BY ALYSSA MAHADEO
If you ask any young woman about the woman who has inspired her most, who her hero and role model is, the one lady in this world that she looks up to and aspires to be like, nine times out of ten she will tell you it’s her mother. For generations women have looked up to the women of society, matriarchs of the household for their hard work and dedication supporting, inspiring and raising the next generation of brilliant minded leaders.
Agata Klimczak the founder and CEO of the Brilliant Minded Women Foundation immigrated to Canada from Poland at the age of twenty-five. Living in a new and unfamiliar country she started from the bottom, building her career and she grew into a successful dynamic leader in network marketing and business. She founded the Brilliant Minded Women Network to create new opportunities for other female entrepreneurs, acknowledging their achievements and leadership of female entrepreneurs to celebrate how much of an impact they have left in society.
This past weekend on Saturday, October 29th at the Pearson Convention Center in Brampton, The Brilliant Minded Women Organization hosted their 3rd Annual Gala bringing together female leaders and entrepreneurs from throughout the community to spotlight all their hard work and dedication and recognize their outstanding achievements.
The evening was a grand affair that included many honorary and respected members of the community. Throughout the night guests were entertained by a collection of young and talented vocalists that included Latina Canadian singer Natalie Castro and Polish-Canadian singers soprano Anna Wojcik, Anna Leszonska and baritone singer Pawel Szczepanek. In addition to the amazing vocal performances, guests enjoyed the veritable tapestry of art through music and movement as displayed by Bialy Orzel White Eagle Polish Song and Dance Ensemble.
During the gala, thirty-one women from all walks of life received awards recognizing the work they do to help make positive contributions to society. The awardees included women of many ethnic backgrounds including Margaret Trudeau and Dr. Yvonne Bogoria- Buczkowski for Lifetime Achievement; Teresa (Wojciechowski) Berezowski and Iqra Khalid for Political Leadership, Nadine Spencer and Marsha Pereia for Philanthropist of the Year; Tanya Chernova, Michelle Peavy and Malgorzata P. Bonikowska for Global Excellence; Ezna Tiberi-Checchia and Lucy Stec for Charity of the Year; Rinku Deswal, Lena Guirguis, Meni Mancini for Business Development and Growth; Ilona Girzewska, Freda Iordanous, and Magdalena Stoch for Self Development; Teresa Dugwell, Iwona Malinowski, and Teresa Klimuszko for Best Community Service; Sheri Majdpour and Anne Balaban for Volunteer of the Year; Gabriela Nowak, Shirley Wu and Klementina Rys for the Mind, Body and Spirit Award; Agata Wisniewski, Kinga Mitrowska, and Keya Bayramova for Art and Entertainment; Olga Ryabets-Krasa for Student of the Year; and finally Maria Dubicki and Graziella Milosavlevic receiving the Maria Martini Resilience Award.
Together these women have helped to create a community where innovative and successful women, who are experts in their field can develop strong, supportive relationships and share with each other new ways to grow their businesses. They have all come from backgrounds rich in history and lessons of overcoming challenges that we can all learn from.
One of their many supporters shared, “If you don’t know what your passion is realize that your existence on earth is to find it.”
In an effort to continue to help shape potential female leaders of tomorrow The Brilliant Minded Women Foundation presented three $500 scholarships to Olivia Kawecki, Natalia Jureczek and Nina Kowalski, three lovely young women currently enrolled in post-secondary education programs. The Foundation’s programs feature a series of workshops and events aimed at creating a community of individuals in higher education meeting with the goal of raising funds towards tuition. Registration is open to all scholars seeking a higher-education degree in any field.
In addition to the awards ceremony guests were treated to a special address by Mayor of Mississauga Bonnie Crombie and finally the keynote addresses by Tanya Chernova, and Dr. Yvonne Bogoria-Buczkowski. Each woman told a story of their own past, the challenges they had overcome, working hard and dedicating themselves to find the life they wanted to lead.
Each woman presented with an award that night had an inspiring story to tell and they demonstrated that while nothing in this life comes easy once it is fueled by passion and resilience anything is possible. The Brilliant Minded Women Foundation continues to host focused and inspiring events to help more women connect with each other. As a special gift to all this year’s attendees was offered complimentary admission and personal invite to attend next year’s gala.
