We are a few days late for International Women’s Day but any day is a good one to shine a light on women’s history. The creator of the quiz What do You Know about Canada’s HERtory? is Merna Foster. She was awarded the 2016 Governor General’s History Award for Popular Media (Pierre Berton Award) for her work promoting women in history. You may know her for her go-to website and books for Heritage Fairs projects on women’s history.
You might also know Merna Foster for the the public campaign that she started to feature a woman on a Canadian banknote. Her perseverance, creativity and organizational ability led to more than 70,000 people voicing their support. The campaign eventually resulted in the decision to feature Viola Desmond on the new Canadian $10 bill, a lesson in the power of active citizenship and history.