March 8 is International Women's Day and the Moose Jaw Multicultural Council and Newcomer Welcome Centre are hosting a virtual event to celebrate the diverse backgrounds, experiences, and achievements of both local and newcomer women.

Coming back after a brief one-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the event will feature four local women - two born in Canada and two newcomers - who will be sharing their own stories of perseverance and success.

Brynn Stephanson is the information advisor at the Newcomer Centre, and one of the organizers of the event.

"The idea is to facilitate an informal conversation between the speakers and attendees," says Stephanson. "The hope is to inspire and empower some other women along the way."

The four presenters represent a wide variety of backgrounds and callings. Local business owner Kyra Klassen is among those speaking at the event and someone Stephanson says has had a big influence on women in the community.

"We just wanted her to explain where she started and how she's been able to excel and adapt...especially during COVID."

Also sharing their stories are Laura Pollice - a Montreal native who now works in mental services at 15 Wing - and Martha Mathurin-Moe who immigrated from the Caribbean Island of Saint Lucia in 2009 to pursue her graduate studies at the U of R.

One of the other presenters is Neamat Halool, someone who is just starting to get her own catering business off and running. Originally from Damascus, Syria, Halool and her family were forced to flee from their homeland in 2013 due to the still-raging civil war.

"We came in 2016, the same as many other Syrian people did that year. We were seeking a safer life and a better future for our kids."

With three daughters of her own, Halool knows how important it is for women and girls to feel inspired and have positive support structures. She also has come to learn the importance of adapting to the changes around her. When her family escaped from Syria, she lost all documentation of her accounting degree, forcing her to seek remedial training here in Canada. Her catering business came about through the encouragement of friends who loved her cooking.

Halool's catering business, Syrian Kitchen, specializes in authentic Middle Eastern cuisine and desserts. (Photo courtesy of Neamat Halool).

"I'm still in the growing stages of the business and I'm doing everything myself. I hope one day to make it bigger and make something really special here...but yeah, someday I hope to go back to school and get my accounting accreditation here.

She says she's excited to have a day to celebrate the many roles that women excel in.

"It means a lot actually. Women are doing great jobs in every field of life. They are great mothers, great teachers, great leaders, great business owners." She adds, "This kind of day helps them recognize their achievements and supports them to keep doing what they are doing."

The challenge of adapting is one that many newcomer women encounter here in Canada. When Ololade "Lola" Kassim first arrived in Moose Jaw from Nigeria in 2018, she encountered lots of opportunities in general, but very little in the way of her specific career path as a chemical engineer and IT specialist.

"Those challenges helped me to realize that I needed to be able to adapt and to not constrain myself to just doing one thing," says Kassim. "You need to have an open mind because, in the long run, any skills and knowledge you gain will be really valuable in the future. So we didn't see those challenges as a disadvantage, we saw it as another form of opportunity."

Kassim says her faith has also been strengthened through the battles she has had to overcome as a newcomer woman juggling her career and being a mother to her three sons.

"Initially it was tough because in Nigeria I could leverage my parents a lot to help out with the kids. Being a full-time working mom can be tough anyways and it was even more of a challenge in a place where you don't know anyone at first."

She adds that living in a smaller city like Moose Jaw has actually allowed her to spend more time with her family. She encourages other mothers who find themselves in a similar situation that being strategic with their time is crucial to being able to take care of both their jobs and family, but also themselves.

In addition to her training in IT services, Ololade Kassim is a published author. (File photo).

"That word 'mother,' means a lot of things," explains Kassim. "You have to be strong both physically, emotionally, psychologically. A woman is somebody who thinks ahead because we have to take care of so many concurrent things. Being a career woman has also helped me to know what all my strengths and potential are. Having so many things to do has helped me to know just how strong I am."

Finding that balance between caring for others and for herself has been a skill that Kassim says was strengthened when she took on the challenge of re-locating her family.

"I've grown in coming to Canada, it's made me a better person. I love being a woman...I love my life and overall it's been a good experience. I've become more open-minded and I trust God more."

No one group of people or demographic can be completely summed-up or categorized with perfect uniformity. It takes experience with a wide spectrum of personalities and backgrounds to even come close to getting a better understanding of those around us. That's something that Stephanson hopes people who attend the virtual event will be able to take away from it.

"I think it'll be a situation where everyone will be able to connect with some part of it," says Stephanson.

Anyone is welcome to attend the event on March 8th at 4:00pm via Zoom. You can click here to register.