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 Maureen Butler - Stage Manager

I am a social worker who has spent my career in Child Welfare advocating for children and adults who have been victims of abuse, neglect, violence and trauma. Volunteering for the Vagina Monologues has been a new venue for me to be involved with a global movement to bring awareness, as well as educate and advocate to eradicate violence against women and children.

The play challenges us to look at women's issues, how we use secrecy and silence to continue abuse, and humour to get us out of our comfort zone.

Being part of a group of women to use our collective voice for a common cause has been rewarding, challenging and fun. This is the first time I have been a stage manager but it will not be her last.

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Lisa Binney
 This is Lisa’s first year working with Ottawa V-Day, but it won’t be her last!  She is a student at Algonquin College, studying social work.  Lisa is currently doing her student internship at the Ottawa Coalition to End Violence Against Women (OCTEVAW).
Lisa has been an integral part of coordinating the first V-Day High School/Youth Performance.

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Kimberley Sanders
Having performed in the 2009 production, Kimberley decided she is more comfortable behind the scenes and is thrilled to be coordinating the 2010 Vagina Warrior Awards.  A full-time university student, Kimberley's work focuses on the use of narrative poetry to inculcate effective reflective discourse for marginalized adult learners.At work on her first anthology, "Leitfaden", Kimberley’s narrative and poetic compositions have appeared in various publications including The Voice Magazine and the Queen’s Feminist Review.  Kimberley lives in Ottawa, is married, and has one son. http://www.artswell.ca/about/team.html

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Erin Williams
I am a young African-American and French-Canadian, curly-haired, global feminist citizen raised by a single mother along with my younger brother. I love to sing, dance, act, travel, read and do yoga. In 2008 and 2009 I performed in the Monologues and this year I am acting as a member of the Steering Committee – coordinating the first high school/youth show.
 Currently I am the Executive Director of the Ottawa Coalition to End Violence Against Women (OCTEVAW) and I hold a Master of Social Work degree from Carleton University with a focus on women’s rights and social policy. I’ve been involved with the violence against women and pro-choice community in the Ottawa area since 2003. Right before joining OCTEVAW, I completed an internship in Belgium at a young women's shelter for immigrant, refugee and non-status mothers fleeing abuse.
 Let’s show Ottawa what we workin’ with women!”

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 Jamie Kwong

Jamie Kwong has resided in the Ottawa area for seven years.  She has been a support worker for survivors of sexual violence and is presently the Grant and Funding Coordinator for the Sexual Assault Support Centre of Ottawa (SASC).  She has obtained a Bachelor of Social Science in Criminology from the University of Ottawa and is currently pursuing her Masters degree.  She currently lives with her partner and her four legged, furry boy Char-Li Bucket Kwong-McDonald. 

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 Dalia Marcos Fraser

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 Sheryne Marcos Morin

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Laure Prevost
Laure has been a great fan of the Vagina Monologues since she saw it being performed on campus during her undergrad. She now collects and eagerly looks for editions of Eve's works in various languages throughout her travels -her most recent purchases include the Vagina Monologues in Italian, a first edition of the Monologues from New York's Strand bookstore and Eve's latest play I Am An Emotional Creature: The Secret Life Of Girls Around The World. She had the honour -and great pleasure- of meeting Eve Ensler last year during her visit to the Hill. Eve's dedication, commitment and passion to end violence against women through awareness, theater, creativity and generously offering her work to communities all over the world motivate Laure to join the ranks of V-Day once again, until the violence stops. She extends a thousand thanks to Eve, to the cast and to everyone working to respect and promote women and girls' rights.

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Jennifer Allison - Photographer
I am currently completing my last semester of the Photography program at Algonquin College and working towards finalizing my portfolio. I have taken many wandering paths in my life, but they have all lead me to photography, and that is where I am happiest.
A close friend of mine suggested I join the VDay bandwagon as a photographer for the 2010 Ottawa Vagina Monologues. When I was a university student in the early 2000’s I read the monologues and was intrigued in many aspects. Any movement that is organized around stopping violence against women and girls is one that I will and do stand firmly behind. I had an enormous amount of fun meeting and photographing all those involved in the Ottawa 2010 Vagina Monologues

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Roberta Della-Picca
 In August 2002, Roberta started "her acting career" in the Wabano "The Stories are Our Teachers" and "Eagle Over the Moon" programs, doing Street Theatre and Playback Theatre.  It was magical;  she loved it!  What an outstanding method of introducing topics that are otherwise "too delicate to broach"...the healing reponses are indescribable. 
 Violence against women and girls is a subject very near and dear to Roberta's heart and therefore, she didn't hesitate when given the opportunity to participate in V-day Ottawa 2009 Vagina Monologues - an extremely powerful method of outreach/prevention/ awareness.
 She is greatly honoured, very appreciative and much more fulfilled by being a part of such an outstanding and phenomenal endeavour.  This year's performance is dedicated to the memory of Siobhan O'Meara.

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Pamela Chartrand

Pam has been an enabler and quite crazy with it for most of her life and was delighted to find out if you apply those skills to charity work some lovely person like Sheryne upgrades you to facilitator and people think you are devoted. Excellent deal, wish I'd known sooner and saved my nearest and dearest from my evil ways.

As everyone has said The Vagina Monologues are amazing, the women are outstanding, and the whole process enriches one's own life as much or more than the people involved hope to help the lives of others. It's a fun, heartbreaking, nerve shattering, funny, exhausting, confidence building, tearful, magical experience that leaves you briefly drained and yet by the following October your heart sings at the thought of doing it all over again.

Just be careful if you speak to anyone involved, they're as like as not to try to convince you to be on the stage next year. You've been warned, but, just so you know, auditions will be next November.