By Cathy Simpson
Photo by: Al Gagnon Photography
Last year in June, I was honored to receive the Equality Endorser Award at the Women of Distinction Event presented by the YWCA and Fresh Start Services, two organizations that provide essential services in Saint John, NB. On this evening, three other amazing women received awards, Daring Daughter, Lasting Legacy, and Catalyst Creator. The theme that evening was Building Brilliance. There were women everywhere in that audience who build brilliance in all that they do to support, motivate, inspire, assist, care for, mentor and and lift up other women and girls. It is so important to support other women and girls and we were so fortunate that on this night the room was filled with many that do this each and every day.
Growing up in the rural town of Sheet Harbour, Nova Scotia, my mother, Alverna, who had been an elementary school teacher in Newfoundland, started taking courses at Mount St. Vincent University via distance educational learning. This was in the early to mid-’80s and there was no internet then so she would have VHS tapes mailed to her so she could watch the class on the VCR after it happened. Another method of learning was to drive to the Mount for night classes once a week which was about 90 minutes one way. She was passionate about women’s equality, women’s literature and learning more about remarkable women having an impact on the world. At the time, I really didn’t understand much about these subjects or her motivation, but I admired her and her quest for knowledge.
I didn’t give much thought to all of this when I was off at Acadia University getting my Business Administration degree, but mom kept studying and then started working in Adult Education. She eventually was working full time at what I thought was interesting, creative, and meaningful work supported by various government agencies. For example, she taught literacy to adults, she started a cooking school and that led to her looking for ways to expand these programs to other communities employing more teachers and enrolling adults who wanted to learn. Many of her students just needed a chance to work on skills to find a job and provide for their families. She was so creative in how she found supplies, materials, and funding for these programs. Nothing ever stopped her. I wouldn’t have realized it then; however, she was leading programs that were lifting others out of poverty and many of her students were women. You see my mom understood that if a woman was able to support herself and her family, everything changed for them and their families. And for many years that was what she did in our rural community and in other areas in Nova Scotia.
As I fast forward to my career in the technology industry, I’ve seen a tremendous amount of change and I have remained in the digital world because of the career options and diversity of work that has been available to me. I have also experienced the lack of women, particularly women in leadership positions in the tech industry.
I am incredibly focused on how to encourage girls and women to study STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) in post-secondary educational institutes. I see the gaps in young women enrolling in STEM programs and I know we can do better and we must do better if we’re going to fill the roles that exist and achieve a more diverse and inclusive work environment. As part of my CEO role at TechImpact (www.techimpact.it), a not-for-profit focused on growing the tech industry in Atlantic Canada, I get to work on this and other strategies that will drive growth and a diverse workforce.
Back in 2016, I started my own company, UP+GO (www.upandgo.ca), and I get to work on programming and experiential learning opportunities specifically for high school girls. Just this month, my daughter, Sophie has joined the team. As another Acadia graduate, she is equally passionate about creating diverse and inclusive cultures that enable girls and women to succeed. I only need to look back at the work that my mother was doing 35 years ago to see the impact that educating girls and women can have on our communities and the economy.
I do speak on this topic of “You can’t be what you can’t see” and I have realized while I may have been presented with that beautiful honor in June, I had an Equality Endorser in my home for my entire life that influenced my passion for girls education, girls raising and using their voices, and taking on leadership positions to create an impact. This award goes out my mom, for building that light inside of me.
How fortunate for me that I had a mother who demonstrated a vision, work ethic, and passion for educating and lifting up women and a father who supported her along the way. As they say, “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree”.
Welcome Sophie to UP+GO. Your Grandma led the way for both of us and we have lots of work ahead to keep us busy!