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Awesome woman to be honoured
May 31, 2011 By Carey Fredericks
May 31, 2011, Unionville, Ont. - Roberta (Robbie) Taylor has been
selected as the 2011 recipient of the Elsie MacGill Northern Lights
Award.
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Roberta blazed the trail over 45 years ago when she began her career as a
commercial bush pilot in northwestern Ontario. She has been an
aircraft operations manager, air search and rescue pilot and fire patrol
pilot in the Canadian Rockies, and served as ferry pilot and test pilot
for the family aircraft business in Cranbrook, B.C.
Roberta was chosen as Chatelaine’s Woman of the Year, was a co-organizer
for the first Canadian Women In Aviation conference, founded the
Canadian Rockies Chapter of The Ninety-Nines, Inc. International
Organization of Women Pilots, where she served as a Governor and
International Director. She speaks at conferences promoting the history
of women in aviation through her presentation titled “Lessons from our
Mothers”. Having grown up near the Canada Car Foundry in Thunder Bay,
Ontario where Elsie MacGill oversaw the wartime production of the Hawker
Hurricane and where Roberta’s mother and father worked, Roberta was
inspired to be a pioneer in the role of women in aviation.
After injuries sustained as a passenger in a serious car accident ended
her flying career, Roberta completed her Master's degree and is now a
Senior Instructor in the Faculty of Human and Social Development at the
University of Victoria in B.C. Like Elsie MacGill, she transitioned
from aviation to working on equity and social issues in a broader
context. Roberta is actively engaged in a community project aimed at
ensuring a safe operating environment for floatplanes, paddlers and
rowers in the busy Port of Victoria. She continues to be a mentor for
her peers and students at UVIC.
Roberta will be honoured, and presented with this prestigious award at
our annual gala dinner on Thursday, September 29, 2011 at The School
Restaurant, 4121-14th Avenue, Unionville, Ontario: www.theschoolfinedining.com
For more information, email to: info@northernlightsaward.ca. Stay tuned for the imminent launch of our new website at www.northernlightsaward.ca . Information on ordering tickets will be posted on the site.
