'Illuminating Hope' Garden Cocktail Party Recap

On Friday, June 2nd, we hosted our first-ever ‘Illuminating Hope’ Garden Cocktail Party at the Muttart Conservatory. We chose the theme ‘illuminating hope’, in celebration and recognition of the hope that comes on the other side of family violence. Though we recognize the courage and bravery of those experiencing family violence, the theme serves as a reminder for victims-survivors that they are not alone in their fear, uncertainty, and trauma. It is a reminder that there is help for them and their unique experiences, whether that is in talking with experienced professionals at The Today Centre or having a friend in their corner to walk alongside them in their journey towards healing.

miranda’s story

At the event, Miranda Solomon, our guest speaker, shared her story of hope and survival with us. She invited us in to her story by sharing advice on supporting victims-survivors and how to maintain hope in the midst of dark situations. By sharing her story, Miranda was moving forwards in her journey towards healing, allowing attendees to understand that for many victims-survivors, the road after leaving can feel just as long as the experience of abuse itself. Miranda’s story resonated with many people and it definitely left attendees with a sense of her strength, faith, and hope, something she desired to make a lasting impression. Though Miranda and her three sons faced 17 years of family violence, she was enabled to leave the relationship through help from The Today Centre and a group of women in her life that knew she deserved better. These women gave Miranda the courage to reach out, in which she googled “is it really abuse” and stumbled upon The Today Centre. After being told to pack a bag just in case the situation arose, Miranda encountered the very moment these preparations called for and was able to leave the situation and stay in a safe place with some friends. Miranda’s story ends with hope and survival but along the way she experienced many hardships, trials, fear, and barriers. Now, Miranda assists others with financial planning and offers her services to clients of The Today Centre for free.

“if i hadn’t packed a bag, i wouldn’t have had the little bit of preparation that made me feel this was survivable. it gave me some control over my situation, and a choice i actually could make… Today, 5 years later, my life is unrecognizable. i am happy healthy, and healing. it’s been a long road and where i stand today is the result of a lot of hard work and courage.”

  • Miranda Solomon

Throughout the evening guests were welcome to browse the Muttart pyramids, read more about The Today Centre and the programs and services we offer, bid on items in our silent auction, purchase a Paris Jewellers bag from our White Lotus Jewelry Trellis fundraiser, participate in our scavenger hunt, listen to a live harpist and fiddler, get their picture drawn by our caricaturist, or simply sit and enjoy some tasty food and delicious cocktails.

our financial sponsors

We wanted to pass along a thank you to our community partners and sponsors for helping us ‘illuminate hope’ after family violence! Your generous financial support enables us to host events like these to raise awareness about the work that we do.

A big thank you to our financial sponsors:

  • Willow Creek Poultry

  • Preferred Client Services Bookkeepers

  • CORUS Entertainment

  • Bee Together

  • Café Bloom

  • City of Edmonton

  • Latitude Family Law

  • Stantec

  • MNP

  • Divorce Magazine Canada

A heartfelt thank you also to K Wood Carve by Ken Vis who so graciously created and donated our amazing jewelry trellis wall! And to our talented event photographer, Walter Tychnowicz for capturing the evening so beautifully!

A group of fantastic students from Lillian Osborne High School’s Student Solidarity Committee also assisted us for the evening and were incredible in making all of the floral pens and lights prior to the event. Thank you Alex, Fatima, Sandy, Sean, Krishni, and Essica!

our in-kind sponsors

Another thank you to our in-kind sponsors for their generous donations and contributions to the evening! Our silent auction raised over $10,000. We are so incredibly grateful!

A big thank you to our in-kind donors and sponsors:

  • Citadel Theatre

  • My Messy Palette- Rachel Baong

  • The Happy Bear Company- Mayra Amaya

  • The Butchery by RGE RD

  • Flipping Furniture- Trisha Wagenaar

  • Laura Leham

  • Barr LLP- Allison Barkwell

  • Divorce Magazine Canada- Deena Kordt

  • Edmonton Symphony Orchestra/Winspear Centre

  • Pure Casino Yellowhead

  • Century Vision Care- Dr. Scott Lopetinsky

  • Brown Law Group- Tracy C. Brown

  • Fort Distillery

  • YEGiglet- Monique Methot

  • Bide-a-wee Quilt Guild

  • WestJet

  • Zinter Brown- Joanne Zinter

  • Banded Peak Brewing

  • SYC Brewing Co.

  • Paris Jewellers

  • Mayfield Dinner Theatre

  • DoubleTree by Hilton West Edmonton

  • Goose Hummock Golf Resort

  • The Seven80- Ador Cochingco

  • Beverly Allred

  • Woodshed Burgers

  • RejuvaDERM

  • Metterra Hotel on Whyte

  • The Kerr Family

  • HGC CPA- Shawn Tully

  • Salisbury Greenhouses- Andre Lussier

  • FORVER- Val Thiessen

  • Sun Depot

  • Flo Athletica

  • Kind Ice Cream

  • Proforma NBT- Kin Leong

thank you

Thank you for joining us in sharing in Miranda’s story and for your support in attending and learning more about the important work that The Today Centre does in assisting those in our community experiencing family violence! Without you, we would not be able to continue the work that we do in providing a safe, welcoming, and inclusive space for those who need it most. Together, we can ‘illuminate hope’.

Events, Our SupportersCommunications SpecialistMuttart ConservatoryEvents, Local Events, YEG Events, Edmonton, Family Violence Prevention, Family Violence AwarenessComment