Weaving, an ancestral craft, is perfect for developing and weaving intercultural links and thus bringing new arrivals closer to the host community in Beauce.
Sitting comfortably behind their looms, members of the Cercle de Fermières de Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce share their artisanal know-how with guests from the Liaison femmes immigrantes de la Chaudière-Appalaches (LFICA) organization.
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Members of the Chaudière-Appalaches Immigrant Women’s Liaison listen attentively to the advice of Sylvie Poulin from the Cercle de Fermières in Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce.
Photo : - / Philippe Grenier
Curiosity abounds, questions are numerous and laughter peppers the discussions. We get together, we exchange, we allow these women to leave their zone
explains Elima Diabong, co-founder of LFICA. Through activities [on veut] allow these immigrant women to break their isolation.
No matter who you are, where you come from, the loom is universal.
The non-profit organization, which has nearly 70 members, wants to create bridges between these immigrant women and the local community.
Making connections
Co-founder of LFICAGrace Oulaï takes her place behind the 8-pedal loom. In Ivory Coast, the one I did is a traditional job, there are only two pedals, it’s left, right
she says, trying to familiarize herself with Quebec weaving.
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Jocelyne Roy shows Grace Oulaï how the loom works at the Cercle de Fermières in Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce.
Photo : - / Philippe Grenier
Of course it’s not the same thing, but it’s a bridge, a link […] that makes us similar
note Grace Oulaï.
Her Cercle des Fermières teacher, Jocelyne Roy, is delighted to see the interest in the visit gathered around her. I would like to have some in the club so that we can learn from them
she explains, hoping for more events like this.
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The members of the Cercle de Fermières presented their creations from recent weeks.
Photo : - / Philippe Grenier
The Placotons
A meeting in the middle of another, that of Placoton where every week residents of Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce welcome new arrivals and facilitate their integration.
Everyone is mixing, it’s beautiful to see […] and when we see that people are happy and content, that’s the reward
says Danielle Breton, sociocultural agent for the municipality.
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Cocktails and South American food are on the menu at Placotons. Around twenty new arrivals are gathered with members of the Liaison femmes immigrantes de la Chaudière-Appalaches organization and local residents.
Photo : - / Philippe Grenier
Over the past 5 years, the municipality has welcomed nearly 150 new arrivals. Integration is easier for workers, it allows them to learn French more easily and to combat the language barrier
explains Carl Gilbert, mayor of the municipality.
It’s time for discovery, the perfect framework for building strong bonds in the future.
