WEYBURN - International Women’s Day will be celebrated across the world on March 8. The campaign theme in 2024 is #InspireInclusion, while the official theme of the UN observance for the day is ‘Invest in women: Accelerate progress’. People are asked to imagine a world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination, and celebrate diverse, equitable, and inclusive programs.
There are many strong female role models in my life, and I am grateful for the inspiration they have provided. I loved reading books writing by Jane Austen, Margaret Atwood and Agatha Christie. One can easily get lost in the descriptive and fully developed worlds and characters in their books.
Impactful journalist writing by Barbara Walters, Katie Couric and Kathleen Coleman encouraged me to always look for new ways to engage and connect with our readers. I have been empowered and inspired by many female politicians, including former Governor-General Adrienne Clarkson, Audrey McLaughlin, Rosemary Brown and Sheila Copps.
In athletics, there have been accomplishments by Nancy Greene Raine in alpine skiing, Catriona Le May Doan in speed skating, Cindy Klassen as Canada’s most-decorated Olympian, and Hayley Wickenheiser in hockey.
Even in our own backyard, there are many woman who have accomplished achievements on the local, provincial and national scale. One only needs to take a little tour of the Walk of Fame, located outside City Hall, to learn about Irene Salemka, Isabelle Butters, Jo-Anne Bannatyne Cugnet, Trenna Keating and Kathryn Groshong.
Weyburn also has a statue honouring the sacrifices made by the pioneer women who helped create a new community, and braved the elements along with their families to create the first homesteads in the area. I get chills when I think about everything they faced, as those pioneer families definitely had a lot to endure.
Social movements to improve the lives of women were first seen in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as many fought for women’s legal rights, especially the right to vote. Additional equal rights movements were made in the 1960s and 1970s, expanding to focus on equality in every aspect of a woman’s life.
I am very fortunate to work alongside three supportive women at the Weyburn Review and Weyburn This Week. There is so much newspaper experience in the lives and minds of my manager, Andrea Corrigan, and my supervisor, Leslie Coulter. I always value their input and suggestions so that I can enhance my career. Our accountant, Debbie Stuart is kept very busy with her responsibilities, and always does her best to help maintain the flow of the general office.
We have come a long way and made a lot of improvements so that women across the country do enjoy a lot of freedom of choice in their lives.
We are fortunate to live in a country like Canada. It continues to be important to celebrate the changes and improvements that were made, and work together to help improve the lives of others. There is still work that should continue, as that political, economic, social and psychological freedom does not always exist for women in other countries.
