Social enterprises ‘the backbone’ of non-profits in Mission

Published 10:00 am Tuesday, December 23, 2025

Supporting local businesses in Mission can also mean supporting non-profits.

The Fronya x SARA For Women thrift boutique and My Plant BFF in downtown Mission are among the social enterprises in the city that pour profits back into the community.

Originally a clothing hub for women using SARA programs, the Fronya social enterprise has been in operation since 2008. Donations became so generous that it turned into a thrift boutique that helps fundraise for the non-profit.

SARA For Women is a feminist non-profit society providing safe refuge and community-based resources for women in the Fraser Valley.

Joy Tirrell has been the social enterprise coordinator with Fronya x SARA for three years

“A lot of people in the community have really rallied and donated their time by volunteering, their money, and their clothing,” Tirrell said.

Before stepping into the role, Tirrell owned a restaurant near the overpass in Mission for roughly 20 years.

She went back to school to become an accountant and ended up working with Fronya. She enjoys being in the community and seeing old customers.

“It’s got kind of the same feel and the same rhythm, but [the biggest difference] is the lack of food. I don’t have coffee or bacon and eggs on hand anymore, and I really miss that,” Tirrell said.

Every dollar spent at the thrift boutique goes back into the SARA For Women organization.

“Everybody that works here either volunteers or they’re staff,” Tirrell said.

Outreach also happens through the store, with go bags and resources for the unhoused community in Mission.

Women in SARA For Women programs are also supported by the boutique.

“We provide them with clothing and accessories and essentially, dignity. A lot of the women that come into our programs leave with nothing but the clothes on their back so it gives them a chance to pick out what they want to make themselves feel better,” Tirrell said.

Fronya offers daily sales, weekly “Wacky Wednesday”, and gift cards.

“People can come in and do a little thrifting with their gift cards. And once again, that’s helping out and going to a good cause,” she said.

Donations are frequent for Fronya, but Tirrell says they’re always asking for coats for their “Take a Coat, Leave a Coat” initiative, which has been going for 11 years.

Last year, the program gave away almost 600 coats to the community free of charge.

While Fronya x SARA For Women has been in Mission for over a decade, My Plant BFF opened a little over a year ago on North Railway Avenue.

It offers houseplants, garden plants, pots, soils, clothing, stickers and more. All profits help support the Binary Freedom Foundation (BFF), a queer non-profit with a mission to empower and advocate for the 2SLGBTQIA+ communities within the Fraser Valley through support services, education, and outreach, fostering inclusivity, equality, and acceptance.

BFF co-founder Briana Lachance says supporting My Plant BFF helps the non-profit help others.

“If you buy a plant, you can help somebody get counselling. You can help them find housing, you can help them find legal support – things like that. Social enterprises are the backbone of a lot of non-profits, because government funding isn’t always guaranteed, so a lot of us rely on our social enterprises to keep us going,” Lachance said. “Because we’re so new, we don’t have big grants that some of these other non-profits do, so it just helps us keep going, helps us keep our space, our lights on, all that stuff.”

Lachance said sales have been slow this December, with winter a less busy season for plant sales. The store features work from small creators who rely on sales as well.

“Especially in Mission, we’re seeing a lot of small businesses go under. Rent is so high in Mission, and without small creators, we lose a lot of that heart in products. So during holiday seasons, spending money at your local shops helps somebody else in your community. It helps somebody local,” Lachance said.

They added that BFF is always looking for donations and volunteers to help support their work.

“If you want to be an ally, showing up for our community, that’s, you know, shutting down conversations that are inappropriate, supporting, you know, the neighbor kid down the street that might not have that support, and just really showing up for your community, as you would for anybody else.”

After the United States election last January, Lachance said things have gotten scarier for the 2SLGBTQIA+ in the Fraser Valley.

“We’re losing our rights in not only the States, but other countries. We’re having to go back into hiding. We’re losing our gender affirming care, which can really affect people’s livelihoods. We’re seeing it in Canada, where this hate is coming in and people are afraid to leave their houses. We’re seeing more and more people go back into hiding. We’re seeing more protests show up. There’s a handful of people that are protesting on the other side of Mission downtown, and our business is right here. And so it has only gotten scarier and harder for queer people and specifically transgender folks, to just live day to day,” Lachance said.

However, In the past year, BFF has run or attended 150 events across five different Fraser Valley cities to help build and support the queer community in the region.

“We’ve helped people create long-term friendships that they never would have otherwise. We’ve helped people be able to get out of their houses and see that the Fraser Valley is not as scary as some people make it seem. And there’s definitely scary areas and scary people, but showing that Mission especially is such a welcoming community, and that there’s businesses and politicians and community leaders that are behind our community has made a huge difference,” Lachance said.