Pacific Association of First Nations Women (formerly known as the Professional Native Womens Assoc)

Name

Pacific Association of First Nations Women (formerly known as the Professional Native Womens Assoc)

Legal name

Pacific Association of First Nations Women

Website

https://pafnw.ca

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Pacific Association of First Nations Women (PAFNW+) is a Vancouver-based non-profit serving Indigenous women, children, families, and 2SLGBTQIA+ people in British Columbia through culturally grounded programs in home care, food and clothing supports, MMIWG2S+ counselling, language revitalization, and post-secondary scholarships, funded by federal grants and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Social Services

NAICS

Individual and Family Services (6241), Child and Youth Services (624110), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Domestic Violence & Abuse Support Services (BPAGAEAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Child Protection & Child Rights (BPAGABAG), Minority, Indigenous & Disability Rights (BPADAGAH)

Keywords

• Indigenous community services
• Cultural revitalization programs
• Home care services
• Social support programs
• Indigenous women's advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Vancouver

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations: The organization accepts monetary donations from the public to support urban Indigenous community through holistic cultural, spiritual, psychological and educational programs. They accept cash, e-transfers, and online credit card donations. Note: they are not a charity so cannot issue tax receipts.
2. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees of $5.00 CAD per year. Voting memberships for Indigenous women, non-voting associate memberships for others.
3. Government Grants and Funding: Funding received from government sources including Women And Gender Equality of Canada for IWC program, Department of Justice for MMIWG counselling services, and First People's Cultural Council for language programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

PAFNW+ is a non-profit organization delivering holistic support programs for Indigenous women, children, families, and youth in British Columbia. Core offerings include culturally safe home care services, food and clothing distribution, MMIWG2S+ counselling, an Indigenous Women+ Council addressing gender-based violence, an Urban Butterflies program for foster children ages 7-14, arts and culture/language revitalization, post-secondary scholarships, and an annual membership program.

Product overview

PAFNW+ offers a suite of interconnected community support programs designed for Indigenous women, children, and families in BC. The core programs include: Food and Clothing Supports providing essential resources with priority for Indigenous peoples; Home Care Services offering culturally appropriate assistance including respite care, supervised access, and childminding; the Urban Butterflies program for foster children ages 7-14 focusing on cultural connection and emotional support; MMIWG2S+ Counselling Services for families affected by missing and murdered Indigenous peoples; the Indigenous Women+ Council addressing gender-based violence through capacity building; and a Scholarships Program supporting post-secondary education for First Nations women. Additional programs include Arts & Culture Revitalization (workshops, language courses, digitization) and membership services. The organization operates primarily from their Vancouver office at 2018 Wall Street.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Arts & Culture Revitalization Program A program focused on preserving, protecting, and revitalizing Indigenous culture and traditions through workshops, webinars, and gatherings, including arts and cultural workshops, language courses, immersion workshops, and language digitization. Targeted at Indigenous community members.
• Food and Clothing Supports Program providing food donations (distributed Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays) and clothing (coats, socks, shoes, sweaters, wet weather gear, car seats) to those in need, with priority for Indigenous peoples.
• Home Care Services Specialized culturally appropriate home care services including respite for foster parents, supervised access, childminding, home maintenance education, and transporting clients.
• Urban Butterflies A group program for Indigenous children and youth in foster care ages 7 to 14, providing cultural art and dance, spirituality teachings, and skills for surviving emotional pain associated with living in foster care.
• MMIWG2S+ Counselling Services One-on-one counselling sessions for those seeking support for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Family Member(s), assisting with understanding root causes of violence, accessing community supports, and navigating the missing persons report process. Delivered by Char Leon, MSW, MEd.
• Indigenous Women+ Council (IWC) Council focused on preventing and addressing gender-based violence against Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQIA+ people through training, capacity building, gap analysis, and developing an online toolkit for organizational sustainability.
• Scholarships Program Scholarship fund for First Nations women in post-secondary training, with annual awards for high school and mature student winners.
• PAFNW+ Membership Program Annual membership program offering Voting Memberships for Indigenous women and Associate Memberships for non-Indigenous supporters, granting access to meetings and eligibility for Indigenous women to apply to join the Board of Directors.

Quantifiable outcome

• Growing from 1 employee to over 40 in Home Care Services under founding leadership

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Vancouver Food RunnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVancouver Food Runners is PAFNW+'s primary partner in providing food supports. They deliver food donations to the 2018 Wall Street office which are sorted and distributed to those in need in the Indigenous community.
• First People's Cultural CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides ongoing language program support for PAFNW+'s Arts and Culture Revitalization Program, including language courses in Anihšināpēmowin (Ojibway) and Nêhiyawêwin (Cree) accessible through the First Voices Portal.
• BC Crime Prevention Rapid Response Network (BC CRN)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for Elder's Bingo events held at 312 Main Street in Vancouver, supporting community engagement activities.
• Ono VancouverminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides cooked food donations delivered on Wednesdays around 1:30 to 2:30 PM for food distribution to community members in need.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• British Columbia Assembly of First Nations: Provincial political organization representing 204 First Nations in BC. Overlapping constituency with PAFNW+ and a potential advocacy/policy ally, but a political representative body rather than a direct-service provider.
• YWCA Metro Vancouver: Large regional non-profit delivering housing, violence-prevention, and women's empowerment programming in Metro Vancouver. Comparable in service categories (housing, violence support, advocacy) but broader in mandate and not Indigenous-specific.

Direct peers

• Ontario Native Women's Association (ONWA): Provincial Indigenous women's association in Ontario providing social services, advocacy, and cultural programs. Highly comparable to PAFNW+ in mandate and program mix (violence prevention, healing, cultural support) but serving a different province.
• Vancouver Aboriginal Friendship Centre Society: Vancouver-based Indigenous service organization offering social, cultural, and health programs to the urban Indigenous community. Directly comparable in geography, urban-Indigenous constituency, and broad program portfolio.
• Women Against Violence Against Women (WAVAW) Rape Crisis Centre: Vancouver-based non-profit offering sexual violence counselling, education, and advocacy. Comparable to PAFNW+'s trauma-informed MMIWG2S+ counselling service in modality and geography, though not Indigenous-led.
• Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC): National Indigenous women's advocacy and service organization serving women, girls, Two-Spirit, and gender-diverse people across Canada. Closest direct peer to PAFNW+ in mission and constituency, but operating nationally rather than province-focused.
• Battered Women's Support Services: Vancouver-based non-profit providing counselling, advocacy, and support services for women experiencing gender-based violence. Comparable to PAFNW+'s MMIWG2S+ counselling and IWC programming in service type, though not Indigenous-specific.
• First Peoples Cultural Council: BC Crown corporation funding Indigenous language, arts, and cultural revitalization. Already an active partner of PAFNW+ and a comparable cultural-program delivery peer, though with a much larger mandate and budget.

Emerging players

• Indigenous Perspectives Society: Victoria-based Indigenous non-profit providing training, education, and capacity-building programs for Indigenous-serving organizations and child welfare workers. Adjacent to PAFNW+'s Urban Butterflies child-welfare focus and its IWC capacity-building mandate.

Regional players

• Alberta Native Women's Association: Provincial Indigenous women's association in Alberta offering advocacy and culturally grounded programs. Functionally analogous to PAFNW+ but regionally scoped to a different province.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pacific-association-of-first-nations-women

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pacific Association of First Nations Women (formerly known as the Professional Native Womens Assoc)