About Ernestine's Women's Shelter:

Ernestine’s Women’s Shelter is a Violence Against Women 32 bed shelter with 14 private bedrooms that was opened in 1983 that assists women and children fleeing domestic violence.

In addition to shelter clients, Ernestine’s supports over 400 women and children from across the GTA through our Outreach Program. The shelter’s Outreach clients have access to counselling services and programs as well as the shelter’s on-site donation rooms and food bank. 

Since opening its doors in 1983, Ernestine’s has supported over 10,000 women and children.

(Please note that Ernestine’s will reach out to our generous donors to collect information (i.e. full mailing addresses) for the purpose of issuing tax receipts. TAX RECEIPTS WILL LBE ISSUED FOR DONATIONS OF $20 AND OVER. Thank you.)

About "Queen of the Morning Calm":

"Queen of the Morning Calm" follows 29-year-old immigrant sex worker Debra, and her self-aware 10-year-old daughter Mona, as they embark on a journey of emancipation. Debra attempts to escape cycles of abuse and poverty while learning to become a more nurturing mother and discovering her own self-worth.

“I’m a survivor of violence. This has affected how I walk in the world. Most people are really uncomfortable when I talk about it — they would rather I shut up. Well, I won’t.”

-- Writer/Director Gloria Ui Young Kim

Why "Queen of the Morning Calm" Matters:

“Women are for sale,” Kim explains. “This is just a fact. The strength of the #MeToo Movement comes from our collective female consciousness finally rising up in outrage at being told to shut up and be pretty. We won’t. I want to change the prevailing notion that women are victims, that we are a commodity and that we need a man to survive. We don’t have to keep taking it. Instead, I say we are the heroes of our own journey, that we can tell our own stories, and that a mother and a daughter can band together and be each other’s true love.

"Queen of the Morning Calm" is a story for our own times. It’s a story of redemption. It’s a story of love. It’s a story of hope. And it’s a story of advocacy. It’s a very personal story for me, and it’s something I am compelled to do out of my own history of violence and my own journey of healing and self-acceptance. Let’s show the world that women’s experiences matter. Let’s help our women and girls.”

This is the feature film directorial debut from Telefilm Canada New Voices Award winner, Gloria Ui Young Kim (Flamenco Movie, Why Do I Dance?). Starring Tina Jung (Kim’s Convenience, Make It Pop), Shaun Benson (The Boys, Killjoys), Jesse LaVercombe (Mary Goes Round, American Gods) and introducing Eponine Lee.