Gina Vacchio

Gina Vacchio is a generous, caring and supportive woman in her community. She is always willing to help one person or a group that needs a helping hand, extra care or support. It is with great pride that we share Gina Vacchio as Woman of the Week.

Tell Us About Yourself

I am the daughter of Consiglia and Guiseppe Vacchio; the youngest of three; my older sister Rita, is the wisest, the strongest and the one we respectively try not to piss off. My brother, Antonio Vacchio, the middle child, creative genius, is the only boy, the spoiled one. Then there is me, the youngest, the rebel, the argumentative one, the one that won’t take no for an answer!

There is 13 years between my sister and I, 8 years between my brother and I. My brother teases that I was a mistake. My response? I am a gift. In actuality, they are the gift to me. My family grows in love.

Our mother, our foundation, is the one we inspire to be. She keeps a gentle yet firm hold on our love for one another, reminding us that when one has bread, we share with those who don’t. We were raised to respect one another, resolve our issues and never hold grudges.

I am married to Scott, approaching our 25th year and we have a wonderful 15-year-old boy named Chase. These guys are my everything. Immensely entertaining, yet know exactly how to push every one of my buttons!

I met my husband when I was 20 and it was love at first sight.

I was in a car full of girls on a bridge leading to Hull. He was in his truck with a few friends. He pulled up beside us and asked, “Where are you heading?” I responded with the name of the club and then he said, “See you there” and he did. We married two and half years later.

Our relationship has definitely had its challenges. We have endured poor choices, health issues and tremendous loss.

From 2002-2011, our lives started to spiral. We lost my dad to Diabetes. I then found myself pregnant but suffered an ectopic pregnancy and nearly died. My mother-in-law passed away at the family farm, and then a year later, my father-in-law.

Without getting into all the specific details of this particular part of our journey, Scotty and I didn’t deal with our losses very well; neither one of us dealt with our emotions, and our coping mechanisms where at a definite loss.

We struggled for many years and then on my birthday, January 2011, it all hit rock bottom. We were on the verge of losing our home and going bankrupt. We separated; we were faced to deal with ourselves on our own. Even in our darkest moments, Scott and I truly loved one another and we knew that if we had any chance, we would have to face ourselves and deal with it.

In May 2011, we came together and decided that, yes, we still had a ways to go but we wanted to do it together.

We moved south of Ottawa, to a small, yet majestic, community called Spencerville. Our lives started to turn around. We did everything we could to make it work. We dealt with our demands and persevered to accomplish our goals. We choose to let go of our pasts, embrace everything and anything that was good. We choose the present; it is always a gift, even when the shit hits the fan.

We came together and we found the positive in it all. We accept who we are and allow ourselves to love “ourselves”.

I continue to remind others and myself: “If you’re not good then nothing around you will be any good!”

Yes life is challenging and yes there are low days. When I am low, I shut everything off and give myself space and time. I truly shut it off. I try not to get to caught up in my sadness, I will talk it out with family and close friends, and when I have had my moment to express how I feel, I pick myself up, give myself a shake and remind myself that I rock!

My life is a blessing, I will never let that go, I cherish every new experience and challenge that lies ahead of me as it enriches my life and who I am. I embrace lessons learned, old and new connections, and hold those close that choose to be part of my journey. I choose love, respect and honesty to be my most important elements in life, thus resulting in my true awareness of myself.

My career in food and hospitality is approaching my ultimate challenge. We, my husband and two siblings, will be taking possession of a commercial residential property here in Spencerville in January 2016.

We are forecasting the opening of a smaller food & retail establishment for spring 2017.

I could go on and on about how awesomely excited I am, and not to mention, how my mind and soul are blown away by the support and enthusiasm of this community. It is a true gift and honour.

Instead I will simply say this for now: I am very thankful and blessed to have the support and encouragement of my husband, who reminds me often as to how amazing I am; my brother, who has for years encouraged and mentored me into seeing ideas, goals and my objectives through; my beautiful sister who is always my sounding board, and she shows me, and she allows me to see and take a different perspective on things. They continue to express their pride and their love for my journey and me. Together we hold strong, together we will achieve, and together we believe.

What would you tell your older self?

“You lived with no regrets.” If given the choice, if I could go back and change anything, my answer would be “No!” This journey, this life, if I changed one thing, I wouldn’t be who I am or what I stand for today.

What is your favourite saying?

“Communication it is the key that unlocks everything!” I don’t respect or appreciate assumptions. I believe that when we choose to communicate effectively, there is less room for misunderstanding, an opportunity to understand and respect one another’s thoughts, feelings and visions. I believe when you look into someone’s eyes when they are speaking, it opens your ears, your heart and allows you to truly appreciate and grasp what is being said.

My final note: Thank you for the nomination. It truly came as a surprise. I was with my mother when I got the news and her immediate response was, “I am so proud of you!”

Thank you for enriching my life. Thank you for your ongoing support. Thank you for providing me this safe place. My utmost respect and appreciation to you all. Thank you!

Pierrette Raymond

Pierrette Raymond is a multi-business owner and philanthropist. She has been running businesses since 1996, and has a background in Psychology, Education, Grief and Bereavement. She is the owner of 1-800-GOT-JUNK? Ottawa and Gatineau, and recently became a professional dog trainer with multiple certifications in dog behaviour and training. She is a four-time published author, speaker, facilitator, a community leader and also a member of the Forbes Coaches Council. She is the recipient of the Ontario Leading Women Building Communities award, given by the Government of Ontario to women in our province "who demonstrate exceptional leadership in working to improve the lives of others in their communities”. And she is a a Forty Under 40 Award Recipient.