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Join us as we celebrate three years of Pop-Up Child Care, a social enterprise launched by the Pacific Immigrant Resource Society (PIRS) that provides on-demand, on-site, child care services and connects immigrant and refugee women with child care training and employment.

At this crucial point of Pop-Up Child Care’s journey, we welcome educators, practitioners, decision-makers, and all those invested in the child care system to explore with us:

• How innovative child care services and training programs can improve service delivery
• How child care providers can work together to create change
• Funding streams that support the creation of welcoming child care spaces for working parents, new immigrants, and those with language barriers

What will the event look like?

The 90-minute event will weave presentations from the Pop-Up Child Care team, testimonials from parents, and commentary from leaders in BC’s child care sector with small group interactions, and collaborative problem-solving.

We will:

Connect as a community directly affected by the child care crisis to learn from and with each other

Explore how we as a field are adapting our practices to respond to this changing industry

Discover new opportunities for financial sustainability

Our speakers:

Madeleine Shaw is a serial social entrepreneur and native Vancouverite. She is the Founder and Chief Community Officer of Nestworks, a client of Pop-Up Child Care. She is currently working on her first book, The Greater Good: Social Entrepreneurship for Everyday People Who Want to Change the World (LinkedIn)

Sharon Gregson is the provincial spokesperson for the successful $10aDay Child Care campaign working with the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC. She was twice elected as a Trustee to the Vancouver Board of Education. She represents British Columbia on the Board of the Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada (Child Care Now), and previously on the Child Care Human Resource Sector Council and Canadian Child Care Federation (LinkedIn and Twitter)

Rocio Quevedo is a Mexican citizen and has been a permanent resident of Canada since 2009. While volunteering at a Spanish group for kids ages 0-5 years old at Frog Hollow Community House, she found out about the Responsible Adult (RA) training provided by PIRS and Work BC. She credits the RA training program with not only changing her personal life as a mother, wife, and friend, but with helping her become a stronger, confident, and aware part of the Early Childhood Education community.

Gyda Chud has a long history with PIRS, dating back over 25 years, and is delighted to return to the Board. She has extensive experience in the non-profit, community sector both locally and nationally. Gyda’s professional world has focused primarily in Early Childhood Education, where she served as Faculty, Program Coordinator, and Dean of Continuing Studies at Vancouver Community College. She chaired the Child Care Human Resource Sector Council, and the Association of Canadian Community College Affinity Forum, and has co-authored several books related to Honouring Diversity. Gyda is inspired by the mission, vision, and values of PIRS, and the outstanding women ̶ past and present ̶ who represent us in the broader community.

Concepcion Tavera, Connie for short, immigrated to Canada from the Philippines. She started her career by taking a PIRS program at Collingwood Neighbourhood House. After she graduated from PIRS's ECEA course, she easily found a job in the field. The biggest advantage for her is the work-life balance, as well as realizing her dream of becoming an ECEA.

Honorio JR Guerrero is the Coordinator for Employment Services at Kiwassa Neighbourhood House. He has worked in the fields of social services, community, and creative empowerment within and outside immigrant communities for the past 18 years. (LinkedIn)

Please share this invitation with educators, practitioners, decision-makers, and anyone invested in the child care system.

For more information, reach out to the Pop-Up Child Care team at childcare@pirs.bc.ca.