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To mark the 25th anniversary of the Inspirational Woman of the Year Awards this week, Express sat down with some of the remarkable women who have received the accolade over the years to learn more about their stories….
This year's Inspirational Woman of the Year Award ceremony will be held on Thursday 4 July at Government House.
The event, organised by Soroptimist International Jersey, aims to celebrate women who have overcome adversity, made a difference in the community and supported women-related activities.
The award will be presented by the patron of the service club, Dr Karen Kyd.
Kate Wright, a cultural change, HR consultant, and chair of the Violence Against Women and Girls Taskforce, is scheduled to address the attendees – which will include inspiring, exceptional women from the community alongside previous Inspirational Woman of the Year award winners.
In advance of Thursday's ceremony, Express has taken a look back at some of the remarkable women who have been honoured with this award over the years...
Pictured: Founders of Maufant Youth Club Cliff Batchelor and Norma Batchelor in front of their retirement motorhome. (Matthew Hotton)
Norma Batchelor, known for her work at Maufant Youth Club, was the second ever recipient of the Inspirational Woman of the Year Award.
She received the "totally unexpected" accolade in 2000 for her community work and for dedicating much of her life to the young people of St Saviour.
When she moved to the Parish with her husband Cliff and their then 11-year-old son, Chris, the children living there wanted to form a football team – so Mrs Batchelor volunteered to run it.
Then the girls wanted something to do, and before long a youth club was formed which held its meetings at St Martin's Roman Catholic Church Hall, now the Berni Centre.
What started as enthusiasm for her immediate community snowballed into a career, and in 1984, when the club moved into purpose-built premises, Mrs Batchelor was made youth worker in charge of the Maunfant Variety Youth Centre.
Her enthusiasm and dedication to the job were rewarded when the Soroptimists announced she had won the award.
"I was amazed to be told that I had been put forward, but my initial reaction when I won was that I must have been the only one nominated," she told the JEP at the time.
"We started on a small scale, but it just grew. I was working in the office at Benest and wouldn't have chosen youth work as a career, but once I started working with young people, I found it challenging and rewarding.
"I've formed many friendships and good relationships over the years."
Ms Batchelor's impact on the community has been long-lasting. She still attends weddings, birthdays, and christenings of former youth club attendees.
"They made a big difference in our lives too," she reflected
Pictured: Rose Hélie, founder of Mustard Seed Jersey.
Rose Helie, founder of Mustard Seed Jersey, won the award in 2013 for her contributions to those in need in Romania.
"It is always encouraging to have a respected group like the Soroptimists say they have found my work with Mustard Seed inspirational," Ms Helie said.
"I hope the awards encourage others to persevere in what they believe in and feel called to do even when times are tough."
Ruth Smith won the award in 2018 after she introduced a daily food programme to a school in Kenya.
The dyslexia specialist moved to Kenya in 2014 for a six-month teaching placement in a school built in 2010, thanks to funds raised by the parish of St Clement.
Within a few days of her new job, Mrs Smith noticed many of her pupils becoming lethargic by mid-morning, only to find out many had not eaten for days.
In response, she set up a porridge programme to provide hundreds of students with a warm mug of the breakfast treat.
She also noticed that many local children could not fit into the overcrowded government primary schools that were available.
This inspired her to set up a school in the area, called Malindi Bright Future Academy.
Soon after opening the school, Mrs Smith embarked on a number of agricultural projects and built new houses for families living in shacks.
She funded the schemes herself by reaching out to the local Jersey community and her network of friends.
"I honestly didn't feel I deserved such an award," Ms Smith reflected.
"In fact, my partner David said he wanted to fly over from the UK to attend the breakfast. I told him not to bother as there were so many inspirational women, I definitely would not win!
"I honestly didn't feel I deserved such an award, but once I processed it, I began to realise this could really bring my voluntary work in Kenya into focus in Jersey, and that could only be a positive thing."
The impact of the award was significant and led to increased support for her work.
"As a result of the award, I met several people who wanted to assist me, either by helping to fundraise or putting me in touch with some Trust companies in Jersey who wanted to help," she explained.
She said that the Malindi Bright Future Academy now boasts 300 pupils and 18 staff, with a daily food programme that "literally saves lives."
The school ranks sixth out of 39 private primary schools in the Malindi district.
"I think since 2018, many 'ordinary' women have shown themselves to be extraordinary," she said.
"Women can be modest about their achievements. We need to give ourselves permission to be much more upfront."
Pictured: Ms Carson said she was "humbled" to receive the award.
Louise Carson's work in recycling and environmentalism earned her the Inspirational Woman of the Year Award in 2021.
Her work included saving over 40,000 plastic plant pots from incineration and running various eco-friendly projects.
These projects included the Borrow a Bucket scheme, which provides beach visitors with free toys collected from items that would have gone to wait, and the Jersey Sustainable Period Products Project, which offers eco-friendly period packs to Year 6 pupils.
In 2023, she launched Jersey Crafters for Charity – a group that sells items at markets to raise funds for nominated charities.
Ms Carson said she was shocked to win the award, but was delighted that it led to increased awareness of her work.
"Winning the award was really about credibility," she said. "It got me recognised which led to me getting involved in so many projects.
"I think the awards are very beneficial to publish the amazing work that the community is doing and it highlights the importance of role models.
"We have an obligation to tell our stories as we need to push progress forward."
Pictured: The 2023 Inspirational Woman of the Year was Trudi Roscouet. (Jon Guegan)
Last year's Inspirational Woman of the Year Award was given to Jersey's 'Mrs Menopause', Trudi Roscouet, for her work in raising awareness of the menopause and how it impacts women in the workplace.
Ms Roscouet said that her work was inspired by her grandmother, Toni Hicks, who was a founding member of the Soroptimist Federation.
"It's been an honour to be a representative of Soroptimists and I wish every young woman to believe they can make a difference to create change," she said.
Ms Roscouet first noticed a lack of understanding around the menopause in 2019 when she starting experiencing symptoms herself.
She soon became known as the island's 'Mrs Menopause' as she was an ambassador for the 51 Employers Pledge, which encouraged employers to sign a 14-point promise to make their workplace menopause friendly.
She went on to create an online well-being coaching platform called Vitality40plus and a collaborative platform for GPs called The Menopause Forum.
Her efforts have extended beyond Jersey, collaborating with UK government officials and joining the campaign group Menopause Mandate.
She is now expanding her focus to address broader women's health and education issues locally, including working with local farmers to combat obesity.
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