Celebrate International Women’s Day with Public Culture’s Leading Ladies!

At Sassy Mama we’re all about celebrating women! So to mark International Women’s Day on March 8^th (that’s tomorrow!) we teamed up with Public Culture for their #LeadingLady Campaign to shed some light on fantastic females around Asia. Hundreds of women submitted inspirational and uplifting stories and every entry was touching and heartwarming.

From friends and family, to helpers and minders this campaign was open to everyone… because as we all know, it takes a village to raise a child! We picked a few of our favourites to share with you and hope you love them too. Tissues at the ready mama, these anecdotes might bring a tear or two to your eye!

We’ve been inspired by this campaign and hope you spend today celebrating your best friend, magical mother, wonderful workmate or darling daughter! So make a date with your own leading lady, take them for a special treat and most of all have fun on International Women’s Day!

Sandy

The most inspiring women I know are my cousins, Sharon and Elaine, who are like my sisters! Sharon dedicates all her time to her two sons and is the most amazing and hands-on Generation X mum that I’ve met. Elaine is a strong independent woman who focuses on her career. She’s successful, knowledgeable, and good at what she does. I would like them to know that they’ve made me a better person. They’re my role models and I hope to be a combination of both.

Karina

The most inspiring woman I know is my grandmother. She is wonderful to me because she is a Perankan matriarch with a heart of gold! I want her to know that her unconditional love has inspired me to take care of others as she does.

Shi Hui

The most inspiring woman I know is Low Lai Choo, my mother. She’s awesome because she practically brought my two sisters and I up singlehandedly while my dad toiled overseas. She also seems to know the answer to everything! I want her to know that she’s the best mum any girl could ever ask for and her nagging is music to my ears… most of the time!

Elin

The most inspiring woman I know is Leung Yuet Kiew, my mother. She inspires me because her children have always been her priority, through the good times and the bad. She’s given us the best of everything – food, clothes, care, education etc. by sacrificing a lot in her own life. Because of her I now know what selfless love is. I would like her to know that even though I caused her a lot of heartache growing up, I know there is no one like her. I couldn’t have asked for a better mum.

Phoebe

The most inspiring woman I know is Joyce, my mom. She believes that nothing is too big to handle, too broken to fix or too impossible to believe. I want her to know that she’s given to me unreservedly and I can’t wait for the day I can do the same for her.

Sin

The most inspiring woman I know is my dearest granny who brought me up since I was a noisy little chatterbox. She survived the Japanese Occupation, went through hardship, and sacrificed her dreams to bring her children and grandchildren up. Her giving spirit and ability to live frugally and save money for the important things in life are traits that have helped me tackle my own problems. I want to tell her thank you for always taking care of me, cooking my favourite dishes and helping me through all the different phases of my life. She is always ‘on call’ whenever I need her and for that I am truly grateful. Thank you so much, Popo!

Audrie

The most inspiring woman I know is my darling mum. She inspires me because she has battled the world with her bare hands, but still chooses humanity and hope in the face of suffering. Her tenacity and imperfect love inspires me to love life and all that it offers. I want her to know that after all that we’ve been through, she’ll always be the one I turn to!