29 January 2025
09:15 – 15:17 ET
Hybrid Meeting (66 Slater St., Ottawa, ON)
Women Veterans Council members
In person:
- Lieutenant-Colonel (Retired) Eleanor Taylor, Canadian Armed Forces
- Constable (Retired) Vivienne Stewart, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
- Corporal Ellen Peters, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
- Lieutenant (Navy) (Retired) Wenshuang “Wen” Nie, Canadian Armed Forces
- Colonel (Retired) Telah Morrison, OMM, CD, Canadian Armed Forces
- Sergeant (Retired) Jessica Miller, Canadian Armed Forces
- Corporal (Retired) Sarah Lefurgey, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
- Warrant Officer (Retired) Celine Filion, Canadian Armed Forces
- Constable (Retired) Jennifer Chorney, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Virtual:
- Captain (Retired) Hélène Le Scelleur, CD, Canadian Armed Forces
- Lieutenant-Colonel Dawn Leblanc, CD, Canadian Armed Forces
Regrets:
- Captain (Retired) Lindsay Shields, CD, Canadian Armed Forces
Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) officials
In person:
- Amy Meunier, Assistant Deputy Minister, Commemoration and Public Affairs
- Pamela Harrison, Director General, Community Engagement
- Tanya Wiltshire, Manager, Women and 2SLGBTQI+ Veterans Team
- Andrea Coady, Program Operations Assistant, Community Engagement
- Mark Roy, A/Senior Director, Health Care Programs
Virtual:
- Lisa Garland Baird, Senior Researcher
- Kim Bethke, Public Health Research Analyst
- Alesia Chiasson, A/Project Officer, Women and 2SLGBTQI+ Veterans Team
- Ana Belen, Program Operations Assistant, Women and 2SLGBTQI+ Veterans Team
- Peggy Nash-Butt, National Rehabilitation Consultant
Office of the Minister of Veterans Affairs
In person:
- The Honourable Darren Fisher, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence
Virtual:
- Jared Valdes
- Rachel Ohnona
Land acknowledgement and welcome remarks
Assistant Deputy Minister, Commemoration and Public Affairs opened the meeting by welcoming the Women’s Veterans Council members and offered a land acknowledgment.
Identifying the Women’s Veterans Council’s main mandate
The Council agreed on the need to establish a clear mission statement and foundational elements, including goals and objectives. Their primary purpose is to work to identify systemic barriers, sources of discrimination and provide advice and recommendations to the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence, including to provide expert advice on the 42 recommendations from Invisible No More: The Experience of Canadian Women Veterans.
While these initial discussions took place, the Council agreed to take additional time to further develop and refine their mission, goals, and objectives.
Working groups and focus areas
The members had an open discussion and the following points were raised:
- Definition of a Veteran
- Establishing working groups to support ACVA recommendations:
- Operations and Service Delivery Group
- Peer Support Group
- Medical and Research Group
- Development of an outreach strategy and council succession planning
- Improving clinician education on Veteran and Military Health
VAC 101 presentation
A VAC 101 training session was presented to the Council, providing an overview of Veterans Affairs Canada’s organizational structure, benefits, and services. The session was designed to enhance the Council’s understanding of how VAC operates, including how government transitions impact programs and service delivery.
Women Veterans Research Plan (WVRP) presentation
An overview of the Women Veterans Research Plan (WVRP) was provided, outlining methods, analysis, and engagement strategies.
The Council advised the research team on priority-setting criteria, emphasizing:
- Relevance
- Community involvement
- Addressing key gaps
- Deliverability
- Maximizing impact on the burden faced by women Veterans
Concluding remarks
The co-chairs thanked Council members for their time and contributions, highlighting significant progress made. Meeting was adjourned.