The Mother Daughter Empower Conference and Awards will take place in Simcoe County for the first time on Sunday, Sept. 24 at the Lakeshore branch of the Innisfil ideaLAB & Library.
Organizers describe the event, which will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., as an educational, personal development and growth mindset conference designed for women and girls ages seven-plus.
“The event is an experience like no other that will empower women and girls to dream big, set big goals and reach their full potential … (which) focuses on a variety of subjects that include confidence building, relationships, resiliency, mental health and wellness, mentorship and more," reads the event poster.
Attendees will join 25 female-led and girl-boss business owners and vendors, which will culminate in an awards ceremony that recognizes girls who are making a difference in their community.
Members of the public are invited to nominate girls for the awards in two age groups (ages seven to 14 and 15 to 19 respectively). Note that while everyone is invited to attend the event, finalists must be able to attend in person.
“The 2023 Empower Girl winners will walk away with over $1,500 worth of prizes including a whole year of mentorship,” said Tara Filteau, who is a registered social service worker (RSSW) as well as founder and executive director of Mother Daughter Empower.
When Filteau says she read that by age 14 a girl’s confidence will decrease by 30 per cent in comparison to boys of the same age in the book The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance—What Women Should Know, she knew she had to act.
“(It was) the stat that caused me to have an 'ah ha moment' ... when I read this. I knew that we needed to create an organization that would work towards changing that statistic for the next generation of girls,” she told InnisfilToday. “I want my daughters to grow up with the confidence to be who they are and become anything they want to be.”
Filteau and her daughter, Sophia Ghafoori, founded Mother Daughter Empower in 2019 when Ghafoori was just seven years old. Now a registered charity, they say they are proud to subsidize the cost of the tickets, which are available now for $27 apiece.
“We rely heavily on our community partners, sponsors and donors to run our programs and services,” Filteau said. “Most recently, we received a grant from the Innisfil Community Foundation and partnered with Tiffany Smith from Serenity Wellness studio to run a workshop as well as offer one-to-one coaching and counselling to women and girls right here in Innisfil. We have worked with so many incredible partners over the years.
“As a charity, our goal is to offer free programs and services as well as to make our events and fundraising initiatives as accessible as possible,” she added. “By becoming a charity, we are able to apply for funding to support our programs and services, so that women and girls can now access our services at no cost.
"We don’t want anyone's financial situation to be a deciding factor in accessing our biggest empowerment event of the year."
If anyone requires sponsorship for their tickets, they can reach out to [email protected].
Filteau explained that this year’s Empower Girl Awards are sponsored by three female-led organizations, including Amy Simpson Real Estate, Whitby Dance Company and Mabel’s Labels.
Ghafoori and Filteau say they are looking forward to bringing their "biggest event of the year" to Innisfil for the first time and "bringing together generations of women and girls from our community for a day of empowerment."
All of the proceeds from ticket sales go toward supporting women and girls through Mother Daughter Empower’s mental health initiatives, they said. The first 25 attendees on Sept. 24 will also be given swag bags.
Access to two panels, which focus on body positivity and women paving the way in male-dominated industries — for which Barrie-Innisfil MPP Andrea Khanjin will be one of the panellists — is included in the ticket price, in addition to access to vision board creation, astrology reading, Reiki session, and gratitude letter creation workshops.
Innisfil Mayor Lynn Dollin will also be in attendance for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at noon.
Readers are invited to nominate girls who are making a difference in their community until Sept. 15 (ages 7-14 and 15-19), and purchase tickets to the Mother Daughter Conference & Awards event by clicking here.
