‘Ways to change the dialogue’
Women of Excellence Awards to be handed out next month in Wolfville
It was in 2016 that Catherine Metzger-Silver had a moment of revelation.
She was at Centennial Arena in Kentville, watching her daughter Olivia learn a difficult figure skating move. The Biellmann Spin requires the skater to grab their free skate blade and pull it behind and above head level.
“She kept slicing her hand open,” Metzger-Silver recalls. “There was blood on the ice, but she just kept going.”
While Olivia persevered, Metzger-Silver noticed a group of younger girls watching her daughter with awe. Olivia took time from her own routine to offer encouragement and pointers to the younger skaters. That moment perfectly encapsulated the importance of role models and recognition for girls and women.
Metzger-Silver had recently made a career transition from banking to financial services.
Before making the move, she had been warned that she would not be able to succeed in the male-dominated industry.
“Prior to that I had never felt that I was at a disadvantage by being female,” she recalls. “That was when I really started thinking about ways to change the dialogue and maybe help other women who were facing the same things.”
She approached the Annapolis Valley Chamber of Commerce with an idea for a new event, and the first Women of Excellence Awards was held in 2019. Awards were presented in categories of leadership, entrepreneurship, mentoring and community engagement.
Now the Women of Excellence Awards is an annual event that recognizes women in the Annapolis Valley who, in their pursuit of excellence in their respective fields and in the community, are improving the lives of others. The event is open to not just women, but the entire community.
New categories have since been added: Collaboration; Home-based Business; Younger Women of Excellence and Honorary Women of Excellence.
The 2023 Women of Excellence Awards will be held June 9 at the Atlantic Theatre Festival in Wolfville. A nomination period was held Jan. 30 to March 6 and there are 67 nominees in eight categories. All the nominees are profiled with introductory videos on the Women of Excellence Awards Facebook page.
With a capacity for 504 guests, the gala show and cocktail hour will feature some spectacular performances by Serpentine Studios Dancers doing an LED light hypnotic flow show, Cadance Academy Ballet, Tir na nOg Irish Dancers, Serpentine Entertainment Aerial Artist and the Graham Howe Band.
Winners will receive a beautifully designed gold lapel pin and a bottle of local sparkling wine. The pin was designed by Metzger-Silver and local entrepreneur Margie Lamb and crafted by Dave Reid of Reid Jewellers.
The Women of Excellence Awards represents both men and women celebrating the achievements of women across the Annapolis Valley region.
“The dialogue can be changed simply by us working together to lift each other up,” Metzger-Silver says. “When we celebrate women’s achievements it paves the way for others and shapes attitudes and aspirations of what women can do.”