Born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Cathrine has achieved a level of success few would have expected: She heads Consumer Connection Inc., a leading customer service monitoring firm where she provides contract work for thousands, she speaks to audiences internationally, she is the author of "Beautiful Buttons: A Memoir of Survival and Triumph" and she has won numerous entrepreneurial awards including the prestigious YWCA Women of Distinction Award for Entrepreneur/Innovator. Not bad for a kid who was raised by alcoholics living in poverty, was neglected and abused as a child, moved too many times to count because her parents never paid the rent, opting instead to buy booze and cigarettes, got pregnant at fifteen and dropped out of school after grade eight, ended up in jail and then on probation, was often on public assistance or stealing, tried to even the odds by forging university transcripts to get into medical college, landed up on the streets and prostitution! Countless debilitating circumstances that might have otherwise led to a life of despair resulted in her overcoming them all and prospering -- at the age of forty! Her personal story is truly rags to riches! One that Governor Linda Lingle says "has changed lives of people in the room…" referring to Cathrine speaking at the Governor's International Women's Leadership Conference to an audience of 1,200. From poverty row to mahogany row, she has come a long way from her humble beginnings to achieve the level of success many only read about. Titles Rags to Riches Topics Women, Minority, Motivation, Risk, Emcee, Self-image/esteem, Self-improvement, Attitude, Change, Customer service, Entrepreneur, Goal-setting Click topic above to see more speakers on that topic Speaker's Asking Fee Range $7,500 - $9,999 Click on fee range to see more speakers. This is the starting keynote fee range - other programs may be higher. State BC, Canada Click on state above to see more speakers from that state. Fees The fee range quoted means the speaker's fee starts somewhere within that range. Note that speaker's fees are subject to change and some speakers may have special fee quotes.