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International Women's Day at the Portuguese Cultural Centre of Bradford

Women of all ages celebrated at the Portuguese Cultural Centre of Bradford.

Women of all ages packed the Portuguese Cultural Centre of Bradford on Saturday, for the 14th annual International Women’s Day event.

The evening has become a much-anticipated tradition – and sold out, within two weeks of the date being announced.

On March 9, moms, grandmothers, wives, sisters, colleagues and kids enjoyed a “Girls’ Night Out” that included dinner, a fashion show, raffle, door prizes, live entertainment, and dancing to a DJ.

It was a ‘women-only’ evening. The only guys were the cooks in the kitchen, the volunteer servers –including BWG Mayor Rob Keffer, Deputy Mayor James Leduc and Councillors Raj Sandhu, Mark Contois and Peter Ferragine – and emcee, Danny Viveiros.

This year’s theme was #BalanceForBetter, said Viveiros, as he welcomed “500 educated, talented women” to the Portuguese Cultural Centre.

“In my opinion, this night should be celebrated every night,” he said, “celebrating the economic, the social and the political achievements of women… in the past, present and the future.”

Viveiros traced the history of International Women’s Day, which began as a fight for workers’ rights, women’s suffrage and gender equality. He noted that now, on March 8, “thousands of events are held throughout the world” to celebrate – from workshops and conferences, to evenings like the event at the Cultural Centre.

The International Women’s Day event included fashions from The Pink Closet, modelled by local women, with hair and make-up by Brittany Buck Beauty Boutique. Entertainment was also local – including singers Inês Sousa, and Samantha Paixao.

There was also a panel, made up of women of achievement. Adriana Salinas, founder of The Latin Group and winner of the BWG Civic Award for Cultural Awareness; Michelle Moonsie, manager of the Bradford branch of CIBC, and Laura Silveira, CIBC Mortgage Advisor, were welcomed by Viveiros.  

Moonsie was asked what it was like to be a woman in the male-dominated financial sector. “It’s very empowering,” she said, noting that today “we have a lot of leadership women in the financial industry. We’ve come a long way…. It’s now a woman’s world, and I’m very proud to be part of that.”

Laura Silveira noted that she grew up in a family that taught respect for men; now that she is a mother, she teaches her sons “to respect women.” And she had advice for young women entering business today: “Forget the social media, forget the boys – the boys will always be there. Respect who you are as a woman… Give yourselves applause!”

It was a message echoed by Salinas. “The Latin Group was created to embrace and promote the Latin community, to be proud of who we are – but also to share with other communities,” she said. “All of us in here are important, no matter what.”

 “Gender equity is something we should embrace warmly and openly,” Viveiros said, noting that his own employer, Magna International, is pursuing a Women in Leadership policy, and now has filled 47 percent of leadership and management positions with women – with the goal of full parity.  

“Congratulations to you – to each and every one of you – for speaking about what gender empowerment truly means,” said Viveiros, encouraging every woman, especially the students and young girls attending the event, to “follow your dreams.”

As the women took to the dance floor, he added, “Live life. Reach for the stars. Don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do it.”

The evening is organized by a committee at the Portuguese Cultural Centre. This year's event had the biggest response from the community to date, said Committee member Elisabeth Lambert. "We sold out in under two weeks, and I could have sold another 10 tables," she said. 

A portion of the proceeds of the raffle were earmarked for MOBYSS, the mobile youth health clinic that regularly visits York Region, and Bradford West Gwillimbury.