Belief in herself led executive to success

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You know this woman, maybe. She is a Cree Metis from Grande Prairie who came to Edmonton to make a big success of herself.

Leona Yurkoski, born Ferguson, sits serenely in her downtown office, looking over the highrises. She has supplied temporary office workers for the businesses in them for 13 years, six of them as manager of Kelly Temporary Services. She had the early help of her mother in setting her goals, and she used it to come to her full potential in business, family, and community.

Yurkoski is a petite woman who looks younger than her 40 years. She has small nose, almond-shaped dark eyes and fine brown skin, which gives her an Oriental appearance, a source of humor to her. When customers think she might be Japanese, she laughs.

"Their whole body makes an adjustment when I tell them I am Native. There is disbelief that a woman like me is Native.

"I ran across discrimination all my life, but you can't let that stop you. It was easy for me to get ahead, because hard work was easy for me. I was not swayed much, because I always had goals."

Still, she believes it is her parents who started her out by giving her realistic goals, clear expectations, and a belief in what she had to offer.

Family alcoholism and poverty are typical for many of our Aboriginal families, believes Yurkoski.

"My mother and father were both alcoholics. We were dirt poor. We knew we were a visible minority. But my mother gave a clear idea of what she wanted, and that we had to work hard to get ahead in the world. My mother had absolute faith we would have a better life."

Despite her mother's hard life, her message to Yurkoski was consistent and realistic.

"I was never overwhelmed by what my parents gave me to do. The important thing was to keep a roof over your head, and if we had that, there shouldn't be any problem. I took on responsibility for my younger sisters. I actually enjoyed the responsibility, and I continued in that same mould all my life.

"Stress is everywhere, but to do a good job, you have to be in control of your emotions. I have worked at that. Showing emotions was not a Native trait, in my family, anyway.

"Sure, there were times I got depressed, but I got through it. After my mother's husband died, she had to go on welfare and stay there. She died about two years ago in a car accident. But those hardships hardened and wisened me, because I always automatically asked, 'How can I turn this problem into a challenge?'"

Yurkoski's career started with a bump, but smoothed out fairly quickly. In 1970, she graduated from Edmonton's Victoria Composite High School. Immediately after high school, she took typing and shorthand at night. Then she got a job with the Metis Association under Stan Daniels, as a liaison with the business community, selling the idea of hiring Native women workers, such as tellers.

"They weren't interested, even in trained Native women. We were ahead of our time. I was so sad, I couldn't work in the area." She quit, thinking she was no good in sales.

Yurkoski's jobs for the next 10 years were secretarial, and those jobs treated her better. She found she preferred working for government and the private sector more than law offices.

In 1980 she started working in the personnel area and stayed with it.

"I had a mentor who believed totally in my skills, maybe even more than I did, and she opened the door to opportunities. I loved filling orders. I hesitated to go into sales, but my boss believed in what I had to offer. And I loved it! I loved sales!" A few years later, they were looking for a manager.

"I was scared, but I applied. By that time, I had worked in the industry for years. I felt comfortable with my level of knowledge. So, in 1988, I started this position as manager. And here I am!"

For Yurkoski, success includes her family life. In 1970, she met her husband, a non-Native, and in 1977, they married. In 1983, they had a son.

"I've been lucky to have a very supportive husband. He's utgoing and smart, all the things I thought I did not have. But I've learned all those things, too.

"I need him because this business, like any, can be stressful, with a lot of pressures, and I need his support at home. He's very involved as a father and community member, and has lots of energy and love to give not just to me, but to all.

"Now I want to give something back." At Christmas, she peeled potatoes and worked at Ben Calf Robe school, and had some contact with the kids, which she enjoyed.

"It's so different from what I normally do here. Native kids are our future, and it's important for them to know they can be successful."