The Yamaska Valley Optimist Club will once again be celebrating four “Women of Success” at their fourth annual International Women’s Day Dinner. To be held Saturday, March 13th at the Lakeview Inn.
The evening starts at 6:00 pm, supper to be served at 7:00 pm Every year the club chooses a different theme and this year they have chosen Successful Women Entrepreneurs. We are so very fortunate to have such talented women amongst us in our community and that we have this special occasion to celebrate their success.
This year’s honourees are Patti Larose-Mason and Annette Blanco from the Panier Champêtre; Lucy Hoblyn from Brome Lake Books and Janet Fraser of Café Floral. These four remarkable women, working in the town of Knowlton, have made us very proud and are an inspiration to many in these difficult economic times.
Keynote speaker is Lori Graham of CTV Montreal.
Born and raised on the West Island of Montreal, Lori has always had a passion for performing and public speaking. All through elementary school and high school, Lori participated in numerous public speaking contests and performed in countless theatrical productions. Lori was even elected to give the valedictory address to her graduating class at Pierrefonds Comprehensive High School.
While public speaking was always of great interest, academically Lori pursued both pure and applied science. Eventually she would find a way to combine her love of both sciences and languages by becoming CTV Montreal’s weather presenter.
Lori got her break in Montreal media while in her second year of broadcast journalism at Concordia University. She was the recipient of CJAD’s Al Cauley Award, and within weeks began working for CJAD and Mix 96 as a traffic reporter, news reporter and newscaster while completing her final year of university. She went on to graduate from Concordia with the highest aggregate marks in her program.
Two years later, Lori joined the CTV family as a weather presenter during the infamous 1998 ice storm. She refers to her television debut as her “baptism by ice.” She has hosted a number of shows for CTV including “Good Morning Canada” – the network’s national weekend morning show.
Lori is also involved in a number of local charities. She hosts CTV’s “Telethon of Stars” and supports the Bell Walk for Kids Help Phone, the Children’s Wish Foundation, and Ronald McDonald House Charities.
There are a limited number of tickets, so hurry to reserve your place!! Tickets are available by calling Lois Hardacker or Marilyn Hunter at (450) 242-2000, Donna Coates at (450)-242-2548 (evening) or Susan Burbank at (450) 243-0530(evening).
Tickets cost $50.00 with all the profits going to the youth projects that the club sponsors in the area.