Gwen believes that the arts should be a vital part of every community and is particularly interested in promoting the arts in rural Saskatchewan. She came to Canada from Great Britain, after completing Bachelor and Doctoral degrees in Microbiology. While she only intended to stay for a few years, she met her life partner and settled down to family life in Canora.
Gwen has been deeply involved in the life of her community. She has been a member of the local arts council, involved in organizing the local multicultural festival, organized parades, involved in art showings and served on the local tourism committee. She served as a volunteer board member for many different local groups, including nine years with the Parkland Music Festival. She was a local board member and school trustee for Crystal Lakes and Eastland Lakes School Divisions. In her role as chair, she was very involved in negotiations around amalgamations, as well as tuition agreements with two of the First Nations bands in the area.
For the last nine years, Gwen has been working full-time at Parkland College in Yorkton. She is currently the Coordinator for University Programs and Applied Research and serves as the Chair of the Saskatchewan Council for Agricultural Training and Education. She also completed a Master of Adult Education degree from the University of Regina and most recently a Certificate in Project Management.
She is of the view that we must encourage people to become involved as consumers, creators and co-creators of experiences in the arts in any setting. She was elected to the SaskCulture Board of Directors in 2014. She was re-elected in 2018 for a two-year term.