Who are you?
I am an immigrant who has gone through the settlement process on more than one occasion. I was born in Paraguay, the daughter of Viennese parents who, at the time of the Anschluss in 1938, seeing the writing in the wall for the Jews there, left that centre of high culture and modernism for the jungles of Southern Paraguay. Several years later, the family moved to Buenos Aires. When I became a young adult I immigrated to and settled in Israel, drawn to the country by the strong belief of the right of the Jewish people to a land of our own, hopefully a free and secure one. My next move was to Canada, following the footsteps of my Canadian partner and our young children.

What do you do?
I work for MOSAIC, a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting immigrants and refugees with their settlement and integration needs. Through a variety of programs and services, MOSAIC gives its clients the tools necessary to participate fully in Canadian society. Since its inception over 35 years ago, MOSAIC has become one of the Lower Mainland’s largest immigrant-serving organizations.
At MOSAIC, I work for the Interpretation and Translation Services. My position is Production Manager of the Translations Department. Besides holding a degree in Economics with a major in Business Management, I have an extensive background in language-based work environments, retail service and business planning. Over the last 20 years, I have worked with freelance contractors from a dizzying array of cultural backgrounds.


I am an experienced user of database, word-processing, graphics and formatting software, I also have a keen understanding of cross-platform needs and capabilities, publishing, and communications. For many years I have been serving as the webmaster of our organization and lately I have become even more deeply immersed in all aspects of Social Media and its impact on our agency.

Why do you do it?
I am a keen learner. IT and Social Media fascinate me. The rapid pace of technological advance keeps me engaged and on my toes. The salutary result is that despite the advancing years I still feel young.

Where do you do it?
I am still working at MOSAIC. MOSAIC is to me more than a place of employment. It is an organization that I respect, value and admire. MOSAIC gave me and many others like me an opportunity at a time when our lack of Canadian experience made us less than attractive in the employment market. During my earlier years here I saw the Interpretations Department bloom and explode with unprecedented success. In my capacity as the Manager of the Translations Department I observed the same thing happening again. With the hard work of our team we managed to turn two startups from volunteer outfits to viable fee for services entities, productive in their own rights and important to MOSAIC as a whole.

When do you do it?
Today I do it on a part time basis. The pressures of the managerial position I held in the past require the energy of a younger person. I enjoy the work. I am proud to be associated with an organization like MOSAIC. I could not do without the stimulus, the warmth of my contacts, and the opportunity to continue being productive.