WELSH WOMAN OF THE YEAR 2005

Meet my friend, Lynfa Phillips, living in South Wales who is a very special lady with tremendous energy and intelligence and is one of my role models. In 2005 she was awarded Welsh Woman of the Year and is one of the first Dynamo Role Models attending a short training course in November 2001 following which she began her input to schools in 2002, which is ongoing. On 12th December Lynfa has been invited by the Head Teacher of Tonyrefail School to present special prizes to some of the pupils, in recognition of examinations they sat in the summer of 2007. She will be so proud to attend.

She explained: “These are people who run their own businesses and as such, we are commissioned to go in to schools and present to year 9 and 10 pupils, mainly on entrepreneurialship. We try to change the culture from a ‘can't do’, to a ‘can do’ attitude. Of course many of the pupils know the path they wish to take, but for others, it is opening up the paths of feasibility and possibility. I tell them if I could do it at 62 with NO Experience, think of what they can do, the world is their oyster. I love it!” At this age, Lynfa took over a company trading with Tokyo AND learned the language, too. What a girl!

Lynfa is inspirational to people of all ages. Earlier this year, she was asked to be the Team Facilitator for Team Japan, which is in the Millennium Centre Cardiff as part of the 2007 Global Enterprise Challenge. 13 countries participated. America won. She visited the school in Kyoto in November.

She is a board member of Groundwork Merthyr, Rhondda, Cynon, Taff. They are twinned with Japan and this was the reason she was asked to join the board, representing the private sector and sharing her knowledge of Japan and their culture. Lynfa has achieved so much certainly over the last decade and it looks as if this coming year will be even busier. Will try to keep up with Lynfa and her fascinating life.