4-minute read
Post Contributed by Veronica Valenzuela
Admin & HR Services Manager, The Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce
Leadership Winnipeg Class of 2024-2025
A Growing Community of Newcomers
This session of Leadership Winnipeg brought us closer to organizations that support and empower newcomers—offering resources, guidance, and empathy to those who arrive in Canada, often after facing unthinkable challenges.
They come from different countries, cultures, and careers—but all share a common dream: to thrive and contribute. While they bring resilience and determination, the journey doesn’t get easier upon arrival. Language barriers, cultural adjustments, unrecognized credentials, immigration processes, and a brutal winter can be overwhelming.
That’s where organizations like Immigrant Centre, IRCOM, and Holy Names House of Peace step in.
Immigrant Centre: Practical Tools for a New Start
Our first stop was Immigrant Centre, whose mission is “Changing lives for the better, one newcomer at a time.” They offer multilingual settlement services—in fact, if my English didn’t fail me, their CEO Jorge Fernandez mentioned that more than 50 languages are spoken there. One of their programs that really stood out was the Nutrition Presentations & Outreach. This isn’t your average nutrition class. Participants are guided through grocery stores, learn how to read food labels, discover new ingredients, and understand how to store them— practical knowledge that may seem second nature to some, but is crucial for those adjusting to a new life in a foreign land.
IRCOM: Community, Housing, and a Fresh Start
Next, we visited IRCOM (Immigrant & Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba), where newcomers find a warm, welcoming community—an extended family. Their holistic approach offers settlement support and includes housing and childcare.
Many newcomers arrive without a local support system. IRCOM fills that gap with compassion and practical resources. They also do important work to foster understanding between newcomer and Indigenous communities—offering cultural education, open conversations, and even shared BBQs to bring neighbors together.
Holy Names House of Peace: A Quiet Space for Healing
Our final stop felt like stepping into a hidden sanctuary. Holy Names House of Peace is a peaceful space for women newcomers in transition—a place to pause, reconnect, and recover.
This nonprofit provides shelter, dignity, and deep kindness. It’s clean, calm, and welcoming—and yes, home to the friendliest black cat you can imagine. The stories of strength and resilience we heard here moved us to the core.
A Program That Has Changed Us
As we continue through Leadership Winnipeg, many of us realized we didn’t know what to expect, but it’s been better than we could have imagined. We’ve connected with people and places we might never have known and witnessed what real community support looks like.
Each session reminds us that leadership comes in many forms, and the key to progress is giving back and working together. We’ve discovered new parts of the city and met the amazing people who make Winnipeg home.
Our Leadership Winnipeg program is made possible with the support of our Vision Partners Canada Life, Johnston Group and The Winnipeg Foundation; Proud Partner Assiniboine Credit Union and our Proud Supporters Boston Pizza, Change Innovators Inc., Honest Agency, and RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg.
