Moncton’s Women of Distinction

YWCA award-winners promote social justice in different ways.

by Jody Dallaire, Dieppe Advisory Committee on Equal Opportunity between Women and Men

For six years, the Moncton Chapter of the YWCA began presenting Women of Distinction Awards to women who have distinguished themselves in one of the following six fields: 1) community building and volunteerism; 2) health and active living; 3) arts, culture and design; 4) business and professions; 5) education, training and development; and 6) non profit and public service.

Two other awards are presented, one to a young woman, between the ages 18 to 25, and the other is an honorary recognition award for significant achievement of national importance.

 

For those of you who do not know the YWCA and its role in the community; the Moncton Chapter has been in existence since 1920. Its mission is to provide opportunities, resources, and support for women to empower and enrich their lives. The programs offered by YWCA of Moncton range from: employment and life skills training; supportive housing programs; violence-prevention programming and workshops; youth case management, tutoring, and mentorship; legal services, and support groups (eating disorders, grief). The organization also maintains a resource centre and provide referrals to other service-providing organizations.

The sixth annual Women of Distinction Gala was held on May 22. The gala serves two purposes. The first, of course, is to honour the eight women who received a prize for which they were nominated. The gala is also the YWCA's annual fundraiser to support the work of this important organization.

This year's Women of Distinction awards recipients include:

Johanne Petitpas was recognized for her community building and volunteerism. She, herself, grew up in poverty and she has experienced homelessness first hand. She now devotes her time to improve the lives of others through her work with the Common Front for Social Justice (a group that promotes policy and legislative change to eradicate poverty) and the Greater Moncton Homelessness Steering Committee.

Helen MacDonnell was nominated under the category of health and active living. After her brother's suicide, she decided that silence was no longer an option. She decided to get involved to work to ensure that mental illness was no longer hidden, stigmatized and feared. She became chair of awareness and fundraising with the Moncton chapter of the Canadian Mental Health Association. She also created the Women and Wellness Event which began as a kitchen party to discuss brain-based illness. It is now a multi-community fundraiser.

Monique Richard was recognized for her work in the field of arts, culture and design. She is a trained pianist and a music educator. She has dedicated her career and countless hours on a volunteer basis to conducting choirs, judging music festivals and giving workshops locally, nationally and internationally.

Michelle Carinci won under the category of business and the professions. She is the President and CEO of the Atlantic Lotto Corporation, for which she was recognized as one of Atlantic Canada's Top 50 CEOs. She also devotes many hours to fundraising for the Atlantic Ballet Theatre and for Adult Literacy. Ms. Carini's daughter accepted the award on her mother's behalf, saying that she was proud of her Mom, who is both a role model and a mentor to her.

Sandra Foreman was recognized for her work in education, training and development. She is passionate about education and has been teaching for the past 18 years. She teaches business courses at the Saint John High School and technology-based courses at the Atlantic Business College. After much research and discussion with School District 2, Foreman began work as their first "ESL for Newcomers" program coordinator, where she meets with students to schedule their entry into the school system — often going above and beyond the requirements of her position in the process!

Sylvie Lirette was recognized for her work in the non-profit and public sectors. Lirette has devoted countless hours to advocating on behalf of people and causes that she holds dear such as accessibility for people living with disabilities, gender equality and the rights of LGBT people. She has been actively involved on two Dieppe City Advisory committees (Accessibility and Equality between women and men). She also tutors high school and university students living with disabilities.

Estelle Lanteigne received the Young Woman of Distinction Award. She has been actively involved in the feminist movement for several years already. Among others, she has worked with the Coalition for Pay Equity, the Regroupement Féministe du Nouveau-Brunswick and the 2010 World March of Women organization committee.

Ruth Beers received the Honorary Recognition Award for her work with Crossroads for Women. She has been working with the organization since its creation 31 years ago. Countless families have been affected by her compassionate and nonjudgmental approach to providing support and tools to assist them in living safer lives. She has also mentored many co-workers in this challenging work environment.

This gala is not unique to New Brunswick. Every spring, YWCAs across Canada call for nominations for the Women of Distinction awards. These awards recognize and celebrate women's accomplishments. They celebrate women who, because of the goals they have achieved, have become outstanding role models for others.

I have had the privilege of working with several of the women recognized this year in Moncton. Many more women go unrecognized for the significant contributions that they bring to our society through their paid and/or volunteer work. Women now make vital contributions in all sectors of the economy and the in the community — through both their paid and volunteer work. This award ceremony gave me a small glimpse into the wonderful contributions and leadership that women bring to our community.

© Copyright 2012 Jody Dallaire, All rights Reserved. Written For: StraightGoods.ca