Meet Pascale Bouchard Executive Director of Leucan And 2019 RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Awards Social Change Award Finalist

Pascale Bouchard

Executive Director, Leucan

Social Change Award Finalist

A member of the Quebec Bar, Pascale practiced law for a little over a year before heading into management. She joined Leucan in 2015 as Director of Family Services, and a year later became General Manager. Leucan is a nonprofit organization that supports children with cancer and their families with tailored services and assistance through every stage of the disease. Pascale is recognized for her dedication to the Leucan families, and her leadership and commitment to the wellbeing and development of her team.

My first job ever was… apart from babysitting, in a McDonald’s restaurant. I was at the “oil station”, preparing tons of McNuggets. It was a short but very formative experience.

I chose my career path because… I needed to feel that my work had a concrete impact on people, and I also am driven by challenges. After 15 years as an Executive Director of not-for-profit organizations, working with abused women and cancer-stricken children, I still get plenty of challenges and I see our impact every day.

My proudest accomplishment is… I’m most proud of my three children. They are beautiful teenagers, on their way to becoming sensitive adults, open to the world and very aware of all the social and ecological challenges that we face. I like to believe that I played a role in it 😉

My boldest move to date was… submitting my application for an Executive Director position in a women’s shelter at the age of 27, without any experience in not-for-profit organizations, domestic violence or psychosocial intervention. At the time, the move felt natural. I only realized later on just how daring it was.

I surprise people when I tell them… that I was a singer in a band in my 20s.

“Don’t let limited financial resources limit you. Leverage your situation to be creative, agile and innovative.”

My best advice from a mentor was… “Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.” This quote from Richard Branson has really influenced my vision and the way I lead our organization.

My biggest setback was… my divorce.

I overcame it by… being well-surrounded and facing it one day at a time; some days, one hour at a time.

If I had an extra hour in the day, I would… start to meditate.

I stay inspired by… the families for whom I work: their courage, resilience and perseverance are truly a daily motivation and inspire me to give my best effort, no matter the challenges.

The future excites me because… I’m surrounded by a great team with whom I know we can achieve great things. They’re passionate, dedicated, competent and professional.

My next step is… convincing the Quebec government to fund our organization.