The power of female mentorship emerged as a central theme of an all-women panel discussion held Wednesday at Bayview Yards, during a special event presented by Women for Mental Health at The Royal.
The evening also served as an opportunity to get to know Cara Vaccarino a little better. She’s the new president and CEO of The Royal. She took on her role as head of Ottawa’s largest mental health and research facility two months ago.
Currently, she’s the only woman at the helm of one of the six hospitals in Ottawa.
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Vaccarino, who’s proud of her social worker background, has dedicated 25 years to the field of mental health and substance use. She’s held leadership roles in large teams within both the public and private sectors in Canada and the U.S.
When she was just 10 years old, her mother died “after a very long life struggling with major depressive disorder and a lot of other things that really I didn’t understand and really, to this day, leave a lot of questions in my heart and in my soul”.
Vaccarino spoke of the “brilliant, inspiring” women who have played important roles in her life and career. “When I think about who I am, where I’ve come to and what I’m doing now, everything is a story about a mentor, about a woman who has lifted me up, who has taught me things.” She also touched on her “bright, beautiful, bold” daughters, both in their 20s. They’re on the career path to becoming a physician and social worker, respectively.
Vaccarino guided a conversation on the International Women’s Day theme of Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress. The discussion involved the participation of young Indigenous entrepreneur Natasha Hiltz-Commanda, co-owner of FN Clean Water and of Indigenous Gifts, and a graduating student of Algonquin College; Dr. Florence Dzierszinski, president of The Royal’s Institute of Mental Health Research (IMHR); Katherine Cooligan, partner at Cooligan Yehia LLP and chair of Women for Mental Health at The Royal; MD/PhD student Patricia Burhunduli; and Stephanie Wallace, assistant general manager and membership director of the Ottawa Construction Association.
Burhunduli was excited about this year’s IWD theme, acknowledging that she’s a product of the Invest in Women tagline. “Without the women in front of me I would 100 per cent not be where I am today,” she said, giving a special shout-out to one of her close supervisors in attendance, Dr. Jennifer Phillips, interim scientific director and scientist at The Royal’s IMHR.
Similarly, Wallace credited construction industry pioneer Shirley Westeinde with helping to guide her early on. “Years ago, when I started in the construction industry, a very wise woman gave me some advice,” said Wallace of Westeinde’s recommendation that she steer clear of “pink hard hats” and avoid isolating herself in a male-populated sector. Instead, Westeinde suggested Wallace earn respect and acceptance by integrating herself into the fabric of the industry. “That’s what helped my 26 years in the construction industry,” said Wallace before personally thanking Westeinde, who was in attendance. Westeinde, a former board chair of The Royal’s IMHR, was also first female board chair of BOMA, the Canadian Construction Association and Ottawa Economic Development Corp.
A long-time connection came full-circle with Cooligan and Burhunduli joining forces on the same panel. Cooligan knew Burhunduli as a young child, attending elementary school with her daughter. “When I think about five-year-old Patricia in the school yard and how she’s broken so many barriers,” said Cooligan. Meanwhile, Burhunduli could remember meeting Cooligan at a time when she didn’t personally know any lawyers or doctors, and when such professions seemed like an “impossible goal” to her.
Today, Cooligan is an established trailblazer in law while Burhunduli is the first Black woman at the University of Ottawa to be earning her medical and doctorate degrees simultaneously.
The room was welcomed by Sonya Shorey, interim president and CEO of Invest Ottawa, and a board member with The Royal’s IMHR.
The discussion engaged the audience by inviting them to share their thoughts and through polling software Mentimeter, which allows for real-time feedback.
The event included ample time for networking. Spotted in the crowd were Chris Ide, president of The Royal Ottawa Foundation for Mental Health, and Colleen O’Connell-Campbell, one of the founding members of the philanthropic group Women for Mental Health at The Royal. Also spotted were tech mentor and investor Jennifer Francis; Numbercrunch co-founder and managing partner Susan Richards; the Women’s President Organization’s Ottawa chapter chair, Nancy Graham; and Elizabeth Kilvert, owner of The Unrefined Olive. How fitting that Kilvert had just returned from a vacation to Isla Mujeres in Mexico, with International Women’s Day fast approaching. The holiday destination is a former fishing village whose name translates to mean “Island of Women.”
caroline@obj.ca
