She showed me that the world as as big as you wanted it to be and that women COULD make a difference. Yet she also had time to listen to a childs story about fairies living down by the creek behind the farm .. and to knit something, despite her arthritis, for every new baby born to family or friends.

Its a rare thing to meet someone her age who combined family and career so successfully. She was one smart, determined, compassionate, intelligent lady. She would have been 92 on March 31st.

My Grandmother died when I was 13 years old. She was a cold woman. I never knew her very well but her story always inspired me.

Born in 1901 she was among the first women to graduate with a BA from Dalhousie University. She ignored tradition and focused on a career as a school teacher instead of marrying.

At thirty (SO OLD in 1931) she met my Granddad and had two boys both by Cesarian Section. (NOT FUN in 1932!) On the second round she had the doctor tie her tubes. (NOT FUNNY in 1934, especially when against the wishes of her Methodist minister husband.)

She went back to work and paid for her boys university educations single-handedly. At the same time she fufilled the daunting duties of a ministers wife. She was ill many times through her life involving more primitive and painful surgeries, but she always pulled through and became stronger for it.

I could go on and on about her many other skills, but I'll spare you.

An amazing woman. I definitely inherited a lot from her and I like to think that if she were alive today we'd be great friends.

I just had to add that the woman NEVER had a drink in her life. Now THAT'S amazing.

[ 03 April 2003: Message edited by: skadie ]

Wow. You should go on about her, I love hearing stories about female role models we have. Mostly because so much about women was never considered history or note worthy to our recorders of the past.

Its great to hear someone say "thanks mom"- to hear about a special woman who empowered a child to dream wider, fly higher.

She was born in Latin America in the late 1920s, raised in a very conservative environment she supposed to get married and have kids as her major an only life accomplishment.

Against all conventions at the time and place, she decided to have her own career and study to obtain her PhD (the first woman in her country to obtain such honour). She also married a wonderful man (my father) a paediatrician and shared eight years of happiness in which three children were born.

Although she did not have the financial need to work she did and always-insisted in financial independence and developing her own career (Quite a statement even now in Latin America).

After eight years of marriage my father died suddenly (he was only 37) and my mother was left with three small children and one on the way (which she did not know about). I have always asked myself where did my mother get her strength to go on. She raised to the occasion once again and with great intelligence, willpower and determination raised her four children alone with no other financial support than her own earnings. To provide some context to this situation, in Latin America social support programs are still almost inexistent and the majority of women do not hold positions of authority and their salaries have a huge gap with those of men.

My mother endured years of hard work, holding tow jobs at a time. During all those years she always insisted that the best legacy she could give her children was solid values and a good education. She specially insisted that my sister and I aim for financial independence and learn to defend our rights (or as she sometimes would say create our rights)

I know my mother is proud of having provided us all with a university education (which in Latin America is a privilege) and to see us leading happy successful lives. I am proud to be her daughter and forever thankful for her teachings and inspiration.