Joanne Ferland, a resident of North Bay, Ontario, had to start her life anew after leaving an abusive partner. Recounting her experience, she mentioned her bank account was empty, her keys hidden, and her phone cut off when she decided to depart. Ferland credited her parents for enabling her escape from the abusive situation.
Thanks to her family’s support, Ferland managed to rebuild her professional life and now serves as a financial adviser at the Caisse Alliance credit union in Northern Ontario. Drawing from her own ordeal as a survivor of intimate partner violence (IPV), she initiated the Leap Into Financial Empowerment (LIFE) program last year, a unique initiative in Canada aimed at guiding IPV survivors in organizing their finances.
Ferland collaborates closely with aid groups in northeastern Ontario and the legal system to direct survivors to the program. Central to the initiative is the establishment of a secure and complimentary checking account to ensure the safety of participants’ financial transactions. Ferland emphasized the program’s confidentiality by ensuring no mail or calls reach participants directly.
She and her team also offer financial guidance to domestic violence survivors, aiding them in crafting a budget to kickstart their new lives. The program has already assisted 12 IPV survivors, with only one individual returning to their abuser, marking a significant success rate.
Equitable Bank granted $50,000 to the program to facilitate its expansion to other communities in northeastern Ontario, including Timmins, Hearst, Mattawa, Sturgeon Falls, and Kapuskasing. Mathieu Shank, Caisse Alliance’s regional manager for the Nipissing East area, expressed his immediate support for Ferland’s program concept, highlighting the alarming statistics related to IPV in Canada.
According to Statistics Canada, 44% of women and girls above 15 who have been in relationships have experienced some form of intimate partner abuse. The data also reveals that a woman in Canada is killed by an intimate partner every six days, illustrating the severity of the issue. Shank emphasized the importance of addressing this issue, noting that a significant number of his female employees could potentially be experiencing IPV, underscoring the urgent need for programs like Ferland’s.