BY JENNIFER HOEGG

The Hants Journal

NovaNewsNow.com

Ann Dodge epitomizes passion for physical well-being. She was honoured last month for her athletic, coaching, teaching and research efforts with a Women of Excellence award from the Halifax-Cornwallis Progress Club for her past and present efforts in the realm of health, sport and wellness.

“From what I understand, it was for a combination of my involvement with the canoe club, my own past sports experience and my teaching,” Dodge says.

The Women of Excellence Award gala is now in its 18th year rewarding women in the fields of Arts and Culture, Communications and Public Affairs, Education and Research, Entrepreneurship/Innovation, Health, Sport and Wellness, and Management and the Professions.

The event fulfills two aims of this all-female chapter of the Canadian Progress Club, says Halifax-Cornwallis Publicity Chair Sharon Ward. “When we first decided to do this event, it had two purposes: one, to raise funds for Phoenix; and two, to raise awareness in the community for what these women are accomplishing.

“It’s always amazing to hear what these women have accomplished,” Ward said. “When we hear what some of these people have been up to, we’re blown away too.”



Modest about the award

Dodge is modest about the award. “I think there are many much more deserving women then myself, but it was an honour,” she said.

However, she’s thoroughly impressed with the Progress Club’s recognition of women. “Kudos to them for recognizing women in all these different fields. It was an amazing evening, to see so many worthy women recognized!” Dodge said. “It was very, very cool to be part of the presentation of a $40,000 cheque to Phoenix. Who wouldn’t want to be part of that?”

Although Dodge has been in Falmouth for only five years, she has deep roots in the area. “My mother was from Falmouth, so there was always a connection,” and she coached at the Pisaquid Canoe Club while attending Acadia in the late ‘80s.

A former Olympic paddler, Dodge coaches the Pisaquid Club’s women’s Masters team and two middle school girls’ volleyball teams, in Coldbrook and West Hants. She also teaches in the Kinesiology department at Acadia University.

In all of these roles, Dodge pursues what she calls her “personal crusade” for women to be well. She also takes her role as unofficial mentor to young women in the kinesiology program very seriously.

Indeed, she is grateful for her sporting career. In addition to playing varsity volleyball at Dalhousie, she competed with Canada’s national canoe team from 1974-80. In 1976, she had the ‘awesome experience’ of being part of the Montreal Olympic Games.

“I have benefited tremendously from sport: travel, meeting people, and other opportunities that not everyone is privileged to have.”

With that privilege, Dodge says, comes a sense of responsibility to share her passion to help other women live well.

“Material that I teach relates a great deal to the enhancement of people’s lives. I try to live it: to exercise, to eat well, to manage stress.”

In addition to her teaching work, Dodge speaks to groups - women’s clubs in particular - about “the proactive things we can do to be more healthy.”

Not slowing down anytime soon

Some of that passion and desire to give to others is channeled into her coaching at the canoe club.

“It takes a lot of my time, but I love it!” she said. “They’re such an eclectic group of wonderful people.”

Dodge’s team, the Masters group, consists of nine to 14 women over the age of 25. The team has been very competitive in the past few years, dominating their division and earning two national titles in competitive kayak. “It ‘s very difficult. Those boats are designed for speed, not stability,” she said, and “they inspire me!”

One gets a sense that Dodge doesn’t plan to slow down anytime soon. She’s enrolled in an Interdisciplinary PhD program at Dalhousie and speaks enthusiastically about potential research topics.

She has been married to Mark Smith, a “softball legend”, for almost 20 years. Smith works with Sport Nova Scotia and is currently in Las Vegas coaching the national men’s softball team.

Dodge and Smith have a 13-year-old daughter, who continually inspires her mother to encourage young women to be active.

For more information on the Halifax-Cornwallis Progress Club and Phoenix Youth Programs, see www.halifaxcornwallisprogress.ns.ca and www.phoenixyouth.ca