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By Dorothy Brotherton
LORETTA Stutters has a heart for single moms and their
children, and she decided to do something about it – something beyond
what she already does as a volunteer with the Okanagan Valley Pregnancy
Care Centre (OVPCC).
Stutters had seen a lot of hurting women in her work at
OVPCC, and decided she wanted to give the moms a day of feeling loved and
pampered.
Her dream took shape, as a plan to give them a spa day
just prior to the Christmas season.
What could be a more fitting way to show women they are
loved, than to give them personal services?
Picture a stressed-out single mom receiving a deep
therapeutic massage – something that would never be an option on her
budget. Or picture a single mom wanting to look special for a family
gathering, and she gets a free up-to-date haircut and style. Or imagine a
working mom with no time to bake, being able to bring home holiday cookies
to her kids.
Beyond dreaming, Stutters thought, “Why
not?” She and her husband Keith partnered with the OVPCC;
Mission Creek Alliance Church in Kelowna; and the Society of Hope, a
group headed by newly elected city councillor Luke Stack, which works to
provide affordable housing.
The church provided space for the spa day, without the
high rental cost that civic or commercial facilities would charge.
Society of Hope and OVPCC provided the contacts.
Loretta and Keith mailed 48 invitations, offering women
a choice of either a spa treatment, haircut or manicure-pedicure.
Then other volunteers came forward and offered to do
both chair and table massages – so those were added to the choices.
Plans snowballed, to the point where a woman didn’t have to choose
just one service – she could pick three.
The floodgate of volunteerism opened wide. More people
came forward to offer gift certificates and other items to go into gift
bags; door prizes were assembled; a table was filled with resource books
for the women to pick up; and complimentary costume jewelry was gathered.
The word went out as one person told another, and
people seemed to line up to help.
Not all were church people. Women just mentioned the
spa day that was planned to their own hairdressers and manicurists, and
more service providers jumped on board.
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That wasn’t all. Ovens were revved up and goodies
baked, as a festive tea was planned. More goodies were given, for the women
to take home and treat their children.
Other volunteers put together decorations, and more
still offered to do child care for the afternoon.
The child-care workers were certified; the service
providers were professionals.
The volunteer team grew to about 40, as people just
seemed to want a piece of the good feelings that were going around.
Since this was the first year for the spa day, single
moms seemed hesitant about coming. They are cautious; they have been hurt,
explained Loretta.
But in the end, 15 accepted the invitation –
which, for the first year, was a satisfying result.
“There was no message given. We just loved
them,” said Loretta.
Reaction was strong. “They were just overwhelmed.
Some said they felt the place was so filled with love and joy that they
didn’t want to leave the building. They knew they were valued,”
explained Loretta.
In a word, Loretta summed up the spa day as
“encouragement.” It went two ways: the single moms were
encouraged, and the workers who gave their time and resources were
encouraged.
There is little doubt that it will become an annual
event – a little gift to single moms in the community.
January 2009
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