Status of Women committee  I did want to add to the child care issue. There are even schools that don't allow kids to have lunch at the school. That to me is just ridiculous. It really does stop a lot of women from going out and seeking jobs because of the child care problem and also because of where it is.

Status of Women committee  Well, I guess there are different ways to work with these young women. One is that we would like to perhaps make the residential stay a little bit longer and do more work with them one on one. Secondly--

Status of Women committee  We get our funding from the family violence prevention program, which is also funded by the Manitoba government. We don't get any federal funding at all. Part of the problem, of course, is that when the women leave the shelter, sometimes they have absolutely no place to go but back to their abuser, back to their community.

Status of Women committee  If I may, Madam Chair, my name is Sharon Morgan, and Ikwe Widdjiitiwin means “women helping one another”.

Status of Women committee  It's difficult being the first one to start, because I'm not quite sure what you want to hear. Ikwe Widdjiitiwin is an aboriginal women's shelter. Most of our clientele are young aboriginal women with children. Our shelter is for women experiencing domestic violence. When they come into our shelter they generally have nothing but the clothes on their backs, with no money and sometimes no ID.