Celebrating my mom’s accomplishments and impact
News Article / March 8, 2022
Lauren Carey
If you were to ask the younger version of myself if I understood how successful my mom was and is – I would tell you I did not. While she was busy coaching me in basically any sport you could possibly imagine, she was also breaking through barriers, shattering glass ceilings – all in an honest day’s work. But at home, that is who she was to me. A coach, a mentor (for athletics), simply my mom. Not the first black female Royal Canadian Mounted Police Officer, not Lieutenant-Colonel Carey – just mom.
It would not be until I grew up, and even now that I fully appreciate and comprehend the magnitude and impact of her hard work, her actions, and how she laid the ground work for those who came after her in the Military but also how she is laying the ground work for those who come after her in the Public Service.
And while that is something to be celebrated, I know that for her, that will never be enough. We learn most of what we know from our parents and now that I am a parent I can see what I was not able to see growing up. The sacrifice, the time, the ability to lift up your children. That is who my mom is truly to her core – and that is what she does to everyone around her. To my mom, I know now, that for her, it has always been bigger than her. I can tell you she is often in rooms where people do not even know the half of what she has accomplished – why? Because she does not speak about herself. Instead, she chooses to push forward change, she will never be satisfied with her own sense of accomplishments if it means nothing for those who come after.
For a long time I believed International Women’s Day was about those who came before me; reflecting on their sacrifices, and celebrating their successes. In part it is still very much that. But as I come in to my own in my own career – International Women’s Day is so much more than that for me now. March 8th is a time to share stories about my mom – about a time she received the Order of Military Merit; about a time she left to peace keep in Bosnia; about a time her military uniform was way too big for her because they had never seen an officer her size (small, but mighty!); and yes, even about a time she thought she could beat me in sprints in the gym and landed flat on her face.
In the beginning of this article, I told you that when I was growing up my mom was my coach, my athletic mentor, simply my mom. Now I can tell you that my mom is still all those things, but she is also my confidant, my friend, an idol to me, truly an icon – and I am so proud to be her daughter.