SaltWire E-Edition

Women empowering women

Honouring Women of Substance in the regional municipality

NICOLE SULLIVAN DIVERSITY REPORTER nicole.sullivan@cbpost.com @CBPostNSullivan

SYDNEY — Six women who exemplify woman empowerment were honoured with 2021 Women of Substance Awards earlier this month.

Hosted by the Every Woman's Centre in Sydney, the award winners were chosen from different organizations within the Cape Breton Regional Municipality.

Criteria for the awards included being considered a leader or pioneer, someone who through activities exemplifies woman empowerment and who "embodies the personal is political."

This was the second time the Every Woman's Centre hosted the Women of Substance Awards, the first on March 6, 2008.

At that time, the centre's board of directors chose the Women of Substance recipients but decided to go a different route with this year's ceremony.

"We thought it would be a really good way of supporting each other as organizations, recognizing each other and the work that we do rather than us saying here are the women (chosen)," Darlean Whiting explained.

"It was a way of trying to be cohesive as a group of people working together with women. It really worked out well. Every organization, the woman they nominated is a person we would have nominated."

The 2021 Women of Substance Awards were handed out at a luncheon on Oct. 18 at the Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club, on the second floor of the Joan Harriss Cruise Pavilion.

At this point, no date has been set for the next Women of Substance awards but Whiting said it's not ruled out.

"The room very clearly wants another event," said Whiting. "People were very excited and engaged in the whole process. It was very nice ... It was emotional."

One organization which could not participate was the Jane Paul Centre for Indigenous women due to a scheduling conflict. Whiting said their hopes are that the centre can participate in the future.

WOMEN OF SUBSTANCE 2021 • Jillian Barrington Elizabeth Fry Society

"Tireless in her pursuit of human rights."

A lawyer with Sheldon Nathanson Law, Barrington started working with the Elizabeth Fry Foundation of Cape Breton 17 years ago, when she was a summer student majoring in psychology.

Barrington is the current president of the society's board of directors and is an Atlantic representative on the board of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies.

An advocate for access to justice, Barrington has also advocated for programs and services helping women and gender diverse people in many areas including housing, safety protocols and human trafficking.

• Ann McPhee Ann Terry Society

"Her impact on the lives of women in our community has been great and lasting."

Currently program manager for the Ann Terry Society in Sydney, McPhee was executive director of the former Ann Terry Women's Employment Project from 1987-2016.

The daughter of a steelworker and teacher from Sydney River, McPhee's passion for human rights and social justice fuels her and her vision for the Ann Terry employment project continues to have an impact.

Along with guiding many of the Ann Terry Society programs today, McPhee developed the Ann Terry Model. Used by all women who work with the society, the model is women-centred, aims to find solutions and includes experiential learning in safe, supportive environments.

• Helen Morrison Cape Breton Transition House

"A great listener, never judging, always comforting."

Over her 30-year career working to advocate for and help victims of domestic violence, Morrison has gained a reputation for being approachable and reliable to not only victims but also to community, agencies and people she worked alongside.

In the 1990s, Morrison took her first position with Cape Breton Transition House as a crisis counsellor. She has also worked for the Department of Justice Victim Services and Cape Breton Regional Police where she was a domestic violence coordinator.

Before retiring in June, Morrison was executive director of Cape Breton Transition House, a position she held since 2010.

• Margaret Nichols-MacAdam Hope House

"Giving hope and inspiring new life in women who thought they had none."

The "mother" of Hope House, a substance disorder recovery live-in home for women in Cape Breton, Nichols-MacAdam's addiction counselling experience and patient advocacy are extensive.

For 10 years, she facilitated programs for women with addictions in rural areas for the Elizabeth Fry Society. The following 16 years, NicholsMacAdam's worked for the Cape Breton Health Authority in addictions services as a community health worker.

An active board member for more than 20 years at the Every Woman's Centre and a strong voice at the Interagency Against Family Violence, Nicholas-MacAdam came out of retirement in 2017 to become executive director of Hope House where she also works with the clients who attend the program.

• Christine Porter Ally Centre of Cape Breton

"An inspiration — she does not give up on anyone."

A job placement for a workforce re-entry program in 1999 was the path that brought Porter to the career she seems born to do.

The job was for medical secretarial work at the AIDS Coalition of Cape Breton, which is now the Ally Centre of Cape Breton.

However, the work being done at the needle exchange there and the people who used it attracted Porter and she worked there for the following five years.

Encouraged to the point she was "pushed" to apply to be executive director of the Ally Centre, Porter is known to never turn anyone away, never give up on someone and never give up fighting for harm reduction strategies to help some of the community's most marginalized, vulnerable people.

• Raylene Theriault Every Woman’s Centre

"Women believed in themselves because Raylene believed in them."

Known for being a visionary who turned ideas into reality, Theriault has been an integral part of the Every Woman's Centre for 30 years.

After being approached by the organization starting the centre, Women Unlimited, for a donation in 1991, Theriault volunteered with the centre as a board member and chair of the fundraising committee.

From 1996 until May of this year, Theriault worked as a co-ordinator, sharing the role with Louise SmithMacDonald for all but the first two.

In 1992, Theriault created the adopt-a-family program which has grown from helping 14 families at Christmas to more than 600.

Theriault was also integral in creating the Almost Home Project, the first shelter for women, which currently consists of a six-bed transitional shelter and five affordable apartment units for women. To date more than 400 women have been housed there.

FRONT PAGE

en-ca

2021-10-26T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-10-26T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://saltwire.pressreader.com/article/281522229295888

SaltWire Network