Odyssey House is once again hosting an event aimed at empowerment, awareness and education. The third annual Evening of Empowerment is set for September 7th at the Pomeroy Hotel with a very special guest speaker lined up.
Director of Communications with Odyssey House Makayla Marcotte says while it is a fundraiser, the event is primarily used to open the eyes of Grande Prairie residents to just how much the service provides for those in the most desperate need of help.
“We cover the 68,000 population of the Grande Prairie area but we actually service a lot more than that, because our reach goes to Sexsmith, Beaverlodge, and Hythe. When High Level was on fire we helped their shelter,” she said.
“It’s designed to create awareness of Odyssey House services, and give an idea to the general audience on what daily experiences some of our staff and residents go through. It creates more of a full impact understanding of domestic violence and how it affects the Grande Prairie community as a whole.”
Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal recipient Farah Mohamed will deliver the keynote address.
Mohamed, perhaps best known for her work as CEO of the Malala Fund, in which she and an international team tried to help realize the dream of Malala Yousafzai to see every girl enrolled in school. Yousafzai, a Nobel Prize laureate for her activism work for female education, was shot and wounded by Taliban forces after taking an exam in her home country of Pakistan.
You can find more information on the Oddysey House’s event Facebook page.