophy has shifted within the violence against women sector?” However, she was not sure that the shift in feminism in this circumstance was positive for the violence against women sector. She explained that she believes that as feminism has progressed within agencies that deal with violence against women, it has to an extent, lost it’s edge and voice. She stated that there are people who no longer see feminism as a movement. Given the current sociopolitical climate, however, Sly firmly believes that we are in the midst of a watershed moment for the violence against women sector and one that they must capitalize on. With powerful movements like #MeToo and Time’s Up, as well as the Women’s March, violence against women is at the forefront of society’s consciousness. Sly believes that agencies working within the field of violence against women must push harder and further than they have before and demand the adequate resources to combat the monumental issues stemming from violence against women.

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Sly agreed when she was asked if she thought violence against women work was political in nature and stated that if an individual or agency believes that they are simply providing services to abused women, then they do not see the bigger the picture. She continued to state that the work is political because women experience a significant lack in equality, and that until society has reached a point of true equality for all, those who are marginalized will continue to be vulnerable to violence. Further, Sly went on to explain that as a country, we spend billions of dollars on violence against women work every year, and that this, in itself, makes the work political. She argued that violence against women work must be political in order to avoid falling prey to the current systems.

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With respect to a Violence Against Women Forum for the Central Region of Ontario, Sly stated that she would like to see highlights regarding “the critical issues that should be focused on.” She further explained that she would be thrilled to have a space to highlight and facilitate ways in which agencies within the Central Region of Ontario can work together to bring about real change. Sly stated that this would require political will, would require agencies and individuals to be visionaries, and to be leaders within this sector. She wishes the focus of such a forum to provide attainable ways in which agencies can implement programs and actions that others have found to be successful. Moreover, her wish for such a forum is for collaboration and partnerships for the greater good.