Leading Moms: Recapping Inspiration

The Leading Moms event took place on October 3, 2012 at the HR MacMillan Space Centre here in Vancouver. Co-presented by VancouverMom.ca, Modern Mama and Entrepreneur Mom Now Vancouver, the event featured some seriously inspiring talks from some seriously inspiring moms. But up first, we had the Leadership Breakfast, where we all ate some yummy food provided by Nature’s Path and had the chance to do some networking. If only Janice from 5 Minutes from Mom had shared her networking tips before the event, rather than after.

Getting Down to Business at Leading Moms

Once we had our fill of food and connection, we headed into the auditorium. Pamela Martin served as MC, keeping the day humming. Our own Christine Pilkington kicked off the day by asking us if we were the kind of people we hoped our children would become, and then Premier Christy Clark took to the stage to deliver the Opening Keynote. She talked about her own decision-making process around first leaving politics, and then re-entering. She also took the time to answer some questions that our fans and followers had pre-submitted on Twitter and Facebook.

In the morning we heard from a number of speakers, including Dina Goldstein, Sandra Heusel, Dr. Gail Murphy, Diana Stirling and Shannon Ward, Natalie Angell-Besseling, Ratana Stephens and Monica Morong. We also saw this video presentation from Tara MacLean Grand, which literally did not leave a dry eye in the house:

Lunching in the Sunshine

It really is all about the food, though, isn’t it? We were well-covered for lunch, with yummy grab-and-go bags catered by the Roadhouse in South Surrey. With beautiful weather, most attendees headed outside to chat in the sunshine, with the iconic crab sculpture serving as a gorgeous backdrop. It was a welcome break, because no matter how fabulous the speakers you can only sit still for so long. Plus, when your head is buzzing with all the great ideas you’ve heard, you really want a chance to talk it over with other people.

After lunch, we headed back into the auditorium and Pamela Martin took command of the podium again. We saw a short film by Mina Shum, and then local designer Nicole Bridger presented a fashion show. A few of the moms in attendance strutted their stuff, showing some of Nicole’s fall 2012 collection. In the afternoon we also heard from Tracey Theemes, Dr. Carol Friedrich-Fong and Kim Graham-Nye. Finally, the closing keynote was delivered by Fiona Douglas-Crampton, CEO of the Minerva Foundation.

Stay in the Loop

Leading Moms wrapped up ahead of schedule, which is always a plus when you have a cranky toddler to pick up from the free childcare, or you’re trying to dash off to get your kids from school. On the way out, we all got some great swag from the event’s sponsors. It was a lovely capper to an inspirational day.

If you’d like to hear more about what happened at Leading Moms, stay tuned to the Facebook page. Updates are being posted regularly, including photos, videos and more. Even if you weren’t able to attend, we hope you’ll be able to soak up a little inspiration to take with you in your daily life. Because what mom couldn’t use that?