Thérèse Casgrain Volunteer Award - In Memory of Thérèse Casgrain, 1896-1981

Thérèse Casgrain, a native of Montreal, was the force behind various social reforms promoting justice and equality. She was involved in provincial, national and international organizations and was one of the pioneers of the women’s rights movement in Canada. As founder and later President of the Quebec League of Women’s Rights, she helped Quebec women gain the right to vote in 1940 and was instrumental in making them the beneficiaries of family allowance cheques. All her life she fought for women’s participation in government in Canada.

In the 1960s, Thérèse Casgrain participated in the World Disarmament Conference, where she was the only female Canadian delegate. She was appointed to the Senate in 1970 and became a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1974. Throughout her life she chose to defend the cause of disadvantaged members of society, to denounce social injustice and to lend a voice to those who had none. Thérèse Casgrain was an inspiring Canadian in every sense of the word.