A year and a half ago in the midst of the pandemic, I was introduced to Anastasia through the Fora Network for Change (prev. Girls 20) Girls on Boards Program. As my mentor, Anastasia not only catalyzed my growth as a young board director but also fundamentally as a person. Her wisdom, leadership, and more importantly empathy provided me with the perfect environment to understand my strengths and to see my weaknesses through a different perspective. I know I am not only a better leader because of Anastasia but also a better person. To say that she has been pivotal to my experiences and the opportunities afforded to me in the past years would be an understatement because she has been a mentor and role model that has championed me through a time of great uncertainty and helped me discover a new dimension of resiliency and vulnerability within leadership; all that is to say, is her mentorship has afforded me the greatest and invaluable gift.

As I embarked on a new chapter of my life recently with grad school and a move across the continent, I am consistently reminded of her advice and our collective wisdom through our mentoring sessions. It would be the utmost pleasure and privilege for anyone to have the opportunity to work with and learn from Anastasia. The time I have spent with her, albeit still short, has already brought immense change in how I approach work and life. As the youngest board director with CPAWS-BC, I continue to employ the tools in my toolkit that Anastasia has helped me sharpen (including but not limited to interpersonal skills of communication, conflict resolution/management, time management, and strategic priorities). Who I am today is a much more confident, self-assured, assertive, and calm young woman and leader than the person I was before I met Anastasia.

Thank you Anastasia for the work you do to help others discover their own untapped potential. Certainly, I am much better for it.

~ Cecilia Pang