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Looking for a way to show your appreciation to a farm worker?

NIAGARA WORKERS WELCOME 

makes it easy by offering 

3 SIMPLE WAYS

to reach out to our migrant worker neighbours  

You can help to ensure farm workers in Niagara-on-the-Lake are connected to a caring community.

      1. Support our welcome events

      

Since 2007 the Niagara Workers Welcome has hosted annual events to

express appreciation and provide a warm welcome to our neighbours

working on local farms.

Although we have had to adapt and were unable to host large scale

events after Covid the support from locals has continued to grow! 

We continue to find creative ways to serve the needs of farm workers

struggling with isolation and food security.

In 2022 Niagara Workers Welcome raised over $9,000 to assist the

families of workers who passed away or suffered serious illness or injury

while in working Niagara on the Lake.

"On behalf of the Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce (GNCC) and our 1,500

members, I would like to offer my wholehearted support for Niagara Workers Welcome…

The picnic has made huge strides making these workers feel welcome in our community

and bridging cultural gaps. We want to see a Niagara that is not only economically

prosperous but inclusive and welcoming, and this event brings all of these goals together

in a way that is fun and celebratory. We are looking forward to this year’s picnic and

hope that there will be many more to come. "

Mishka Balsom, Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce

 

"...Through Jane's dedication and creativity, the Niagara Workers Welcome has become a successful "grassroots" effort that has resulted in growing appreciation and inclusion in the community. I fully support the continuation and expansion of the Workers Welcome based on the significant impact it has in the lives of the farm workers, and the unique positive light it puts on the town of Niagara on the Lake, by recognizing and welcoming the off-shore workers. "

Tim Arnold, Leaders for Leaders

                      Online donations now an option! 

                    Etransfers can be sent to: niagaraworkerswelcome@gmail.com

  No password required, please write if it is designated for a specific need. THANK YOU!

 
 
 

 

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                         2. WELCOME KITS

                                          

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         Together we are a caring community!

Did you know that workers from the Caribbean arrive in Niagara from their warmer climates as early as January? For some it requires two days of travelling before they reach their farm or bunkhouse often at 2 or 3 in the morning.

You can imagine how much it's appreciated when we greet our offshore neighbours with a friendly 'hello' by providing a welcome kit full of helpful essentials. 

In 2023 we provided over 600 welcome kits to Caribbean men and women working in Niagara on the Lake.  Welcome kits are a fun, practical way for individuals, families, schools and community groups to say THANK YOU to these folks that contribute so much to our community!

                                Stay tuned for updates to be posted in early 2024.

                                                                                                       Click on video below!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                           

                         

                                  

                            PAY IT FORWARD!  $25 will help

                      provide the above contents for a farm worker. 

                  Etransfer donations are now an option, just click on link below.

                                                          

3. BIKE REPAIR

        Click on photo to hear their interview on CBC Metro Morning!

 

 

 

Transportation is a huge challenge for our migrant worker

friends. Having a safe and reliable bicycle can be the

difference between isolation and community connection.

Bikes For Farmworkers, now run by Gateway Church,

fixes used bikes and gets them into the hands of

appreciative workers.

Located at the old Virgil Public School (red doors).

Thursday (10am–8pm).

Please call first to enquire about winter hours and donating.

Contact Gateway Community Church - 905-468-8971

https://gatewaynotl.com/bikes

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CHECK OUT OUR VIDEOS !

2019 Peach Pickers Picnic

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Welcome Kits

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Bikes for Farm Workers

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Memories 2007-2020

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PEACH PICKERS PICNIC ~  Photo Gallery

On behalf of our neighbours on the farms we'd like
to thank the sponsors & donors for making these 
         special 
evenings of celebration possible !

Town of Niagara on the Lake, NOTL Chamber of Commerce, NOTL Rotary Club, Shaw Festival, the Market @ The Village, Applewood Hollow B+B, Jamaica National Money Services, Grape Escape Tours, MacSween Farms, NOTL Horticultural Society, Chateau des Charmes,  Brand Blvd, Bushy House B+B, J+F Boot, Quest Community Health, B.Knight, First Student Bus Line, Dune Girls Book Club, Calvary Church, Gateway Church, Emmanuel Grace Church, Grantham MB Church,  David Siegel, C.+R. Dew
Dianne Hughes, R. Serlucca, D.Hewlett,  Kristin Lozanski,  Tim Hartley, Gwen Spencer, B.Ferguson,  Heather Doyle, D.Ponte, Brian and Paddy Parr, J. Epp, S.Murphy, Sobey's Grantham Plaza
 
Thank you to the MANY awesome neighbours in Niagara on the Lake who "paid it forward" so that these hard working folks could enjoy a meal!

We are so grateful for the scores of volunteers who helped in so many practical ways to make this special day happen - thank you! 
 
Photography : Joel Hannigan, Jan Jaster, Debi Goodwin,  Arun Kapur, Morgan                              Falk 
Video : Erica Sherwood, Leah Godwin, Mike Enns, Mark Klassen, Dave Tebbutt
Music : BIG THANKS to Karen Burke and the Toronto Mass Choir, Zephie James, Gabriel Camacho and the Arterra Allstars, Random Task, Earl "Earlybee" Newell, Winston Green, Conroy Nelson, Brian Burton, Michael Hinds, Norman Dyke, Froese Farm Peach Packers, Winston Green,  Richard Palmer 
 
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