Meet Philippa. She spends her time supporting recovery and restoring women and children lives. She moved to Kelowna 5 years ago from South Africa!
Who is your favourite person to spend time with and why?
My husband and my children. Moving continents with 2 young children at the time, was challenging but it helped us become a really tight unit so my best times are when we are together as a family.
What is your favourite local store in Kelowna and why?
Pulp Fiction! I love all the books, the owner’s dog, the vibe and just such a great place to meet for coffee.
Describe yourself in one word.
Empathetic
If you could go anywhere in the world right at this moment where would you go and why?
Cape Town to see my family.
What is your favourite activity in Kelowna?
Cycling: on the greenway, downtown, in the mountains. You can go just about anywhere on your bike in this town – I love riding to work and hope I can do more of that this spring and summer.
What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you?
I cry easily and almost always at the most embarrassing and inappropriate moments … last time was recently while in the middle of a speech which was quite an emotional topic, but still … not cool!
What is the most inspiring thing that has happened to you?
Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden’s in Cape Town has a beautiful outdoor amphitheatre and throughout the summer they hold concerts for local and international artists and in 1999 while I was still living in London and visiting Cape Town the Dalai Lama made an appearance. When he walked onto the stage you could’ve heard a pin drop. He held the audience like I’ve never seen done before and his talk was retrospective on the times we were living in. It was an incredible and inspiring experience.
Tell us your favourite childhood memory.
Family holidays! We did many road trips and now I love nothing more than going on a road trip.
Where do you volunteer or give back to in the community?
I started a craft market for children about 3 years ago. It’s called the ‘Young Entrepreneurs Pocket Money Market’ and it’s held every December for children aged 5 – 15 years. The aim is to encourage entrepreneurship and creativity, as well as teaching children basic business skills and money management. The kids love it!
If you could change one thing in the world what would it be?
The stigma around addiction and mental health.
Where would you sneak away to in Kelowna to spend some time alone?
I don’t do alone very well LOL … forced to be alone though I love walking my dogs up in SE Kelowna.
Where would you like to see positive change in Kelowna and why?
Increased focus on recovery centers for women and specifically mothers. The biggest barrier to a mother seeking recovery is the fear of losing custody of her children.
What do you think makes Kelowna great?
The outdoors – I love being able to walk on the greenway or ride downtown for coffee – everything is so easily accessible by bike and it really makes you feel connected to nature and the outdoors.
What are 3 things on your bucket list?
• Take my daughter to New York for the weekend (I’ve visited NYC twice but I’d love to take her to Broadway and ice skating in Central Park – she’s a figure skater – she’d love it!)
• Visit Kenya (I’m from Africa but have never been that far north)
• See the Northern Lights
Tell us something that not everyone may know about you.
I help a friend with her lavender farm. We made a crazy random phone call 2 years ago to Lush and since then we supply their west coast distribution with dried lavender. Check us out on facebook – The Lavender Barn! We also love doing weddings.
How do people connect with you, personally, through social media? (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc.)
Facebook and Instagram
What is the name of your business/organization?
Karis Support Society
Why did you get into/start this business?
My father was dedicated to helping others. He did this through music, puppets and his work with Rotary Clubs so I think I was just brought up in a life of service and helping others so working for charitable organizations has always been my passion.
What is the goal of your business?
Karis Support Society is a non-profit organization that provides recovery-focused counselling, programming and support to women, and women with babies or children, within a supportive home environment.
What has been your biggest struggle either at work or in life?
Balancing work and home life. I’m passionate about what I do but I also want to be a present and engaged mother so it can get a little tricky at times but overall I think I’m managing it well.
If you could start all over again would you do things the same or would things be different?
I’ve travelled and met so many people and worked for incredible organizations and even the difficult times have taught me great lessons so I honestly wouldn’t change a thing.
What do you always find yourself saying?
When I was your age (I’m pretty sure my children silently roll their eyes when I say that)
Tell us your best piece of life advice.
“Stay on your own path and don’t let people distract you from that” – this came from my dad when he was visiting in the summer of 2015. I always hear that in my mind now and it has been quite relevant in my life.
If you could spend one whole day with anyone in the world who is currently alive, who would you select?
The Dalai Lama.
Why do you think it is important to shop locally?
It’s an investment in our community.
What has been your proudest accomplishment?
I’m proud to raise funds for charities. I helped raise funds for a Center for Childhood Infectious Diseases at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital in CT and that was incredible. In fact all the projects I worked on there were pretty amazing accomplishments
Give someone you think that deserves it a shout out and explain why!
My bosses, co-executive Directors of Karis, Deborah Klassen and Geri Pauls. They truly do work as an incredible team and show us daily what it takes to be ‘compassionate women in charge’.
My choice for the KelownaNow In Focus spotlight is:
My husband Byron Douglas – he’s a talented Landscape Architect and works on incredible local development projects and has just recently embarked on an exciting new venture to start a Landscape Architecture division at Ecora Engineering.
We encourage you to leave your comments and words of support below and submit your own nomination by clicking HERE. You are also welcome to submit a form of your own by clicking HERE.
In Focus is our gift to the community. A way for us to help show our recognition of the people, businesses, and organizations that help make our city great. Thank you, Kelowna!
