by Manjit Handa
There are some who aspire big things in life and there are others who are so content in making small differences in their community. Scriptures look upon ambition as a negative attribute. And Helen, a devout Christian, takes her religion seriously. Here are some moments we grabbed with her.
Name: Helen McLeod
Age: 52
Her contribution to the community: Works as an adult literacy Educator
Married, with two kids, Helen was born in Scotland and their family migrated to Canada when she was around three years old. As a child she mostly lived in Montreal and attended University there. Always dreaming of being a teacher, she wanted to get into the field but as there were not many job openings in teaching, her father discouraged her from doing so. His logic—it is always good to get into a job which has a future. So she got a Bachelors degree in Commerce. Thereafter she started working for the Revenue Department, which continued for quite a number of years until she was thirty and both she and her husband decided to have a family. Soon she was blessed with two wonderful boys and she determined to stay at home with kids until they went to high school whence she started working part time. Later in life she came to know about Adult Literacy Educator Certificate Program. After all these years her desire for teaching was to be fulfilled. When her boys were grown, she had begun to volunteer and got involved in scouting and attended women’s institute. This happened when she was invited to a meeting by a friend where they were discussing about the need for more volunteers for adult teaching. She thought this was something she could easily do. First she got involved as a volunteer for a number of years and after a few years she was asked if she would be interested in training the trainers. She complied and there was no looking back ever since—she is still involved in training/teaching.
Mentionables of her life: She was born on her grandfather’s birthday and later her son was born on the same date which makes her believe that there is a certain order in the Universe which is beyond our comprehension and has a deep meaning. During her stay in Montreal, there were a lot of political upheavals and threats to their lives which made her desolate and she thought that she would not marry until the age of thirty but as destiny would have it, she met her husband and not later than the age of twenty two she had taken the vows.
Currently, she is the Vice President of the Provincial Board of Adult Education, board member of the Adult Basic Education, is actively involved in scouting and keenly participates in various activities of the local Church like holding Bible Schools and shouldering responsible positions of the likes of Treasurer.
Regrets in Life: At this point, none. Earlier in life, she always regretted not having been able to get into the Teacher’s College. But now, after she got into Adult Education, it all seems to have fallen into place.
Her joys of life: Parents, husband and children, not to forget her joy in the ability of being some help by working for the Literacy Council; more so seeing her adult students improving with each passing day.
A fairly religious person, she never forgets to thank God every day and any day which is devoid of any kind of help that she loves to extend is considered more of a failure.
In future, she would like to travel more and experience life at different places.
Message to the readers: “The most important thing in life is to appreciate what you have.”
“Sharing is an amazing thing.”
“When you are busy doing things, your body lives up to the
demands, so it’s important to keep busy and always have something
that you are working towards.”
Most of us confuse success with material accumulation, a social standing or some important position in office. Real happiness, I think, lies in serving the people around you in the possible way you can. Helen has surely given a meaning to her life and she has ample lessons to give us.
She can be reached at:
Hamilton Literacy Council
75 MacNab St. S., Rm. 321
Hamilton, ON
L8P 3C1
Phone: (905) 529 9907
