I am Ann Marie Blaise
Ann-Marie Blaise, a passionate advocate for dignity and respect, built her career on a foundation of resilience and curiosity. Growing up in Trinidad and Tobago, her early experiences with bullying fueled a deep interest in human behavior. This led her to pursue a B.Sc. in Behavioral Science and an M.Sc. in Counselling Psychology. Her career journey includes roles as a Guidance Officer, lecturer, and Care Coordinator, culminating in her current position as a school social worker. Today, she continues to champion the belief that every person, regardless of their background, deserves a voice and to be treated with dignity. She is a proud mother and grandmother who finds joy in creative hobbies like sewing and singing.
My Story
I, Ann - Marie Blaise, was born on July 26th, 1961 in the island of Trinidad and Tobago as the last of nine children to my mother. My early years, as I recall, were ones of just sufficient, never extras. My mother, a single parent, ensured that we were clean, fed and schooled. I grew to appreciate the sacrifices she made and embraced every opportunity given to ensure that I received maximum benefit of what she had to offer.
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At Primary and to a lesser extent, Secondary school, I was the recipient of bullying- primarily due to the color of my skin and the texture of my hair. This resulted in me having very few friends which proved to be a blessing in disguise as I was plunged head on into my studies, often surfacing at the top of my class or close enough to the top. These negative experiences, however, fuelled thoughts about why people behave the way they do, why treat others in such a demeaning manner.
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While my mom and siblings en outraged me to get into a career of nursing, I preferred to delve a little deeper into the thought processes of humankind. This was influenced partly because of my being reared in a single- parent household and the challenges that came with that, coupled with the fact that I felt marginalized, being a person of color with short 4C hair, coming from a home of lower socioeconomic status and having to work doubly/ triply hard to be seen and heard not only by my peers but also by some teachers both in Primary and Secondary school. I spent 15 years in the education system as a Primary school teacher before pursuing my first degree B.Sc. in Behavioral Science followed by an M.Sc. in Counselling Psychology. My training as a Primary school teacher whether my appetite for greater knowledge.
While remaining in the field of education, I switched professions in 2007, becoming a Guidance Officer, a position I held for 12 years. I have also been an adjunct lecturer at one of the nation's Universities in the School of Social Sciences for 10 years. In 2019, I accepted a position as Care Coordinator- a position I held for 5 years in an island in the Dutch Caribbean. This heightened my awareness, knowledge and expertise in the field as I was given the opportunity to travel to Holland to be exposed to different methods. I am currently the school Social Worker at another school in the same region.
I am the proud mother of three adult daughters and the grandmother to two grand children. I enjoy passing my free time by sewing- a skill I am certified to do from one of our technical institutes; Singing- which I partially inherited but went on to master by doing vocal training, doing Sudoku and walking. I believe that all persons, regardless of their skin color or background, should have a voice and treated with dignity and respect as dignity is the foundation upon which respect is built.