COVID-19

Letter to the Community

Hello everyone,

As the Region of Waterloo (and the rest of the world) struggles to cope with the impact and fallout of the Covid-19 corona virus, it bears repeating that the individual choices that we will make in the next few weeks will have significant impacts on our families, our friends and our community. We each must do everything in our power to reduce the rate of person-to-person transmission, i.e. “flatten the curve”.

Like all Canadian organizations and associations, the CCAWR supports our federal, provincial and municipal authorities in their efforts to bring this pandemic under control. Social distancing, quarantines, cleaning and disinfecting, self-monitoring for symptoms and other recommendations from the experts should be heeded. Let’s do our part to keep our neighbourhoods and families healthy.

In an abundance of caution for public safety, the CCAWR has postponed and/or cancelled a number of planned events for March and April, including Caribbean Connexion and Persons of Distinction. Once we receive the “all-clear” we will resume our events programming.

In the meantime, here are some thoughts we wish to share with you:

  • If you are desiring local news on the situation, here are some links you might find useful:

https://kitchener.ctvnews.ca/

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo

https://rogerstv.com/show?lid=12&rid=54&sid=8251

https://www.regionofwaterloo.ca/en/health-and-wellness/2019-novel-coronavirus.aspx#

  • If you are missing your usual social outings, many organizations are creating community events online. You can participate in online workout classes, yoga sessions, church services and other community events using social media and/or conferencing tools. A few examples:

https://juiciyoga.com/

https://www.facebook.com/watpen/

https://www.facebook.com/kingdomcommunityinternational/

  • If you need assistance with applying for benefits, speaking to a health professional, etc. check out these links:

Federal Benefits and Assistance
https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/economic-response-plan.html

COVID-19 Self-Assessment
https://covid-19.ontario.ca/self-assessment/#q0

Mental Health Resources in Ontario (Kids Help Phone for youth, Good2Talk for post-secondary students, Connex Ontario for adults)

  • If you know of a high school student who will be attending university or college in Canada in the fall and is interested in applying for a scholarship, please direct inquires to scholarships@ccawr.ca. Each year the CCAWR, in partnership with the Congress of Black Women- Waterloo Region, provides scholarships up to $2000 for deserving students. We have provided over $50,000 in scholarships over the past 17 years!
  • Support our local businesses and their employees. These organizations are an important part of our community and would appreciate your patronage during these challenging times. Here is a partial list of businesses in the area run by African, Caribbean or Black citizens: https://acbnetworkwr.com/index.php/black-owned-kw/. You can order takeout from a restaurant or show your support in other tangible ways, like purchasing a gift card.

Over the coming days the CCAWR and its partners will be sharing their thoughts and perspectives on the current situation on social media channels. Feel free to contribute your stories and ideas with the Caribbean Community on social media and email!

https://www.facebook.com/ccawr/

https://twitter.com/ccawr?lang=en

http://ccawr.ca/

While these are uncertain times, it may be possible for you to find silver linings during this crisis. Perhaps you have extra time to spend with your family, catch up on your reading, work on personal goals, or a home project? “The pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty“. We will make it through this crisis, so let’s be positive, stay connected, support each other and do our part to lessen the impact of this pandemic.

The CCAWR is committed to serving our community during this challenging time. Please stay safe and feel free to contact us if you have any questions or suggestions.

 

In Solidarity,

Caribbean Canadian Association of Waterloo Region

 

Your CCAWR Board members pictured above in order:

Lannois Carroll-Woolery, President
Emily Yamoah, Treasurer
Amanda J. A. Edwin, Secretary
Nigel Henriques, Chair of Scholarship Committee
Ingrid Berkeley-Brown
Anandi Carroll-Woolery
Angela Charles
Loretta Sheriff
Donnette Spence
Sean Collington