Voices of Freedom: A Storyteller's Soiree

Join us for a night celebrating the journeys of Black creativity, discipline, intelligence, power, and freedom!

REST Centres presents Voices of Freedom, the final showcase and graduation event for the young storytellers in the REST Centres program, "My Story, My Power: Strength in Storytelling." The stories showcased in this event represent the vast landscape of experiences born from Black youth homelessness and poverty, including tales of displacement and diaspora, social trials of adolescence and young adulthood, family breakdown, discrimination, and more.

You will experience stories coming to life through art, writing, spoken word and poetry, video, music, and more. Mingle with our storytellers and each other during our networking social, then sit with us for a series of presentations by our storytellers, featuring Host Peta-Gaye Nash, Author, and Keynote Speaker Khalil Dorival of Khalil Dorival Enterprises.

We look forward to welcoming you to witness the stories of our fantastic young storytellers and support their next steps!

About "My Story, My Power: Strength in Storytelling"

"My Story, My Power: Strength in Storytelling" is a program designed to mobilize youth with lived experiences of homelessness and housing insecurity to tell their stories from a place of empowerment rather than victimhood. Our goal is not only to create a wealth of stories that depict various experiences of youth homelessness but also to empower youth to see that they have power through what they have overcome.

"My Story, My Power" allows youth to engage with their life experiences through creativity, helping them process in a sustainable, healthy fashion while building confidence. "My Story, My Power" equips youth with practical tools, skills, and language to help them share their stories in ways that will enable them to advocate for the changes they want to see in the world.

About REST Centres

The Restoration and Empowerment for Social Transition Centre (REST Centres) is a Black-led, Black-focused, BIPOC-serving non-profit organization that serves the Region of Peel. REST Centres' mission is to raise youth ages 16-24 out of homelessness. REST offers housing support, food subsidies, and wrap-around services to support youth to change their story, discover new possibilities, and shelter dignity. Learn more at www.restcentres.org.

About Laidlaw Foundation

Laidlaw Foundation supports young people impacted by justice, education, and child welfare systems to become healthy and engaged by investing in innovative ideas, convening interested parties, advocating for systems change, and sharing learning across the sector.

"My Story, My Power: Strength in Storytelling" is funded by Laidlaw's Youth Action Fund (YAF). The YAF provides funding to grassroots initiatives working with young people who are underserved by the education system and overrepresented in the criminal justice and child welfare systems. YAF prioritizes Black and/or Indigenous youth-led initiatives. This fund was informed by a series of consultations with experts and advocates in the field and our current strategic plan. Learn more at www.laidlawfdn.org.

"My Story, My Power: Strength in Storytelling" would not be possible without the Laidlaw Foundation's enviable support, for which we cannot express enough gratitude.