When I first heard about the Trailblazers Meeting Women in Law event, I was in grade 12. My initial reaction was, “who is going to wake up at 6 am for this?!” but this event has benefited me more than I could ever imagine. First of all, it gave me the opportunity to connect with my peers from various other high schools. Yes, the road to success is a tough one, but I knew that I was not alone in trying to get there.
This program is excellent because it allows young women to meet current law school students and female lawyers who overcame barriers and achieved their goals. It motivated me so much to see how dreams could turn into reality. The facilitators, guest speakers and the organizers of the event were very approachable and patient. No matter what we asked, they had an answer for us. Not only did we get to have a conversation with lawyers but by visiting a law firm, we also got to see the environment they work in. If it was not for this wonderful educational opportunity, I would not have been able to meet this many professionals in the field.
To this day, I still keep in touch with the lawyers I met at the 2010 event. They are my mentors, my role models. I encourage every high school student to take advantage of this opportunity. I am now entering my last year of the Law and Society program and the Refugee and Migration Studies program at York University. I will be applying to law school this fall. In a couple of years, I hope to join this event not as a student, but as a lawyer. Thank you, OJEN and the Trailblazers program partners, for creating and implementing this wonderful program.
Halime Celik – 2010 Trailblazers participant