Join us in the fourth and final virtual session of the Bison Transport Sport LeadHERship Series as we shine a light on women in leadership roles and how to break down the barriers and biases they face.
We are joined by Lorraine Lafreniere, CEO of the Coaching Association of Canada, Addie Miles-Abbott, founder of Beauties Sports, and Joanne Kelly, Journalism Instructor at Red River Collegiate.
Lorraine Lafreniere is the Chief Executive Officer of the Coaching Association of Canada. Lorraine has spent more than 30 years dedicated to Canada’s sport system and has held roles with the Canadian Olympic Committee, Cycling Canada, Canoe Kayak Canada. She prioritizes safe sport in her roles within Canada and around the world. Lorraine is the mother of two children, and is a proud cancer survivor. She believes in the power of sport to unite, heal and grow.
Addie has been a coach ever since she graduated from the University of Manitoba in 2012 after playing for the Bison Women’s Hockey Team. She has lots of experience between being a player, recruiter, mentor, head coach, assistant coach, and skills coach, and finds that there are not too many situations on the ice that she hasn’t experienced. Addie helped the Bisons program claim its first ever Can West Championship as a player and has been fortunate to have continued her career in hockey beyond being an athlete. After competing and experiencing all the incredible opportunities that come with it, she wants to help girls achieve the same. Now as a coach in the program, she was a part of the USPORTS National Championship in 2017-2018. As a coach she is committed to being a positive force in every athlete’s career, encouraging players to continue to grow as individuals on and off the ice. She believes that success is determined by athletes playing as a team, working hard and reaching their full potential while having fun. She strives to create a positive atmosphere for everyone involved where the athletes enjoy coming to the rink, and see their hard work pay off.
Joanne Kelly is a former broadcast journalist with CTV Winnipeg and Vancouver and Shaw TV. She’s been teaching in the Creative Communications program at RRC Polytech for 12 years, hosts a book segment on CBC radio and writes book reviews for the Winnipeg Free Press.