Trish Mandewo is not resting on her laurels.
The Coquitlam entrepreneur and community advocate was named one of Canada’s most accomplished immigrants this year for the RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrants award last week.
Now, she’s organizing a fundraiser for Sensabus, which provides therapeutic support and equipment for children with autism.
The event on July 13 caps a busy year for Mandewo, who also co-founded the Women’s Collaborative Hub, a mentorship program for women in business.
Mandewo was given the award last Thursday at a special event in Vancouver that also recognized other western recipients.
She said she was honoured to receive the acknowledgment while also not quite believing she deserved it. “You read everybody’s bio and you’re going, 'What did I do to deserve this?'”
Born in Zimbabwe, Mandewo was one of seven girls whose father insisted they go to school despite protests from others who told him it would be a waste of money.
At 18, she moved to the United States to pursue post-secondary education and eventually moved to Coquitlam, where she started her own business.
At the suggestion of her young daughter, Mandewo bought a Tumblebus, a mobile gym in a converted school bus outfitted with a zip line, climbing wall and slide, among other equipment. The business has done well but Mandewo saw a need for a similar bus that would help children with sensory processing disorders stay active. She started the Sensabus Society of BC and is raising funds for soft lighting, music, a ball pit and other equipment.
Instead of a regular slide, Mandewo said, the Sensabus would have a slide that rolls and gives the children a massage, or a swing that has sensory points for a calming experience.
“We want to have partnerships that work with kids with sensory processing disorders,” Mandewo explained.
Recently, Yogibo, a Vancouver manufacturer of bean bag chairs, donated $3,000 worth of the comfy seats to Sensabus.
And on July 13, the Sensabus Society is holding the Chairs O’Charity Fundraiser that Mandewo said will be a cocktail party with food and entertainment at the Vancouver Golf Club from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tickets cost $45 and are available at eventbright.ca. For more information about Sensabus, visit sensabus.com.
There will be entertainment by Gregory Ould of Blanket BC and guitarist Tyler Mithrush, and two hand painted adirondack chairs will be auctioned off.
The goal is to raise enough money for equipment that would be used to outfit the Tumblebus for a soothing and active environment for children on the autism spectrum, Mandewo said.
The RBC award also came with a $500 charitable contribution that Mandewo is donating to Share Family and Community Services that will be used for programs for children with sensory processing disorders.
For more information, visit 604-800-8365.
