To build a world free of sexual violence, the Marie-Vincent Foundation works with many valued partners. We introduce the René Malo Foundation, a major partner since 10 years!
What is the René Malo Foundation?
The René Malo Foundation is a family foundation created in 1996. Marie and René Malo, then the parents of two young children, were particularlyconcerned by the conditions of youth in Québec. Based on the humble desire to help provide kids with equal chances todevelop to their full potential, the Foundation’s mission was clear from the start.
As such, the René Malo Foundation has two parallel missions that sometimes overlap.
Its first and foremost mission is to provide support for Québec children in their physical, psychological, academic and emotional development, as well as their fulfilment through the arts. Its second mission is to support the cultural milieu: to help raise the visibility of Québécois art, mainly cinema.
For a decade now, Fanny-Laure and Laurent Emmanuel have helped with decision-making regarding the Foundation’s orientations, as well as in selecting which requests for assistance to accept. As such, they were the natural choice for an expandedrole; Fanny has held t he position of Vice-Chair of the Foundation since 2013.
How long has the René Malo Foundation been involved with Marie-Vincent Foundation?
The first donation from René Malo Foundation to Marie-Vincent Foundation was in 2009. In 2014, after our tour of the Expertise Centre and our meeting with the Executive Director at the time, we decided to support Marie-Vincent’s work more substantially and in the longer term. So we’ve now been involved with Marie-Vincent Foundation for 10 years.
What led you to get involved with the Marie-Vincent Foundation?
The Foundation’s Executive Director approached us. After the tour of the Expertise Centre, and especially after meeting with the professionals from the clinical team, we realized the extent to which Marie-Vincent Foundation had exceptional and unique skills in the realm of sexual violence against children. This expertise has only grown, supported by the work of the Chaire interuniversitaire and the
prevention programs, in partnership with frontline organizations. What particular-ly struck us was the explanation that by the end of the therapy process provided to child victims of sexual violence, they return to a “normal” quality of life. To this day, we’re hugely inspired by what Marie-Vincent Foundation accomplishes with children.
After that first meeting, we decided to fund Marie-Vincent Foundation in an ongoing way, and to support it to the best of our own expertise. In this regard, we helped it create the “Mon plus grand rêve” (“My greatest dream”) short videos, and Fanny served as President of Marie Vincent Foundation’s Young Leaders’ Circle in 2017 and 2018. Fanny is still a member of the Circle, and actively prepared the third edition of the OMBRÉ event to benefit Marie-Foundation.
What is your wih for the Marie-Vincent Foundation?
We’d like to see large-scale distribution of the exceptional materials provided within the Lantern program. The Lantern program is a sexual violence prevention tool for young children, and it’s the only one of its kind. With this program, we want to significantly reduce the number of cases of sexual violence. We rally in support of Marie-Vincent Foundation’s dream, which is to build a world free of sexual violence, and we believe the tools that have been developed are a strong first step in this direction.
Every parent, as soon as their first child is born, should receive these prevention tools.
What is your greatest dream for children?
For them to grow up in a healthy world, with a society that allows them to be carefree during their precious childhood years as they fully develop their emotional and creative skills.
