It takes someone special to hold the title of businesswoman, journalist, model, wife and mother, and still manage to be at the forefront of philanthropy. For Joan Kelley Walker, this is her everyday life, and one she leads with kindness and unprecedented humility. You may remember her from The Real Housewives of Toronto, but you’ve never seen her before like this. We sat down with Joan in her Toronto home for a very candid interview. Here’s what you need to know about the woman who’s changing the world and doing it in style!
JKW Collection
The Joan Kelley Walker collection is an extension of who she is, where she came from, and what she values. As a Canadian fashion icon, it only made sense for Joan to dig her high heels into a collection of her own with Walmart, “Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always loved fashion and hair and makeup, and the whole industry, and it was always my dream to do this.” From furry winter coats to flirty summer cover-ups, the JKW collection has something for everyone, any occasion and any season, “Every single piece, I would not put my name on it if I wouldn’t wear it myself.”
With affordability and practicality in mind, Joan crafted the perfect line for women looking to vamp up their wardrobes while staying on budget,‘It’s supporting women and mothers and girls and people across the country that may not go out and buy themselves a new dress for a job interview or an occasion.”
In true Joan Kelley Walker fashion, the focus of the brand is philanthropy. With every purchase, Joan makes a donation to the Breakfast Club of Canada. Their mission is to ensure every child has access to a healthy morning meal before school and an equal chance at success. Even speaking about the charity had Joan verklempt, “It makes me so emotional that 100% percent of kids that are in breakfast programs, it’s not their fault.” Children join these programs for many different reasons like poverty, parents with conflicting work schedules, or having a single parent at home. The results of these programs are incredible, “The dropout rate goes down. Their overall average in academic learning goes way up. The bullying rate goes down. The overall success rate and staying in school rate goes way up.”
Mixing Fashion with Philanthropy and Affordability
Joan’s humble beginnings started in a small town in Saskatchewan, where there was only one street with the pavement. Her father was a grain farmer and they were part of the farming community. With that came a philanthropic mindset, “Farmers would help each other because of the weather or maybe someone’s crop was ready and yours wasn’t so you’d work together. It was a real community thing.” Joan’s mother also inspired her to lend a helping hand. At 26-years-old, her mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, “That never ever stopped her from doing anything.” According to Joan, that included volunteering her time, “She was out there volunteering as much as anybody, not feeling sorry for herself. So for me, there’s no reason why an abled-body person or anybody shouldn’t be giving back.”
By working any job available like babysitting, cleaning, and teaching figure skating, Joan learned the value of a dollar and what it meant to work hard for it. With a love for fashion, this meant Joan needed to get creative. Every purchase she made had to be smart, versatile, and reinventable. This taught her how to take a basic outfit and dress it up or dress it down, a lesson she believes in invaluable.“Anybody can walk into Chanel and come out head-to-toe looking Chanel and look fabulous,“ but she says it takes someone creative to mix high and low end or new and vintage. The Joan Kelley Walker collection is a representation of her upbringing: a dash of philanthropy, a sprinkle of affordability, and lots of creativity.
World Vision Canada
Added to Joan’s never-ending list of titles is World Vision Canada Ambassador. When she met her husband Don Walker 23 years ago, he was already a big supporter of World Vision. Since then, the two have spearheaded their own charities and supported numerous other NGOs. As Ambassador, Joan has visited Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Mozambique, South Africa and the Congo twice now. She recently went to the capital of the DRC, “In Kinshasa, they don’t know if there’s 10 million people or 15 million people, you don’t have to register births.” Like a lot of countries she’s been to, there was a great deal of poverty. However, the poverty in Kinshasa was nothing like any city Joan had seen before. This experience was eye-opening and reminded her of why she’s so grateful for World Vision, “They’re working together, they define the problems, where the help is most needed and they really make a tangible plan on how to put resources in there to make a difference for people.”
“You meet so many people and everybody has a story,” Joan recalls meeting an inspiring woman named Melanie, “she is in a wheelchair, but I’ve never seen a wheelchair like this before. It had twigs for a seat.” With no sidewalks or wheelchair ramps, life for Melanie means waiting for someone to push her around. As one of the best sewers in town, Melanie was working towards a vocational skill. Joan first met her outside of the classroom, where she was pulling herself into the building. She would drag herself around on her hands and get up to the sewing machine. Her story is heartbreaking, yet hopeful, “She was a mom. She had a little boy and she was just trying to better her life for her and her son by working hard.” As a mother, Joan felt a deep connection for Melanie and will be providing her with a wheelchair.
Joan says the most rewarding aspect of philanthropy is the direct connection you have when you’re helping someone. When she goes to meet the sponsored kids, she brings them gifts like little Canadian t-shirts and a map to show them where Canada is. When she recently spoke with a group of women in the DRC, she explained why she’s part of World Vision, “We know that you’re there, we love you, we care about you, you’re not alone.”
On Being a Working Mom
The main focus for Joan and her husband’s philanthropy is mostly women and children. She credits motherhood for changing her life, “I think that opened up a whole new world for me.” As a career-driven woman, Joan always thought she would keep working. When she had kids, she took some time off to focus on being a mom, “I’m back working as much as I am because I want to show my kids that women can be strong and independent and contributing and follow their dreams.” Although both she and her husband are incredibly busy people, they still make sure at least one of them is home every night for the kids. Even though her youngest is 16, Joan still likes to be there, especially when they have friends up at the cottage, “I love quietly observing what they’re doing. Make sure everybody’s okay, make sure they’re fed.” When Joan finally gets some time to herself, she loves to ski and enjoy the cottage in the summer with friends and family.
Advice For Young Women
Moving back into the workforce, Joan noticed a change in the industry. However, she says some things remained constant, “You have to work hard, that you have to treat people well, if you’re doing something with the motivation just for money or something like you’re going to run into obstacles.” It’s important to be confident yet humble, Joan says, and to make sure you don’t cross that fine line. It’s all about balance and letting things evolve naturally, “I think everything, no matter what you’re doing ever in life, has to come from your heart.” Joan believes this is what’s happening with the JKW collection since their launch last mid-September. Joan’s incredible success has resonated with many young Canadian women, specifically one who approached her at an appearance. The girl told Joan how much she inspires her from an entrepreneurial perspective. She said she wants to change the world one day just like Joan.
Future Plans
The JKW collection is something Joan wants to continue pursuing. Since its launch, they’ve had great success, “After the first pop-up, sales were up 66%, which is huge. It’s really validating that what we’re doing is working.” Joan will also continue her philanthropy work at full throttle, raising over $100,000 in less than 3 weeks in honour of a friend who passed away tragically. Her natural reaction to tragedy is to turn it around and do something good with it, “I’m going to keep doing stuff like that. As I see a need, I’m going to do what I can to step in and do something.”
