Virtual Latvia

The International Women’s Club of Riga (IWCR) unites expatriate women, who come to Latvia from all parts of the world. The Club was founded in 1995, and has grown since then from a small group of women to around 100 members from 18 countries. It has two primary aims; to help women from different countries feel welcome in Riga by hosting social and cultural events and to contribute to Latvian society through charitable activities.

The IWCR is a voluntary public organization which has Public Benefit Organisation status. The ongoing work of the Charity Committee involves different fundraising activities throughout the year; the most significant being the annual International Christmas Bazaar. A unique concept for Latvia, this is the event where you can buy original local and overseas presents for the coming holidays, taste national delicacies, take part in the lively auction, whilst at the same time making your own contribution to the support of Latvia’s needy people.

We have attended the Bazaar 2010 to witness this festive fundraising event and its international spirit first hand. Mrs. Gale Rogers, the IWCR Treasurer, and Mrs. Eugene Roberts, co-coordinator of the Auction, have kindly agreed to give us a brief insight into the event.
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Virtual Latvia: What is the idea of the International Bazaar?

Gale Rogers: The International Women’s Club of Riga hosts an annual event which is a fundraiser for our charities. This year we are being hosted at the Radisson Blu Hotel Latvia. The women in the Club, Embassy groups or national groups (not necessarily associated with the embassies), and vendors – all participate in an event designed to raise money for the needy throughout Latvia.

This has been going on, now it is our fourteenth year and everything that you see here is either donated or all of the profits will go to charity. Individuals donate all of their time and their energy for many months in advance of the event to go ahead and ensure that the sale at the Bazaar raises the most money possible.

VL: How do you distribute the money, who do you support?

GR: Once the money comes in, our Charity Committee looks at organisations that we’ve helped in the past and any organisations who have reached out to us through the course of the year, and we design the budget that gets then distributed.

This year we have donated funding to a number of Latvian charities. Three soup kitchens, one associated with Missionaries of Charity, one associated with Chabad Lubavitch Centre and one associated with Hope for Children. We’ve also support a crisis centre for families in need with school supplies and food through the course of the year. We’re donating money this year to several orphanages as well, supporting both wood and fuel to heat them during the winter, as well as a number of other items that they’ve asked for. The Samaritans Centre received some replacement cookers this year for cookware that failed for them. In the past and probably again this year we’ll donate money for a scholarship for a needy student.

VL: How many participants are here today?

GR: There are twenty vendors and twenty four other tables, five of those are Women’s Club tables and the remaining nineteen are national tables. This is an international event, I think we have at least twenty different nationalities represented, and any number of organisations. You’ve seen the sponsors that we have – Aldaris, Coca-Cola, CIDO, any number of others, including the obvious one – the Radisson Blu.

VL: What makes this year’s auction special?

Eugene Roberts: The auction has grown from year to year, and this is really the largest, the first time we’ve done a live auction as well as the silent auction. We have over a hundred fantastic ‘treasures’ that have been donated by private individuals and businesses here in Riga. Everyone has really got behind it and been so generous. They were very keen to support the event, because donating even a small item that raises just a few lats becomes a very effective way to reach and support the charities.

We have some great ‘Lots’ on offer today including a hand-decorated Christmas tree bauble gifted by the First Lady, Mrs Lilita Zatlere; a pair of business class air tickets from airBaltic; wonderful ferry, hotel and spa packages here in Riga and further afield in Estonia, meals in local restaurants, electronic equipment from LG and Samsung and Dinamo Riga signed ice-hockey memorabilia, to name just a few. In addition, we have experiences that ‘money can’t usually buy’ including ‘High Tea at the British Embassy’, a ‘Behind the Scenes Tour of Riga Zoo’ and the chance to be a ‘Fashion Star on the Cat Walk, courtesy of Klase.

VL: What was the result of the last year Bazaar?

GR: Last year’s Bazaar made around 11 000 Ls for charity.

VL: What are your expectations for this year?

GR: There’s no way to tell year on year; it totally depends on how many people come in and give of their money to buy the items that are available, you can never predict. From year to year there is no consistency, but I will say in general in the past the amount, during the best economic times, we have made around 16 000 Ls, so it depends on what’s going on in the economy, too, as much as anything else.

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P.S: The International Christmas Bazaar 2010 proved to be very successful. The joint effort of the organisers, sponsors and visitors resulted in an impressive net profit of 14,000 Lats raised for charity work in Latvia.

For all further information about the International Christmas Bazaar and the charity work of the IWCR visit their website at www.iwcr.lv