During last year’s Women’s Day party at East City Florist in Peterborough, Ontario, guests wrote on a chalkboard reasons they loved being a woman.
Janet McLeod, owner of East City Florist in Peterborough, Ontario, observes Women’s Day, March 8, with a party to benefit local women’s shelters.
The party reminds customers of the holiday’s purpose: to recognize the tribulations women face and to celebrate the trials they have already overcome.
Last year, McLeod hosted guests in her shop Sunday, March 8, from 1 to 3 p.m., for mimosas and chocolate. She decorated the refreshment table with vases of mimosas, tying into a Women’s Day tradition that’s been in place in Italy since 1946.
“Our only request was that guests bring a donation of feminine products, which we donated to two local shelters,” McLeod said. Last year, her inaugural Women’s Day party, drew 20 guests.
This year, Women’s Day falls on a Tuesday, so McLeod is hosting the party afterhours, from 5 to 7 p.m. “Our shop’s moving March 1 to a new location two blocks away with a free-standing corner lot,” she said. “It’s a bigger space with a better layout and more parking, so we’re hoping to double our attendance.”
McLeod promoted the party and donation request in a flier that accompanied every Valentine’s Day order. She’s also spreading the word through Facebook, Twitter, Constant Contact, and a press release to her local paper.
