Blanche Brillon Macdonald (11 May 1931 – 8 June 1985) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

Métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...

model, businesswoman, and

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

activist. She launched her career as the winner of Miss English Bay in 1952 before becoming involved in the support of the rights and culture of

Aboriginal peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

as well as numerous women's organizations.

Biography

Early life

Blanche Violet Mae Brillon was born on May 11, 1931 in Faust, Alberta. She was one of five children born to John Adolphus Brillon and Marie Aloysa Ouellette. Her father was French and her mother was Métis. Brillon's maternal grandmother was a

Cree The Cree, or nehinaw (, ), are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people, numbering more than 350,000 in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada, First Nations. They live prim ...

woman whose children experienced the

residential school system The Canadian Indian residential school system was a network of boarding schools for Indigenous peoples. The network was funded by the Canadian government's Department of Indian Affairs and administered by various Christian churches. The scho ...

. In 1942, Brillon's parents divorced. Marie took her children

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, then to

Bremerton, Washington Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, Kitsap County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population was 43,505 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and an estimated 44,122 in 2021, making it the largest city ...

where she met her second husband, Charles Johnmeyer. The family relocated to

Kodiak, Alaska Kodiak (Alutiiq language, Alutiiq: ) is the main city and one of seven communities on Kodiak Island in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska, Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska. All commercial transportation between the island's communities and the outside ...

after Johnmeyer was stationed at the naval base there.

Modeling

When she returned to Vancouver in 1952, she attended the Elizabeth Leslie modeling school. Brillon won Miss English Bay at the annual West End beauty contest. As a result of the victory, she represented the district at the Miss Vancouver Pageant. She continued to model into the mid 1950s.

Business

By 1956, Brillon had moved to

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

and was associate director of the Elizabeth Leslie Modeling School. While in Edmonton, she met Jack MacDonald. They married in 1957 and had two children. With her husband, she opened the Blanche Macdonald School of Individual Development and Modelling in 1959. The school advertised classes in posture, self-appreciation, and etiquette, among others. In 1964, the company expanded to offer classes in Victoria. Brillon sold the agency to business partner and Toronto agent Jerry Lodge. She started teaching classes at a local department store in Kodiak after moving there with her two children. In 1972, the family moved back to Vancouver. Brillon borrowed money to buy back her school for $800. She created programs to help build careers for women who wanted to become self-sufficient. She served on the board for The New Play Centre and the Woman's Network. She changed her school's name to Blanche Macdonald Institute and had 15 full-time employees and 40 part-time instructors.

Activism

In the 1960s, Brillon become more involved in the Aboriginal community in Vancouver. One year after the Friendship Centre opened (called The Vancouver Indian Centre at the time), she was sitting on the board. She also worked with First Nations designers and promoted Indigenous models. Brillon ran self-appreciation classes in prisons (for men and women) at Oakalla, Matsqui and Maples Women's Prison. She was working for the United Native Nations of which she organized the first ever United Native Nations Conference, the Friendship Centre, and was a founding member of the Professional Native Woman's Association. Brillon lived with her children on the

Musqueam The Musqueam Nation ( Hunquminum: ) is a First Nation whose traditional territory encompasses the western half of what is now Greater Vancouver, in British Columbia, Canada. It is governed by a band council and is known officially as the Musq ...

Indian Reserve in the 1980s. She also taught classes to Musqueam youth. In 1980, Blanche was adopted into the James Sewid Family at an Alert Bay Potlatch Ceremony. In 1985, she won the YWCA Woman of Distinction Award for Business and the Professions. Brillon initiated a journalism program for Native students as well as a newspaper catering towards First Nation communities across

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. For her work, she was honored with a Women of Distinction AwardPast Recipients - YWCA Vancouver
from the

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swit ...

for

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

and

entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entrepreneu ...

as well as for her role as the Chief Executive Officer of the Native Communications Society of B.C. She was a board member for the

Better Business Bureau The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is an American private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 1912. BBB's self-described mission is to focus on advancing marketplace trust, consisting of 92 independently incorporated local BBB organizati ...

(BBB), the Modelling Association of America,Modelling Association of America
/ref> the New Play Centre, and the Lakeside Advisory Board for Women. Brillon initiated a journalism program for Native students as well as a newspaper catering towards First Nation communities across

. For her work, she was honored with a Women of Distinction Award from the

for

and

as well as for her role as the Chief Executive Officer of the Native Communications Society of B.C. She was a board member for the

(BBB), the Modelling Association of America, the New Play Centre, and the Lakeside Advisory Board for Women.

Death and legacy

Brillon died in June 1985. In 1988, the Blanche Macdonald Institute was sold to Lillian Lim, who had graduated from the school's fashion merchandising program in 1982 and had then worked there as a managing director. It was renamed the Blanche Macdonald Centre. Today, Blanche Macdonald Centre is a private college that provides careers in makeup, fashion, hairstyling, aesthetics/spa and nails. The college has three campuses, the original campus is located in

City Square Mall City Square Mall () is Singapore's first eco-mall to be integrated with a urban park named City Green, located within the planning area of Kallang. The mall sits on the site of Singapore's historic New World Amusement Park and is directly conne ...

and the other two are on

Robson Street Robson Street is a major southeast-northwest thoroughfare in downtown and West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Its core commercial blocks from Burrard Street to Jervis were also known as Robsonstrasse. Its name honours John Robson, ...

both in the city of

A documentary about Brillon's life, titled ''A Woman of Grace'', was released in 1998 after a decade of development. Directed by Fiona Jackson, the film highlighted her modeling and business careers, activism, and the challenges she faced as a mixed-race indigenous woman in the predominantly white fashion industry.

References

External links

Blanche Macdonald Centre

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macdonald, Blanche Canadian Métis women Canadian people of Cree descent Canadian people of French descent Canadian beauty pageant winners 20th-century Canadian businesswomen People from Big Lakes County 1931 births 1985 deaths