WELCOME TO WINDRUSH FOUNDATION

In 2017, the married team of JC Pennie and Marilyn Field created Windrush Estate Winery in Hockley Valley, an hour northwest of Toronto. Already, their all-VQA wines have won Gold, Silver and Bronze awards – against 13,000 entries – at international wine competitions held in the UK.

Pre-COVID, with up to 120 guests invited to Chateau Windrush, they hosted many musical events and fundraising dinners for charities.

Now, they are launching Windrush Foundation, funded in part by the winery to empower children to LEAD our world into a better future. Click here to listen to the announcement as aired on Classical 96.3 FM September, 2021.

MARILYN FIELD, M.S.M.

Starting out as a teacher in tough neighborhoods in Toronto, Marilyn developed a teaching method to use all the arts to reach young people at-risk before they moved on to guns and gangs.

From that beginning 35 years ago, Marilyn has empowered over 220,000 kids across Canada and internationally.

Now, her education legacy continues with the launch of Windrush Foundation.

Funded in part by the winery, its mandate is to empower all children, no matter their walk of life, to LEAD our world into a better future.

LEAD is Marilyn’s latest education program. LEAD encourages students of all ages to: Listen. Empathize. Act. Drive.

For example:

Shamin, a young kid from Toronto flowered under her mentorship, went on to co-found a billion dollar company and is now a partner in the winery!
Eko, a young immigrant from Ghana, went on to become a doctor.
Butterfly, a young Indigenous student in Vancouver’s east side has found her voice, “I am a warrior.” See her video ‘Translucence’ at www.youthLEADarts.com
Windrush Foundation is co-operating with the Windrush Foundation in London , UK, to continue this legacy.

Each bottle of Windrush wine contains the fruit of the land, the tenacity of entrepreneurs and the passion of visionaries who want our youth to triumph over adversity.

Every bottle you buy helps empower a young person to LEAD the future.

Marilyn Field, MSM, Arts Education Visionary

Marilyn Field is recognised internationally for pioneering innovative arts education. A teacher, education visionary, executive and volunteer, Marilyn has empowered over 220,000 children to be leaders.
Internationally, she conducted a children’s choir at the 100th anniversary of the Nobel Peace Prize, singing with Paul McCartney.
Since retiring in 2019 from DAREarts, the charity she founded in 1994, she now advises on education internationally through her new program called LEAD – Listen, Empathize. Act. Drive. Visit www.youthLEADarts.com
Her vision proves that the arts help children see themselves with promise and purpose to lead change. Marginalized kids find their voice. They stay in school and have hope. “I got hope wakin’ up every day,” wrote Leroy, 16, from Webequie FN.
She has volunteered with many cultural organizations, including Opera Atelier, Toronto Senior Strings, Theatre Orangeville; Esprit Orchestra (board president), the Canadian Opera Company and Stratford Festival.
She was awarded Canada’s Meritorious Service Medal (MSM) as well as the Queen’s Gold and Diamond Jubilee Medals, and the Women of Courage Award. She is the 2013 inductee of the Caledon Walk of Fame, on the Trans Canada Trail.
J.C. (John) Pennie, Creative Entrepreneur

From computer graphics and gas platforms to wind power and wines, J. C. Pennie is an eclectic entrepreneur.
Cofounder of ‘Image West’ in Hollywood, John and his team created the historic first use of computer graphics in motion pictures. (‘Logan’s Run’). He then founded ‘Omnibus Computer Graphics’ with facilities in Hollywood, New York and Toronto which pioneered some of the most advanced techniques for CGI. The Omnibus software was licensed in Japan and England with further ground-breaking developments such as reflectance mapping used for the first time in a motion picture (Flight of the Navigator).
He also created Windrush Energy to develop 30 MW of wind energy in Dufferin County, subsequently building positive partnerships with the councils of the Six Nations and the Haudenosaunee.