WOMEN’S DAY BREAKFAST MARCH 8 AT MUSKOKA DISCOVERY CENTRE ABOUT ‘INSPIRING INCLUSION’
Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com
GRAVENHURST — “Inspiring inclusion” is this year’s theme of International Women’s Day at the Terry Fox Auditorium at the arena March 8, where an all-star panel will sit down for a dockside chat.
Statistics Canada (2021) pegs the median employment income for women in Muskoka at between $20,000 and $26,800, says event co-ordinator and panel moderator Norah Fountain.
“It’s almost impossible to comprehend,” the executive director of the Muskoka Lakes Chamber of Commerce says in describing herself as a “creative business communicator and absolute Muskokan.”
A certified woman journeyperson in Canada with two years’ experience earns a median $28,240 — less than half the $65,940 a man makes, she says.
That’s why IWD recognizes women who work collectively for equity and inclusion.
Organized by the Muskoka Lakes Chamber of Commerce, with support from presenting partners TD Bank Group and Bala Cove Marina, all genders are welcome to join the breakfast event, the first IWD event of the day in the eastern time zone starting at 7:30 a.m.
Tickets are $44. Get them here >
Featured on the speakers’ panel is Beth Potter, CEO and president of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada. She was recently recognized as one of the top 50 Women in Travel in Canada.
Joining her is Tracy Macgregor, a former Gravenhurst resident and COO of Restaurants Canada; Port Carling’s own visionary entrepreneur Amanda McLennan, owner of RB Design and host of The Creative Influencer podcast. And from the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, the author of The She-Covery Project, Claudia Dessanti.
“Celebrating how far women and all genders have come, while raising awareness of ongoing barriers in our community is why we gather each year, on Women’s Day, to push for what women started with that first protest march on March 8, 1908,” says Fountain, adding the Muskoka Lakes chamber believes the Muskoka business community needs to demonstrate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), partially because it can help ease staff shortages. The need for DEI, however, goes far beyond workforce.
“Muskoka is becoming more diverse, yet there’s still work to be done to make our region welcoming for all to live, work and play here. That’s what inspiring inclusion is all about,” says Fountain.
“Diverse populations have said they want to work in Muskoka, for example, but they don’t see themselves reflected here, and the housing cost is out of reach. Add to that the stark reality of the gender wage gap and the fact that the number of women in the workforce is at a record low.”
Why is that?
“For starters, follow the money,” says Fountain.
Women are being encouraged to enter the trades, which suffer from a lack of employees, and inspiring inclusion in that workforce is needed, too, says Fountain, but it can be a hard sell.
Two years after certification as a journeyperson, on average, a man earns a median $65,940 while a woman earns just $28,240.
“We’ve got to look hard at why these barriers exist and start removing them if we are going to achieve equity and inclusion in our top employment sectors,” Fountain says.
“While the stats may be off-putting, make no mistake. Women’s Day Muskoka is a celebration.
“The energy last year was epic, and everyone will have a great time again this year.”
Attendees will be greeted with a non-alcoholic mimosa, courtesy of Sobey’s Gravenhurst, and the coffee will be piping hot, too, at 7:30am, as women and men catch up with old friends and make new ones.
Indigenous business owner for 22 years in Bala, chef Nicole Richard is whipping up a mouth-watering breakfast buffet. Attendees can also pick from an artisanal chocolate bon bon tree from the Cacao Boys. There are gifts at every table and door prizes, too.
Plus, Fountain promises a surprise announcement about a new Awards program related to women in trades.
Other event partners include TD Bank Group, Bala Cove Marina, Chelsey Penrice, Broker, Harvey Kalles, Muskoka Wi-Fi, Red Maple Carpentry, PSR Brokerage, Sublime Graphics, The Hook and Ladder Bar and Grill and Stewart Food Services; the Marriott Residence Inn (where the speakers will stay), Sobeys, Cacao Boys, and media partners MuskokaTODAY.com and MuskokaRegion.com.
PANELISTS:
The main prize is hearing from the all-star panel of speakers. They bring leading expertise on the local Muskoka, provincial, Canadian and global stages, some of them specifically in tourism and trades.
Beth Potter:
One of the Top 50 Women in Travel, she is president and CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC). An accomplished leader with more than 35 years of diversified provincial and national association experience, she has close to 20 years in the tourism sector.
Since joining TIAC in March 2021, Potter has been implementing her vision to heighten awareness of the critical importance of tourism across Canada and to build on the organization’s advocacy objectives to recover the sector from the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and to position it for continued growth into the future.
Internationally, she is an active member of both the World Travel and Tourism Council and the United Nations World Tourism Organization.
A testament to her industry leadership, she was recently named one of the Top 50 Women in Travel by the Global Business Travel Association, receiving the Canadian Live Music Industry’s 2022 “Unsung Hero” Award for her work as co-chair of the Coalition of Hardest Hit Businesses.
Potter continuously works with a variety of committees and volunteers across the tourism industry, including serving on the boards of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Future Borders Coalition board of directors, Centennial College board of governors, and Tourism HR Canada.
You can follow Beth at https://www.instagram.com/bethlpotter/ and follow TIAC https://www.instagram.com/tiac_aitc/
Claudia Dessanti:
Author of The She-Covery Project explains the pandemic impact on women
Dessanti is director of policy at the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, where she manages the policy team, chairs the energy policy council, and leads the chamber’s work on a range of files, including climate, energy, economic development, data, DEI, and more.
She also sits on the board of the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario, the executive committee of Partners in Project Green (Toronto Region Conservation Authority), and the advisory board of Innovate Cities.
Before joining the OCC in 2018, Dessanti researched mortgage markets for National Bank Financial and measured social impact for Charity Intelligence. She has a Master’s degree from the University of Oxford and a BA from the University of Toronto.
You can follow her on X @claudiadessanti and the OCC @OntarioCofC
Tracy Macgregor:
Gravenhurst girl at the top of Restaurants Canada.
She’s come a long way from her first job at Kentucky Fried Chicken in Gravenhurst, but she has fond memories of working there, at the Muskoka Sands (now Taboo), and of fun with Skokie at the Gravenhurst Winter Carnival and Christmas Lit at Gravenhurst High School.
Macgregor is chief operating officer at Restaurants Canada, after previously serving as vp-Ontario for that organization.
She is a seasoned professional with a strong background in driving growth and value across various sectors.
Leveraging her strategic skills to advance Canada’s foodservice industry, her multifaceted background includes more than a decade in the Ontario Chamber of Commerce network, where she held the positions of vice president member services.
She was also president & CEO of the Newmarket Chamber of Commerce. During her tenure, Macgregor excelled in cultivating collaboration, forging strategic partnerships, and advocating for members’ interests at all levels of government.
Along with her Chamber experience, she boasts 10 years+ of hands-on involvement in hospitality and tourism product development. Her tenure over a decade with a leading business consulting firm was focused on supporting large-scale enterprises, helping them identify and act upon key value drivers to achieve sustained growth.
Macgregor’s career is underpinned by a passion for fostering the prosperity of businesses and communities as well as building strong engaged teams. Her diverse skill set, and dedication make her an invaluable asset to both Restaurants Canada and the foodservice community she is committed to serving.
Follow her at Restaurants Canada on Instagram @restaurantscanada
Amanda McLennan:
Renovating Muskoka and coaching women to be stronger than ever is her life’s mission now.
Growing up on the other side of the ocean, McLennan spent her early days surrounded by the Scottish countryside. Inspired from an early age with great architectural masterpieces she was bound to art and design.
Moving to Canada to start a new adventure she attended Seneca College, graduating in Graphic Art Design, then applying to the Art Foundation & Design program at George Brown College.
After graduating in 2003 she relocated to Muskoka and began working alongside one of the top interior design companies in the area. Fast forward 15 years, three kids, and one dog later, McLennan and her family live here fulltime now, enjoying the beauty year-round.
This visionary force behind Red Bean Interior Design has successfully renovated and built many new homes for her family around Muskoka. Many of those projects can be found in the portfolio galleries and on Instagram.
Follow her @rb_furnitureshopanddesign.
In 2022 she launched her first podcast, where she talks about all things design, entrepreneurship, mom life, CrossFit, and how to manage life as a single boss babe. Tune in here: The Creative Influencer Podcast
Norah Fountain:
Creative business communicator and absolute Muskokan.
The IWD dockside chat is moderated by Fountain, who before her career in business marketing, was a journalist interviewing people from all walks of life. From rock stars to entrepreneurial stars such as Frank Stronach, Ed Mirvish, and even the notorious Peter Nygaard.
She learned from the best as the senior researcher for Pierre Berton’s TV series, The Secret of My Success. A winner of three marketing awards and investigative journalism honours, she holds a B.A. in cultural studies from Nipissing University an advanced diploma in journalism from Humber College.
Fountain lives in the Torrance house she was born in.
What drives her is her desire to make Muskoka a place where youth can stay and thrive instead of having to leave for better-paying prospects.
She has led the Muskoka Lakes Chamber since 2016. In 2021, her chamber was awarded a province-wide Power of the Pivot award for their support of businesses at the height of the pandemic.
You can follow Fountain on X @muskokahn and the Chamber on X/Insta @muskokalakescc
For more information on the IWD Muskoka event, contact her at 705.762.5663 or 705.706.2122 or email norah@muskokalakeschamber.ca
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