Sophia Jacob – Community Services Award 2025

Founder and CEO, Canadian Women of Colour Leadership Network (CWCLN)
Personal Support Worker, 2000

As a Black woman and young single mother, Sophia Jacob understood early what it meant to face barriers. At eighteen, fresh out of high school and raising her newborn son, she worked odd jobs just to get by. College felt out of reach—until one conversation on a city bus changed everything. A friend encouraged her to consider Algonquin College’s certificate programs in health studies, known for their accessibility and strong employment outcomes. That advice set her on a path that would transform her life.

Sophia enrolled in Algonquin College’s Personal Support Worker (PSW) program and graduated in 2000. For more than a decade, she built a career in health care, gaining not only stability for her family but also the compassion, resilience, and people-centered skills that would define her leadership. But Sophia’s vision reached further. She felt called to create spaces of connection, opportunity, and equity for others who, like her, faced systemic barriers.

In 2013, she founded Sophia J Events, where her love of networking and event planning grew into community impact. Within two years, her work sparked the creation of the Black Ottawa Business Network Social Group and the Ottawa Opportunities Network, both designed to bridge entrepreneurs, professionals, and service organizations.

Alongside these entrepreneurial efforts, Sophia poured herself into volunteerism—co-founding the Ottawa Women of Colour Networking Group, supporting the Ottawa Black Mental Health Coalition, and serving on the board of the Social Planning Council of Ottawa. These roles deepened her reputation as a connector, collaborator, and advocate for equity.

Her experiences as an entrepreneur and community leader expanded her vision. “I saw a bigger picture for Black and marginalized women and femmes all across Canada,” she said. “I wanted to connect with them, no matter where they lived, and bring them into the same country-wide network. To interface with women, work on different projects, talk about our challenges, and do the healing—that’s what I felt I was meant to do.”

In 2018, Sophia launched the Canadian Women of Colour Leadership Network (CWCLN), a national organization dedicated to breaking barriers for Black and racialized women and femmes. What began as a one-woman operation—where Sophia wrote grants, did bookkeeping, and coordinated events alone—has since grown into a powerful national network. Guided by four pillars—Wellness, Economic Development, Leadership, and Community Partnerships—CWCLN now reaches thousands across Canada through workshops, peer support, advocacy, and Violet’s Voice, its social enterprise that provides workforce training and employment opportunities.

When the pandemic struck, Sophia refused to step back. Instead, she adapted CWCLN’s programs to virtual platforms, ensuring that Black women, femmes, and non-binary leaders had access to spaces of healing, knowledge-sharing, and connection when they were needed most. “More than ever, we needed places to heal and share knowledge with one another,” she said. “We learned to sit down, be still, and do everything virtually. We made it work.”

Now in its seventh year, CWCLN is reaching more Black women and femmes than ever. With the support of its growing team of staff members and volunteers, CWCLN has launched Violet’s Voice, which offers hands-on training and real-world employment opportunities in event coordination, helping participants re-enter or advance in the workforce.

Sophia’s leadership has been recognized locally and nationally. Her work was highlighted by Women of Influence+, and CWCLN’s involvement in the Women Deliver 2019 mobilization campaign earned her an invitation to a reception at the Senate of Canada. She has received multiple awards for leadership, entrepreneurship, and community service, celebrating her impact as both a changemaker and community builder.

Senator Mary Coyle (left) and Sophia Jacob (right) talk at a reception at the Senate of Canada in 2019. Source: CWCLN.

But Sophia has bigger plans still for CWCLN. “We need to land in every major city in Canada and build up CWCLN chapters,” she said. “We already have team members spread out in Prince Edward Island, Ontario, and Québec, so we need to keep growing. It’s been a rollercoaster, but I know we’re on the right path. This is my calling, and I love doing it.”

For Sophia, leadership has never been about titles—it is about service, courage, and building collective power. Her ability to connect across differences, to inspire action, and to turn adversity into opportunity has made her a transformational leader. From her beginnings at Algonquin College to becoming the founder of a national movement, Sophia Jacob embodies what it means to rise above barriers—and bring others along with her.

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