OV Boss Babes

Claudia Kerckhoff-Van Wijk has been immersed in the Ottawa Valley whitewater rivers since a young age and has inspired thousands of people to try whitewater canoeing, kayaking and rafting. Claudia is also one of the proud co-owners of OWL Rafting in Beachburg, Trip Advisor's recommended #1 rafting resort in the Ottawa Valley and Destination Canada's Canadian Signature Experiences. Claudia is a lon...

Allana Robinson is a parenting coach of Uncommon Sense Parenting, business owner, mom of two, the host of the Mudroom Podcast, and has been featured on CTV, Global News, Today's Parent. Allana has been specializeing in helping frustrated parents understand why their child is misbehaving and how to fix it without yelling, sticker charts, or counting to 3 since 2015. Alanna goal is to empower parent...

Michelle and Logan McLennon's journey began with a shared love for food and a dream to bring authentic Caribbean flavors to their community. Logan, a talented chef from Jamaica, had a deep appreciation for the vibrant and diverse Caribbean cuisine, along with a natural talent for blending spices and creating unique flavor combinations that tantalized the taste buds. With a background in advertisin...

Meet Angie Hoysted, the boss babe butcher and co-owner of Valley Custom Cutting, who is shattering gender stereotypes in the meat industry and isn't afraid to get her hands dirty. A construction project manager by trade and former interior designer, Angie joined the team at Valley Custom Cutting once the butcher shop was constructed, and immediately took control of all the financial, administratio...

30% of Algonquin College Pembroke's student population has a military connection, and one of those current students is Shauna Holland, a military veteran who spent ten years in the Canadian Armed Forces. Shauna's last major position was at Garrison Petawawa and she is currently enrolled in the Business Fundamentals Program. In this episode, Shauna shares what her transition has been like leaving t...

Being a funeral director is not just a job; it is a calling. It requires a unique blend of compassion, professionalism, and resilience. Being a female funeral director is a unique and challenging profession that requires compassion, empathy, and a strong sense of professionalism. Through her dedication and unwavering commitment, Caitlyn Cybukski plays a vital role at Malcolm, Deavitt and Binhammer...

📣 Calling all business owners! 📣 Jaime Bell is a business lawyer and the founder of Contracts Market, who is here to revolutionize the way you think about legal contracts in your business! Contracts are the backbone of any successful business, yet they are often overlooked or misunderstood. As a seasoned business lawyer, Jaime has witnessed the devastating consequences that can arise from poorly...

At only 18 years old, Christelle Sam started her first business and never looked back. With her business education & background, and partner Andre's former experience working for the largest commercial landscaping company in Calgary, they relocated to the Ottawa Valley and together, launched their landscaping business, Stone Moss Construction. With Andre leading the business, creating beautifully...

Reduce, reuse, and recycle has always been at the forefront for Natalie Surette to find creative ways to minimize waste, reusing products, and recycle any materials that could be used for a new purpose - and she wanted to share her passion with others to follow in suit, buying products made with recycled content and provide a eco-friendly refillery so that folks in the Ottawa Valley could refill t...

Our anniversary "Where Are They Now" episodes concludes with Jacquie Kuntze, the babe who built her successful bridal hair and makeup team in Ottawa and Prince Edward County ! In this episode, we first try to wrap our heads around how Jacquie even gets to enjoy her summers being #BUSYAF and booked solid every weekend, but then we get into... 🤯 How Jacquie has achieved the unachievable in business...

Our anniversary "Where Are They Now" episodes continue with Stacey Bonfield, the serial entrepreneur behind Flint & Honey, Fawn + Fox, and Dawn and Dusk, three well known businesses for babies, kids and home decor in downtown Perth! In this podcast video episode, exclusively for you to watch only on Spotify, host Holly Molenaar sits down with Stacey to chat about where her entrepreneurial journey...

Tammy Reimer, a former doula and lifelong volunteer, has always had a big heart and dedicated to helping people, and wanted to start a business where she could help others, particularly seniors. She came up with the idea of Valley Angels, a non-medical companion service, where she spends time with seniors that are living alone that may need help decluttering and organizing their home, light cleani...

In 2021, Jenny Hodgson took ownership over Milano's Pizza Petawawa location. She had mermaid serving and managing the former restaurant Dineamice in Pembroke when the owners decided to close the restaurant and Jenny was sterting to think what her next step would be when this opportunity presented itself... and business owner had a good ring to it. Now that Jenny's been in business for 2 years, lev...

Ariessa Black was a single mom and former aesthetician whose initial business, Platinum Black, took a turn after the pandemic but she didn't let that stop her, as she decided to put her heritage roots, love for supporting local Canadian businesses, and an idea with her best friend and came up with the Witch Haus, a store that embodies femininity, spiritual products, witchy wares, and more! Unfortu...

Katie Turner is a well known psychic and medium who has the ability to tap into timelines providing glimpses into the past, present and future. She is also a Paranormal Expert and Paranormal Investigator with the Canadian Supernatural Research Society, and you can also check out her show Paranormal Investigator on Netflix to watch some paranormal investigations in some haunted places right here in...

Madison Broad is an Carpentry Renovations Techniques Program Algonquin College Pembroke Campus alumni and a Weston Family Foundation grant recipient, currently a couple hundred hours away from completing her general carpentry apprenticeship at Dugan Hawkins Construction, with a goal of receiving the red seal designation. In this alumni spotlight episode, Madison shares how she first initially thou...

Breaking the Stigma: A Candid Conversation on Mental Health and Therapy with Tory Baker-Reed and Kathryn Baker-Reed of The Thrive Centre in Smiths Falls. Tory and Kathryn are two registered social work counsellors who wanted to create an inclusive space in providing greater access for therapy and counselling services, while also making it more affordable, inclusive and accessible for everyone. Tor...

Kiki Keskinen not only identifies as a witch, but also a professor at Carleton's School of Journalism and Communication, a marketing coach for witches and their businesses and is the founder of Witch School Canada, which encompasses the sacred feminine within all individuals and also serves as the spiritual backbone of activism and personal transformation for the students. By studying ancient phil...

In December 2021, a former Peterborough resident, Liz Woosey purchased the historic Balmoral Hotel from the previous owners who were retiring. She had stumbled across an ad that the building was for sale in the local newspaper and decided to take a drive out to Barry's Bay to take a look and knew this was the next chapter in her life. Liz used to run Sexapalooza, an adult tradeshow, dedicated to e...

Empowering Women, Exploring the Extraordinary ✨ This week, I sat down with Megan Ryder-Burbidge and Linsey Sherman-Zekulin, the babes behind Sororal Travel, female-led guided trips that allows for authentic connections, safe adventures, and supporting women-led businesses and nonprofits along the way! Embark on a transformative journey with Sororal's women-led guided trips, where you can forge ge...

For two years, owner and founder Brett Brûlé had a vision to start a lakeside glamping business with geodesic domes that offered a perfect blend of luxury and tranquility, launching Natural Resting Point in late 2021 in the beautiful Pontiac, QC. Brett wanted her guests to escape to the picturesque landscapes of the Pontiac and indulge in a unique glamping experience like no other, immersing thems...

Kathryn Stuart was on the hunt for hypallergic sheep when she came across an Icelandic sheep breeder in Peterborough, the worlds oldest and purest breeds of sheep that are best known for their fibre, milk and meat. At Northern Viking Farm, which is currently the only Icelandic breeder in the Ottawa Valley, they not only specialize in purebred registered Icelandic sheep, but also Icelandic chickens...

Chrystal Toop is a community educator, counsellor, a storytelling public speaker, Indigenous life spectrum doula, and entrepreneur of Blackbird Medicines, a community healing justice practice honoring lived experiences, harm reduction practices and trauma-informed care, restoring teachings of strength and love to caregivers of all nations through public speaking, written works and community-based...

Crystal Martin pursued the Social Worker program at Algonquin College, but this wasn't always the career path that she initially dreamed she would pursue. Born and raised in Sanirajak in Nunavut, Crystal spent her teenage years between the North and the Ottawa Valley. While she was visiting her community, she became aware of the hardships faced by Inuit communities. From low income families, homes...

Candace Fleming is the award winning bridal stylist and makeup artist of Portrait Salon and founder of BUSH Beard, a beard oil for men that offers shine and softness with a long shelf life. Candace shares her transition to becoming a home based hair stylist, shifting the former stereotype of what a home hair salon looked like to a beautiful studio space. We also get into her cheeky beard brand, an...