In Her Footsteps...Celebrating BC Women in Sport
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In Memoriam: Mary Campbell (1910-2009)
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A feminist is “Anyone who advocates for the right of a woman to choose her own lifestyle without hindrance, constraint or judgment”.
~author unknown
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Self Esteem Girl
“Self-esteem isn't everything; it's
just that there's nothing without it.”
Gloria Steinem
Call for Nominations: IN HER FOOTSTEPS… CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT
Note: Nominations for 2009 are now closed. The 2009 honourees were announced at a celebration at the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum on October 22nd, 2009. However you are always welcome to submit a nomination for 2010.
Do You Know a Woman We Should Know?
• A woman who has made a significant difference through sport for girls and women in British Columbia?
• A woman who has worked to create access and opportunities for participation in sport and recreation?
• A woman who inspires through her own athletic achievement, passion and dedication?
We are CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT and are seeking nominations for inclusion in the IN HER FOOTSTEPS exhibit at the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.
Download the nomination criteria
Inspiration and Community: 2009 Honourees Celebrated
Unveiling 2009 Honouree plaque: Darlene Currie, Diana Chan, Ann Pederson, Jenna and
Maya Beaudry
2009 Honourees: Darlene Currie, Shirley Olafsson and Michel Beaudry,
husband of honouree Wendy Ladner Beaudry
l
L-R: Diana Chan, Sue Griffin, Shirley Olafsson, Darlene Currie, Michel , Jenna and Maya Beaudry,
Ann Pederson and Marilyn Payne
October 23rd, 2009
INSPIRATION AND COMMUNITY: 2009 HONOUREES FOR IN HER FOOTSTEPS CELEBRATED
VANCOUVER – Mentors, coaches and exceptional athletes were celebrated in a moving ceremony Thursday night at the annual IN HER FOOTSTEPS…. CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT, a recognition program and exhibit celebrating exceptional BC women in sport, housed at the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.
Darlene Currie, the late Wendy Ladner-Beaudry and Shirley (Gordon) Olafsson were celebrated in the permanent exhibit celebrating women who have made a difference through sports for girls and women in British Columbia, whether through their own athletic excellence or by increasing opportunities for others. They join 40 additional women and teams who have been honoured since the program began.
Despite being born with a clubfoot, honouree Shirley (Gordon) Olafsson became one of the world’s top high jumpers. “As a child growing up with a club foot and many surgeries, I was always told I couldn’t do anything in sport,” she said. “But I grew up and won championships, and I did it against able-bodied people.”
Olafsson was so strongly motivated; she adapted the scissor technique in order to compete in the high jump, developing a unique style to accommodate her immovable left ankle. She went on to represent Canada at the 1948 London Olympics, and remained BC’s champion jumper from 1945-1952. She also excelled in basketball and field hockey. “You just have to keep on going. I struggled and struggled, even though I had not a hope in hell.” In addition to her Olympic history, Olafsson has had a long and distinguished career as a coach, administrator and role model.
In Beijing during the 2008 Olympics, Olafsson was the oldest of 852 torch carriers. She has since brought that same Olympic torch into schools, allowing thousands of schoolchildren to run with the torch. Olafsson challenged future Canadian Olympic torchbearers to reach out to their communities in the same fashion, so all Canadians can share in the experience.
Honouree Darlene Currie has inspired and motivated women of all ages with her lifelong participation in sport. Currie played on the Canadian National Women’s basketball team from 1959 to 1968, and then went on to coach the National team before beginning a long career of coaching in schools. “Sport is fun,” she said simply of her continued involvement with sport. “You meet so many people and you want to share the good times.”
Currie has continued to spread that sense of fun and community her entire life, notably helping to promote the involvement of older women in sports. She was instrumental in starting a curling league for older beginners and won gold in the 2005 World Masters Games with what a later documentary later dubbed, “The Oldest Basketball Team in the World”.
The late Wendy Ladner-Beaudry was an exceptional mentor, administrator, volunteer and role model, in addition to being a nationally ranked swimmer, a member of BC and Ontario senior field hockey teams, and a Masters Champion in telemark skiing. Just before her death, Ladner-Beaudry was actively engaged in increasing participation among inactive women and girls from less privileged backgrounds than her own.
Kelly Mann, Chief Executive Officer of the B.C. Games Society, summed up Wendy’s considerable influence on her community, “Wendy’s ideas were like pebbles dropped in a pond where the ripple effect of that pebble would connect with the ripples of other organizations to become this great wave of change.”
An emotional Michel Beaudry spoke on behalf of his deceased wife. “Sports can be a social tool for change,” he said. “If you teach a young woman about sports and fitness, you have a stronger, healthier, happier person.” Wendy’s style of activism was personal and intimate. “Wendy wasn’t afraid to work with people one at a time, one on one.” Beaudry challenged the crowd to continue Wendy’s work of advocacy and inspiration. “It’s important to realize how much we can change things if we try.”
IN HER FOOTSTEPS…CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT is a joint initiative of the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, 2010 Legacies Now, ProMOTION Plus, and the BC Centre of Excellence for Women’s Health. The program, launched in 2005, recognizes extraordinary achievements and contributions by women to sport in British Columbia. New honourees are celebrated each October in conjunction with Women’s History Month.
INSPIRATION AND COMMUNITY: 2009 HONOUREES FOR IN HER FOOTSTEPS CELEBRATED
VANCOUVER – Mentors, coaches and exceptional athletes were celebrated in a moving ceremony Thursday night at the annual IN HER FOOTSTEPS…. CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT, a recognition program and exhibit celebrating exceptional BC women in sport, housed at the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.
Darlene Currie, the late Wendy Ladner-Beaudry and Shirley (Gordon) Olafsson were celebrated in the permanent exhibit celebrating women who have made a difference through sports for girls and women in British Columbia, whether through their own athletic excellence or by increasing opportunities for others. They join 40 additional women and teams who have been honoured since the program began.
Despite being born with a clubfoot, honouree Shirley (Gordon) Olafsson became one of the world’s top high jumpers. “As a child growing up with a club foot and many surgeries, I was always told I couldn’t do anything in sport,” she said. “But I grew up and won championships, and I did it against able-bodied people.”
Olafsson was so strongly motivated; she adapted the scissor technique in order to compete in the high jump, developing a unique style to accommodate her immovable left ankle. She went on to represent Canada at the 1948 London Olympics, and remained BC’s champion jumper from 1945-1952. She also excelled in basketball and field hockey. “You just have to keep on going. I struggled and struggled, even though I had not a hope in hell.” In addition to her Olympic history, Olafsson has had a long and distinguished career as a coach, administrator and role model.
In Beijing during the 2008 Olympics, Olafsson was the oldest of 852 torch carriers. She has since brought that same Olympic torch into schools, allowing thousands of schoolchildren to run with the torch. Olafsson challenged future Canadian Olympic torchbearers to reach out to their communities in the same fashion, so all Canadians can share in the experience.
Honouree Darlene Currie has inspired and motivated women of all ages with her lifelong participation in sport. Currie played on the Canadian National Women’s basketball team from 1959 to 1968, and then went on to coach the National team before beginning a long career of coaching in schools. “Sport is fun,” she said simply of her continued involvement with sport. “You meet so many people and you want to share the good times.”
Currie has continued to spread that sense of fun and community her entire life, notably helping to promote the involvement of older women in sports. She was instrumental in starting a curling league for older beginners and won gold in the 2005 World Masters Games with what a later documentary later dubbed, “The Oldest Basketball Team in the World”.
The late Wendy Ladner-Beaudry was an exceptional mentor, administrator, volunteer and role model, in addition to being a nationally ranked swimmer, a member of BC and Ontario senior field hockey teams, and a Masters Champion in telemark skiing. Just before her death, Ladner-Beaudry was actively engaged in increasing participation among inactive women and girls from less privileged backgrounds than her own.
Kelly Mann, Chief Executive Officer of the B.C. Games Society, summed up Wendy’s considerable influence on her community, “Wendy’s ideas were like pebbles dropped in a pond where the ripple effect of that pebble would connect with the ripples of other organizations to become this great wave of change.”
An emotional Michel Beaudry spoke on behalf of his deceased wife. “Sports can be a social tool for change,” he said. “If you teach a young woman about sports and fitness, you have a stronger, healthier, happier person.” Wendy’s style of activism was personal and intimate. “Wendy wasn’t afraid to work with people one at a time, one on one.” Beaudry challenged the crowd to continue Wendy’s work of advocacy and inspiration. “It’s important to realize how much we can change things if we try.”
IN HER FOOTSTEPS…CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT is a joint initiative of the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, 2010 Legacies Now, ProMOTION Plus, and the BC Centre of Excellence for Women’s Health. The program, launched in 2005, recognizes extraordinary achievements and contributions by women to sport in British Columbia. New honourees are celebrated each October in conjunction with Women’s History Month.
The Opportunity to Imagine: 2008 Honourees for In Her Footsteps Celebrated
October 30. 2008
Exceptional athletes, community leaders and role models for women and girls in sport and physical activity were celebrated Wednesday night at the annual IN HER FOOTSTEPS…. CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT, a recognition program and exhibit housed at the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.
L-R: Sally Samler, Deborah Pyne, Sue Griffith, Minister Mary Polak, Kathy Kovacs, Andrea Neil, Bruce Dewar, Lorraine Greaves and Tricia Smith
This year Andrea Neil, Tricia Smith and Roberta Ann Steen join 37 previous honourees in the permanent exhibit celebrating women who have made a difference through sports for girls and women in British Columbia, whether through their own athletic excellence or by increasing opportunities for others.
Stay tuned for upcoming information on the 2009 nomination process.
2007 Honourees Celebrated October 25th
Honouree Margaret Maxwell Callaghan, Minister Ida Chong, Irene Schell,
Lorraine Greaves and Honouree Sandra Stevenson
Heroines can change the world, was the message at the celebration of the 2007 honorees for IN HER FOOTSTEPS….CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT, a recognition program and exhibit celebrating BC women in sport, housed at the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.
From creating healthy bodies to teaching cooperation, fair play and ethics, involvement in sports and physical fitness helps girls and women in both body and spirit. The IN HER FOOTSTEPS exhibit honours those women who embody excellence in sport and fitness, whether through their own performance, or by enabling others to participate and excel. As honouree Sandra Stevenson said, “I fundamentally believe that sports can change the world.”
This year, Helen and Margaret Callaghan, Kathy Shields and Sandra Stevenson join 34 previous honourees in the permanent exhibit celebrating women who have made a difference through sports for girls and women in British Columbia, whether through their own athletic excellence or by increasing opportunities for others.
GRANT TAKES WOMEN IN SPORT EXHIBIT TO THE FINISH LINE VANCOUVER
Ministry of Community Services
Feb. 6, 2007
The Province is contributing an additional $15,000 to ProMOTION Plus to enable the
non-profit society to complete In Her Footsteps...Celebrating BC Women in Sport, an interactive exhibit recognizing women leaders and athletes at the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Community Services Minister Ida Chong and Vancouver-Burrard MLA Lorne Mayencourt presented the cheque today.
2006
Cutting the ribbon: Bruce Dewar, Marion Lay, Minister Ida Chong, Lorraine Greaves,
Irene Schell and Dann Konkin
IN HER FOOTSTEPS . . . CELEBRATING BC WOMEN IN SPORT is a joint initiative of ProMOTION Plus, BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, 2010 Legacies Now and the B.C. Centre of Excellence for Women’s Health. The exhibit housed at the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum marks the expansion and renaming of what was initially the Leaders and Legends display, which was unveiled in October 2002 to salute 31 prominent BC women in sport as part of Women’s History Month celebrations. In 2006, Marion Lay, Ivy Granstrom and Prime Ultimate Team served as inaugural honourees in the new FOOTSTEPS gallery, with up to three new additions chosen each year via selection committee.
**View a slideshow of the opening gala Oct.19th, 2006**
This organization is supported by 2010 LegaciesNow
Copyright 2002 | ProMOTION Plus | All rights reserved
Copyright 2002 | ProMOTION Plus | All rights reserved
