Who We Are
Afripride Women Co-op is a federally registered multistakeholder cooperative formally incorporated on March 21, 2024. Our membership is made up of Black women of African descent from around the world who now call Canada home. We started this cooperative because we recognized that Afro-Canadian women especially new immigrants often face significant barriers to achieving financial stability. Many lack access to credit or sufficient personal resources to invest in essential goods or launch income-generating ventures. Limited or non-existent credit history further restricts their ability to secure funds, while gaps in financial literacy make it difficult to navigate available financial systems and opportunities.
In response, Afripride Women Co-op was created to empower Afro-Canadian women through culturally rooted financial systems that strengthen communities and generate lasting economic impact. Our core solution is the facilitation of Rotating Savings and Credit Associations (ROSCAs), a trusted, community-based approach that helps women build financial resilience.
Our Vision
We envision a future in which Afro-Canadian women-led cooperatives serve as pillars of financial resilience, community strength, and economic justice, contributing meaningfully to the prosperity of their families and communities.
Our Mission
Our mission is to promote the socio-economic self-empowerment of Afro-Canadian women — an equity-deserving group — by fostering cooperative leadership, financial education, collective investment opportunities, and peer support, grounded in respect, inclusion, and shared prosperity.
Our Values
- Integrity - We act with honesty, transparency, and ethical responsibility in all our decisions and financial dealings. Trust is the foundation that binds Afripride women together and sustains our collective success.
- Equity - We are committed to fair access to opportunities, resources, and decision-making for all members. Equity ensures that every woman’s contribution is valued and her voice respected.
- Accountability - Each member and leader takes responsibility for their actions, commitments, and stewardship of cooperative resources. We hold ourselves answerable to one another to protect the cooperative’s mission and shared assets.
- Collaboration - We believe our greatest strength lies in working together across skills, experiences, and perspectives. Collaboration enables us to build sustainable investments that no one could achieve alone.
- Reciprocity - We give and receive with intention, recognizing that mutual support strengthens the entire cooperative. Success is shared, and progress is measured by how we uplift one another.
- Fairness - We uphold just and consistent processes in governance, investment decisions, and benefit distribution. Fairness ensures trust, harmony, and long-term stability within the cooperative.
- Innovation - We embrace creative and forward-thinking approaches to economic empowerment and investment. Innovation allows Afripride to adapt, grow, and create lasting value for current and future generations.
- Sisterhood - We are united by solidarity, respect, and a shared commitment to one another’s growth. Sisterhood is the heart of Afripride, fostering belonging, resilience, and collective prosperity.
Our Journey
Afripride was born from a shared awakening. Many of us first came together as women in a nonprofit welfare group that practiced Rotating Savings and Credit Associations (ROSCAs) for years. While significant amounts of money circulated among members over the years, we realized that, as a collective, we had little to show for it. Each woman completed her savings cycle, yet it was difficult to trace how those funds translated into lasting growth or tangible assets. It felt like harvesting fruits without ever saving seeds for the next season.
This realization sparked a shift in mindset. We needed to plant seeds while still enjoying the fruits. In late 2023, ten committed women formed a committee to design structures that would allow us to intentionally invest the funds generated through our cycles. Through research and partnerships with like-minded organizations, we explored established models and ultimately chose a multi-stakeholder cooperative.
In 2024, we made a bold collective decision to purchase property. That same year, we raised over $200,000, which was used as a down payment on a property in Calgary, Alberta. In 2025, Afripride reached a major milestone when we took possession of a newly built duplex—leveraging ROSCAs to transform informal saving into a lasting, generational asset.
This is the beginning of Afripride women turning unity into wealth and vision into legacy.
Our Team
Grace serves as the Vice President of the AWC, where she helps shape the cooperative’s strategic direction and collaborates closely with stakeholders to ensure initiatives are successfully implemented. She is currently leading a project that will empower and educate BWOP on their financial capabilities. Grace is a senior Quality, Safety, Compliance and Risk Management executive with extensive experience in the transportation and aviation industries. She is currently working with a global logistics organization. Grace is also a consultant, trainer, management systems lead auditor, wife and mother.
Phyllis serves as the Lead for Corporate Governance at Afripride Women Cooperative (AWC), where she provides strategic oversight to ensure strong governance, accountability, and regulatory compliance. Her role focuses on developing and maintaining governance frameworks, policies, and board practices that support ethical decision-making, risk management, and long-term sustainability in close collaboration with the Board of Directors. She is also a project management professional with experience in business strategy and development, as well as a food industry entrepreneur and founder of a Kenyan cuisine business, bringing a practical, execution-driven perspective that strengthens AWC’s strategic planning, financial stewardship, and mission-aligned growth.
Damaris has experience in Strategic Financial Management in both Kenya and Canada and is deeply passionate about empowering women through inclusive leadership, mentorship, and access to opportunity. As Finance Director and Chair of the Finance Committee, she provides strategic financial leadership, strengthens governance and accountability, and supports sound decision-making to advance financial inclusion, community empowerment, and the cooperative’s long-term sustainability.
Ruth Patta serves on the Board of Directors with responsibility for Membership and Recruitment. In this role, she responds to inquiries from prospective members, manages member databases, and ensures members remain in good standing and compliant with Canadian cooperative regulations. In addition to her board work, Ruth is a Registered Clinical Counsellor in British Columbia (BC) with a clinical focus on family, relationships, and trauma processing.
Cathy Warega serves as Board Secretary and Vice Chair ROSCAs Committee, she supports strong governance, effective record-keeping, and the coordination of ROSCA activities in collaboration with the Director of ROSCAs Programs.
Cathy’s multidisciplinary experience across real estate, procurement, supply chain and logistics, business management, and Indigenous social work equips her with strong organizational, operational, and coordination capabilities. She is passionate about advancing cultural preservation, community engagement, holistic wellness, and community empowerment.
Nellie has over two decades of experience across high school and college classrooms, she has dedicated her career to the power of knowledge. Currently, she serves on the Board as Director of Education, where she is in charge of sourcing expert speakers to champion financial literacy for Afro Canadian women. Her mission is to demystify complex financial systems and provide the tools necessary for informed decision-making. By combining her background in English language instruction with life-skills advocacy, she empowers young adults and immigrants to navigate their futures with confidence and clarity.
Elizabeth serves on the Board of Directors with responsibility for managing the ROSCA program, one of the organization’s core solutions for achieving its mission and strategic goals. In this role, she coordinates, manages, and provides oversight of ROSCA activities, ensuring they operate with integrity, transparency, and full alignment with AWC’s objectives.
A full-time nurse by profession, Elizabeth brings valuable professional expertise, sound judgment, and a strong sense of accountability to her board role.