- Started in art, groomed by a strong parental and family framework of new Canadians (British and Jamaican) of professional and business and self-reliance ethic, into a career that would provide solid opportunity and a good lifestyle of stability and prestige. She had the opportunity through privilege, good schooling, strong mentorship of her parents, and responsibility, to travel, play competitive sports, and other pursuits to be the ideal career professional
- After taking that route and not enjoying it, Michelle chose to go into fashion, pursues a career through Parsons in New York, and worked with Liz Claiborne and Ralph Lauren, branched out part time into designing and creating new sports fashion garments for women.
- A tough and challenging career for a tough and driven individual. She worked the industry, moved to Toronto and is still hard at it. Some of her clients include Selfridges, Harrods, Neiman Marcus and many high end fashion apparel stores. Check out MichiNY.com.
- She designs, manufactures, markets and sell, develops her own website and blogs.
- She has a team of ten employees and works out of a shared factory space in Toronto.
- Her goal is to provide a good selection of high-end fashionable sporting apparel for the discerning woman.
- She plans later in life to start a Michi foundation to help women
- She is actively collaborating with other sporting apparel and women’s entrepreneurial groups
- She plans to firm up the administrative supports of her business and is looking forward to greater growth and greater opportunity through strong branding initiatives and maintaining a line of quality apparel.
Rod McMahons' Inspirational Moment
You join Rotary but you become a Rotarian.
One of the concepts that has resonated with me over the years is the switch when we change from being a member of Rotary to being a Rotarian. I think of my mentors and friends when I started in Rotary in the early 2000’s. They had this understanding and passion that I did not possess and I was not sure I fit in, not sure I could be like them.
When I was a member I went to lunch, talked with friends, engaged in some events but at that point I was a member of a Club, I participated but it was not part of who I was.
When you become a Rotarian it goes deeper, like a light switch that is turned on we start to be passionate about the work we are doing and see the difference in our communities and around the world.
For me, the switch happened in December 2015 when I participated in an Immunization program in Nigeria. That led to joining the Board of Directors at my club in Nova Scotia, hosting International Exchange students, going to the International Convention in Toronto, and participating in a Friendship Exchange to Australia.
If you are listening to this and are a long term member, think back to when you made that switch. If you are a new member, listen to the stories and see the faces of Rotarians light up when they talk about the work that they are passionate about and remember that everyone who is here cares and wants a better community and world for all.
It does not need to be a big thing. I feel a great reward when volunteering at the Community Kitchen packing the Good Food boxes. I feel useful helping on the accounting team because your projects need the back office support to happen and ensure that we are being good stewards of your contributions and public money. Working at the food bank and with the many local and youth community service programs may be that switch that you are looking for.
It’s OK to be on the journey and not know if you are in Rotary or if you are a Rotarian?
It’s like falling in love, you will know when you get there and it is really nice here on the other side.
Being a Rotarian made it really easy to move to Calgary and find community at Calgary West and I am very appreciative to all of you and cannot wait to spend more time with you face to face and in person.