Rotarian of the Month - Angiola De Stefanis
Posted by Kathryn MacKerricher
on Nov 03, 2015
1) How many years have you been a member of RCRC?
Since March 17, 2004
2) Prior to RCRC, were you with another Rotary Club, if so where and for how long? If not, have you been involved with other service clubs or professional organizations?
I first joined Rotary on January 17, 1997, with the Rotary Club of Burnaby.
3) Why do you belong to a Rotary club?
After I survived my first bout of cancer in 1994, at 26 years of age, I felt a strong desire to find a way to be of service and make a difference in this world, but I didn’t know how one person could begin to have an impact. One day I asked my then boss, Milt Wylie, founding partner of the oldest law firm in Burnaby, where he would go every Friday at lunch and why he was always so cheerful and full of funny stories when he would come back to the office. So, rather than tell me what he did, he showed me. He brought me to a Rotary meeting as his guest. I was hooked from that very first meeting. I found my purpose and my passion. I found a way for one person to leverage their desire to contribute and actually make a difference.
I have joyfully dedicated 18 years of my life to Rotary, and counting. But what I never expected when I joined Rotary was how much Rotary would give back to me. It gave me the large, loving, accepting family I yearned for my entire life and never had until I joined Rotary.
4) What makes our club special to you?
The members of this Club. I love the genuine caring we have for one another. I love the joyful, irreverent banter. I love our commitment to the values of Rotary.
My current ill-health has often prevented me from being here this year, and that has been the biggest loss for me during this difficult time. I miss my Rotary family so much.
5) Tell us a little about your current business.
I have been a lawyer for 23 years (yes, I started when I was very young – I was 23 when I graduated from Law School). For the first 10 years of my practice, I worked at my father’s firm, then in 2002 his firm disbanded, so I went out on my own. In 2007, I formed my own firm, Alliance Lex. Our main office is in downtown Vancouver, and we have a satellite office in Richmond, but because we operate the firm entirely in the cloud and are substantially paperless, I am able to work mostly from my home office in Burnaby.
After nearly 20 years of general practice, a few years ago, I refocused my practice exclusively on family law and Wills & Estates. In my family law practice, I only do Collaborative, which is an entirely out-of-court, negotiated process for separating and divorcing couples.
I also dedicate a significant amount of time doing presentations around Metro Vancouver educating the general public on Collaborative practice, and I have been on the Board of our professional organization, the Collaborative Divorce Vancouver Association, for over 6 years, 4 of those as Chair of the Board.
6) What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
Besides Rotary, I enjoy spending time with my family, visiting with friends, travelling, reading, knitting and crocheting.
7) Refresh our memory on your family.
I am married to my incredible husband, Paul. We have been together for 25 years as of June 3rd. As many of you know, although he is not officially a Rotarian, he is a true Rotarian at heart. One year, our Club generously gave him a Paul Harris award. In his thank you speech, he cracked us all up by saying “Who would have thought that this is what would come out of not knowing how to say no to my wife”.
We have two beautiful daughters whom many of you have known virtually since the day they were born. Natalia is 16 years old and is in Grade 11 at St. Thomas More Collegiate. Sabrina just turned 13 and started Grade 8 at STMC this year. She is so happy to be back at the same school as her big sister. Two girls who, thanks to Rotary, truly understand and live “service above self”. They each have nearly 300 hours of volunteer work under their belts this year alone.