The experiences of the first few years of life set the stage for how capable our immune systems are, how we cope with stress and even our ability to find meaning-worth, in our lives. Research that has emerged in psychophysical therapy and within Laban Movement Analysis supports “the interrelationships of anatomical functioning, personal feeling …and also with the awareness that movement both initiates and changes emotional feelings and about how we think…”[1] When the experiences of everyday life continue to be a place of struggle as well as living in poverty, where do you turn and who can you trust in a world that has placed you in a category that has no formal affiliation, but is set firmly at the margins of social welfare and wellness?

I had a first hand opportunity to join Caroline’s team of volunteers this Tuesday. Amongst the various services provided such as a hot meal, massage and beauty there was an area at the far end of the room designated for dancing. Music wafted from the boom box that rested on a worn piano. My favorite CD was No Doubt and later, some garage rock. The energy in the room was decidedly enthusiastic.  There were smiles as the women were pampered and especially once I introduced myself. I teach pilates in Vancouver to a diverse group of people who can afford to willingly pay to be lead through a series of movements designed to help re-align the spine and correct poor movement patterns.  This was a far cry from the usual demographic that I cater to.  There is no lush flooring to sprawl on or high-end equipment on which to prop ourselves. My role was simply to invite some of the women up to move and dance to the music.  Our goal was to offer the opportunity to move-without judgment and without set standards or expectations. What I saw was a very open group, and an accepting cohort of women.  While I was unable to get everyone in the room to join the dancers at the front of the room, I noticed from those that were dancing, pure delight. There were many who, for personal reasons, did not get up and dance.  One woman expressed how absurd it would be to get up and dance after the day she had had.  After further inquiry she revealed to just having quit drugs.

When I think of connection in the body as I teach I am considering an individual’s relationship within and to her or himself. “To connect is to link, to establish communication… to associate mentally or emotionally”[2].  Considering the daily struggles these women experience that I take for granted, and the necessity of dis- associating oneself from inner/outer in order to survive, it is painfully obvious why so few feel compelled to join our group.   Beauty Night is about offering a safe place where even the most seemingly frivolous approach to wellness is imagined and available. Perhaps my friend may not find it absurd to dance once she has successfully gotten through the hours that lead to another day without drugs. If she is not successful, I will still be there next week offering a safe space in which to move.

This year, Beauty Night Founder, Caroline MacGillivray will be a team leader. “Sometimes it is easier to work out when I am doing it for someone else. I have never participated in a walk/run program. My fitness activities have always been focused on dance or swimming. This is a huge challenge for myself and I am excited to bring this challenge to our participants.”
Once a week, Caroline will be posting about her training sessions with the participants. As we count down to April 17th, Caroline will be collecting donations to be used for Beauty Nights three streams of programming: makeovers, wellness, and life skills.

If you are interested in making a donation or checking out Caroline’s giving page to create your own to raise money for Beauty Night, please visit, Caroline’s Giving Page.

Monday, January 25th kicks off with a screening of Chris McDowell and Moira Simpson’s film (screened at VIFF 2009) Under One Sky at 6pm. We are excited to have the film makers in house And one of the martial artists from the film (Please see information from Inside Douglas College Newsletter below) offer a demo and a mini workshop with the women. Photographer, Ken Villeneuve will be taking photos of the women in their favourite martial arts pose. Our makeover program and Kids Club will run as scheduled starting at 6pm.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2009
Media tech’s film featured at VIFF

“This film is a testament to every woman who has fought back.”

Womyns Gym Program Coordinator, Tyla Flexman and National Executive Director, Caroline MacGillivray thought the film would be a great way to inspire more women to explore the different tools for healing offered through physical fitness. With our 2010 Womyns Gym session starting on February 9 on Monday and Wednesday nights, we wanted to remind our participants of the different tools that can be used to create life makeovers.

For the 2010 session of Womyns Gym, Flexman and MacGillivray aim to have several women complete the Sun Run on May 9, 2010. We will be coordinating a running clinic for the Womyns gym participants who would like to complete the run.

Every Woman in The World Founder, Kerri Carlson and sister, Lynn Kanuka

Tell me about every woman in the world? 

Every Woman is about empowering women (all ages, shapes, sizes) through
physical fitness. It is about celebrating our unique differences and inspiring women to become greater. It is a weekend to focus on yourself and to have fun, with incredibly motivating spin-offs, like health, a rejuvenated mindset, and a new excitement for life.

Photo by Austin 

Why did you start it? 

You know when you go on a walk or bike ride or run or take a yoga class with a friend and then you share a cup of coffee or a glass of wine together afterward and talk about life and you feel (because you have just exercised) that you can do anything, you feel inspired to make and take on goals of every ilk and to make the fullest out of life? Well, that’s why. My sister, Lynn Kanuka, and I have elite athletic backgrounds and we know how gratifying it can be to get through a workout, to sweat with your friends, to challenge your body physically….we also now both have office jobs and know that it is difficult to find the time to incorporate fitness into your life – but it is SO IMPORTANT – and we want to share that with other women. We want to remind you that taking the time to exercise in your day will not only make you feel better, but it will increase your efficiency and it will also give you a renewed sense of spirit and yourself. And this translates to better health and happiness, which translates to a bright future of possibilities to achieve new goals for yourself, your family, your friends and society. We really believe and have a passion for what we bring to other women.

Lynn Kanuka, Olympic Bronze Medalist at the L.A. Games was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 1999

Tell me about every woman in the world? 

Every Woman is about empowering women (all ages, shapes, sizes) through physical fitness. It is about celebrating our unique differences and inspiring women to become  greater. It is a weekend to focus on yourself and to have fun, with incredibly motivating spin-offs, like health, a rejuvenated mindset, and a new excitement for life. 

Yoga Class in Process

Why did you start it? 

You know when you go on a walk or bike ride or run or take a yoga class with a friend and then you share a cup of coffee or a glass of wine together afterward and talk about life and you feel (because you have just exercised) that you can do anything, you feel inspired to make and take on goals of every ilk and to make the fullest out of life? Well, that’s why. My sister, Lynn Kanuka, and I have elite athletic backgrounds and we know how gratifying it can be to get through a workout, to sweat with your friends, to challenge your body physically….we also now both have office jobs and know that it is difficult to find the time to incorporate fitness into your life – but it is SO IMPORTANT – and we want to share that with other women. We want to remind you that taking the time to exercise in your day will not only make you feel better.

Kerri Carlson,Competed with Canada’s highest-ranking 6th place World Gymnastics ChampionshipTeam in 1989

What was one of your favourite moments from your first Every Woman? 
During the reception, I looked around the room after everyone had just come back from their mountain top yoga class or bike ride in Whistler….they were all enthused and relaxed and energized all at the same time. The weekend was just about having fun and trying different activities, but then I realized that there was something totally different happening that I hadn’t thought to expect. One women was talking about doing the running workshop after coming back from a paralyzing ski injury to one leg, another women was connecting with a new friend about recently having a lump in her breast removed, another woman was sharing how it was her dream to open a massage clinic (which she ended up doing after the first every woman)….Every Woman become a comfortable forum for women to be who they want to be and to share and become inspired, in an incredibly non-threatening and uncontrived way. Some women were just having a good time, but others were connecting on a completely different level that would give anyone goose bumps. 

What made you decide to continue doing it each year? 

The feeling that one gets after an Every Woman event is contagious. We couldn’t stop. There was so much incredible feedback about how we had changed the lives of so many women, and what an impact we had made. My sister and I do this completely out of passion – it is a labour of love and we want to keep sharing that with other women.

What made you decide to align with Beauty Night? 

We see Beauty Night as a mini-Every Woman that happens on a weekly basis. Caroline, we are so inspired by the work that you do! We see BN as a comfortable forum for women to come together and learn new things/activities to better themselves – with no questions asked. This is the same with Every Woman. We don’t care if you can’t touch your toes or can’t keep the beat in a music class; we only care that you try and learn how to laugh at yourself, and to do this in a supportive setting where other women are feeling the same way – and having fun. Also, we wanted to fulfill our mandate that EVERY WOMAN has access to pursue her passions – no matter where she is in her life. We think that physical fitness and looking after your body can be inspiring to any and EVERY woman no matter your socioeconomic level or your current health status, it is never to early to start incorporating a walk into your day.

What was you favourite moment interacting with a Beauty Night client participating in every woman? 

I’ve got two. The first is when the Beauty Night client said that the best thing about the weekend was the hotel room….ha ha….I’m pretty sure she tried some workshops….but I thought it was hilarious that the hotel was the clincher…and I don’t blame her. I feel the same way when I am in a hotel room by myself, and get to use the soap and have a nice bath and put on the robe and click through the channels on the TV and enjoy the coffee…and the view. And of course, we always get a super nice basket of goodies donated by Nesters Market for Beauty Night clients, so they get to sample all the yummy nutritious sustenance treats that are provided for them. The second moment is a lot more dramatic and while I may be judged (although I hope not, everyone has their own perspective – for a reason right…?), I was deeply touched by the story/stories of a BN client (we spoke for close to an hour after the dinner at La Rua). She told me how thrilled she was to have been a part of Every Woman and then she told me the events that had lead up to her involvement with Beauty Night and then Every Woman, and I do not have the right adjectives to describe some of her experiences other than horrific and tragic and unfair and terrible, including getting beat up by a pimp because she wouldn’t give him the $5 that he was asking her for that she didn’t even have. I told her that listening to her was like watching a war on the TV – I could never ever completely understand what it would feel like to be in that situation, unless I had a pimp beat me up or unless I was in Afghanistan. One thinks (from movies, I guess), that they could imagine how awful something like that is, but (this is the part about being judged…) I am so far from her world, whether she has made it or not. We all have our stories and there   are so many different levels of guilt and self-infliction and pain – and to me, Every Woman is equal and life is full of all sorts of challenges that make it difficult to ‘be’. But that is what our event is about, coming together because we are ‘ALL’ ‘Every Woman’ and if we can incorporate the exhiliaration of a dance class or a laughter yoga class or a swim or a run in our day, it just makes life that much better and certainly easier to forget about the worst challenges that we face. 

Through the silent auction, how much monies were raised in 2008 for Beauty Night? 

About $3000, I believe. 

I heard a rumour that you might be having Every Woman in White Rock… fact or fiction? 

 We’re working on it….send us an e-mail to info@everywomanintheworld.com if you are interested…. 

Where can people sign up for every woman Whistler 2009? 

www.everywomanintheworld.com