2007 Women Of Distinction recipient Sharon Hampson

Sharon Hampson

singing her way into the hearts of children,
fighting for the health of Canadian women

YWCA Toronto woman of distinction 2007, health

When Sharon Hampson publicly declared her trials with breast cancer, Canada sat up and listened.

Beloved as one third of the trio of singers Sharon, Lois & Bram, who have been entertaining children across North America for over twenty-five years, Sharon has dedicated herself to encouraging, educating and empowering women dealing with breast cancer. This remarkable voice makes her the recipient of the 2007 YWCA Toronto Women of Distinction Award for Health.

Influenced by the songs of politically and socially active artists of the sixties, Sharon Hampson made her professional debut as a folk singer in a Toronto coffee house at age seventeen. A long-time supporter of the Mariposa Folk Festival, she helped organize Mariposa in the Schools, and regularly performed on radio and television, appearing frequently on CBC and CTV. Loved and cherished by two generations of children, Sharon’s most popular work has been with Canada’s much loved Sharon, Lois & Bram, with whom she has produced twenty gold and platinum albums, along with two acclaimed television series, the Elephant Show and Skinnamarink TV.

Known for their advocacy of children’s rights around the world, Sharon, Lois & Bram were ambassadors for UNICEF. Traveling across the globe to see first-hand the organization’s work for mothers and children in developing countries, the group reported back to local schools and agencies about the needs and rights of children so that no child would go to school hungry, suffer from an illness for which they can be immunized, or be deprived of the right to learn to read. Recipients of the Danny Kaye Humanitarian Award and a Doctor of Humane Letters from Mount Saint Vincent University, they were inducted as Members of the Order of Canada in 2002.

First diagnosed with breast cancer in 1988, while busy working with Sharon, Lois & Bram and raising her two children, Randi and Geoffrey, she did what any other woman in her shoes would do. She worked hard to survive. After a recurrence in 1993, Ms. Hampson knew she had to speak out about her experiences and give women the medical information and emotional support they need, lest they face diagnosis and treatment alone. Her ability to validate the fear, terror, frustration and helplessness that many breast cancer survivors experience, coupled with her friendly and familiar persona, allowed her to be the first Canadian woman to sound the clarion call for women in Canada. “We are not someone else. We are your mothers, your daughters, your sisters, your wives, your friends and your colleagues. It’s time to listen to us,” was her battle cry for action at a seminal Montreal conference, forcing the medical world to stand up and take notice of women with breast cancer.

Her campaign to raise awareness and advocate for women’s choice and heath in breast cancer treatment led her and a determined group of women (among them June Callwood, 1986 YWCA Toronto Woman Of Distinction alumna) to found Willow Breast Cancer Support Canada, a borderless centre with the goal of providing accessible, community-based, survivor-driven information and support services to those living with breast cancer. Following Willow’s example, other centres opened across the country, many of them encouraged by Ms. Hampson’s bravery and activism. A victim of medical error and a three-time breast cancer survivor, Sharon Hampson is tireless in her efforts to speak to and for Canadian women, helping them to overcome the hardships of breast cancer and see themselves as empowered survivors. For using her voice to help so many women get the treatment they need, Sharon Hampson is the recipient of the 2007 YWCA Toronto Woman of Distinction Award for Health.