Rita Egizii, B. Comm., C. Mgr., MEd, EdD(c)
Rita has founded several successful businesses and was the Western Regional Finalist for the Canadian Women Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 1997. She has been an international delegate on Government of Canada Trade Missions and trade summits and has sat on several federal task forces. Other awards include Global Television/YWCA Woman of Vision, the Western Legacy Award for Innovation, University of Calgary's Women Resource Centre Distinguished Alumna Award, and in June 2012, she was honored with the Order of the University of Calgary. She is a founding Director of the Quickdraw Animation Society, the Chickwagon! Foundation for Women, Wellspring Calgary and Legacy of Tao (US-based).
Rita continues to serve on various Boards, Advisory Groups and committees in both the for-profit (small business, entrepreneurship, investment, international business) and not-for-profit sectors (arts, education, health care, community development, women’s issues, animal causes, fund-raising).
She served as a Certified Facilitator for the Alberta Government’s Board Development Program and was selected as one of two individuals to help train the program’s 2012 team of 70 facilitators. She is currently an Associate Faculty at Royal Roads University (Victoria, BC) teaching entrepreneurship and leadership. She offers consulting services in non-profit start-up and board governance; entrepreneurial start-up; fundraising; event-planning, networking, community outreach, and cancer survivorship through IMAGE Consulting (Insight Management for Action, Growth and Expansion).
Rita’s personal journey includes being a two-time cancer survivor. Diagnosed with Stage III/IV breast cancer in 1997, she was only 38 years old. At that time, she had just returned from the Team Canada mission (with Prime Minister Jean Cretien). Given a 6-8 month prognosis, she sold her business interest and set off on a journey of discovery. It was during her cancer recovery that Rita’s passion for community building and social innovation took hold. It was a time of healing, personal discovery and growth.
In 2005, she was diagnosed with a second bout of breast cancer, unrelated to the first – a completely different primary cancer. Her recovery from cancer has encompassed a broad range of approaches including mastectomy and other surgeries, TRAM reconstruction and clinical trial chemotherapy (over a 2-8 year period); these treatments were augmented with guided meditation, medical qigong, reiki, Chinese herbs and indigenous shamanic healing. Her self-discovery included exploring integrative health therapies and travel around the world, including Madagascar, Kenya, South Africa, Bora Bora, the mountains of HuaShan (Shaanxi Province, China) and the Buddhist monasteries of Tibet.
An avid believer in the power of the mind, Rita believes healing and growth lies in the ability to honor the intrinsic knowledge of the mind, body and soul.
