Congratulations Mary M. Reid!
January 30, 2026
We’re thrilled to congratulate Mary Reid, our former (and first ever) Executive Director, on receiving this well-deserved and prestigious award! 🎉
Ms. Reid – your leadership, dedication, and lasting impact continue to inspire our organization and the wider community. We’re so proud of all you’ve accomplished and grateful for the foundation you helped build. Congratulations on this incredible achievement!
For more than 40 years, Mary Reid has been a devoted advocate for advancing the rights of persons with disabilities in Newfoundland and Labrador. Working at community, municipal, provincial and federal levels, she has shaped policies, legislation and programs to reflect the inherent rights of people to have equitable access.
Ms. Reid began her work in 1982 in a leadership role with Civic #4, a transitional residence for people with physical disabilities. It was here that she championed independence and individual choice and guided the organization through its transformation into an Independent Living Resource Centre.
Ms. Reid’s early work was one of creating partnerships with other organizations, individuals and government offices. This approach carried on throughout her career.
Ms. Reid was also active on the national scene, contributing to the work of organizations which promoted the disability rights and independent living movements.
Ms. Reid took a leadership role within the City of Ottawa as their first Accessibility Officer, to assist in their preparations for provincial accessibility legislation. She then returned to the province to join the public service of the provincial government as the first director of a new Disability Policy Office. Ms. Reid brought her leadership and advocacy work into this role as she and her office worked across government departments to improve services, communications, decision-making processes, policies and legislation. Her work focused on changing the environment so people with disabilities had equitable access. Ms. Reid led the province’s first Inclusion strategy and three-year action plan: both designed to identify, remove and prevent barriers experienced by people with disabilities.
Throughout her career, Ms. Reid worked collaboratively with disability organizations and governments to identify and remove barriers – barriers that are physical, systemic and attitudinal.
Ms. Reid served as Vice-Chairperson of Accessibility Standards Canada – a federal government corporation established to develop accessibility standards. Once again, this was in an inaugural role, where she brought leadership and advocacy into the initial establishment of a new initiative.
More recently, Ms. Reid, with Joanne MacDonald, co-led the History of Disability Rights project. Through this initiative, the stories, experiences and milestones of disabilities rights within the province are preserved in perpetuity. Future organizations, policy and decision-makers, researchers, academics, and the public can access video oral histories and documents that record the experiences, decisions, ups and downs of a continuing quest for securing the rights of persons with disabilities.
Ms. Reid’s unwavering commitment to disability justice left an impact on the landscape of inclusion in Newfoundland and Labrador. Her commitment to placing lived experience at the centre of policy, legislation and services encourages and reminds decision makers of this essential element. Ms. Reid’s work and advocacy contributed to a growing culture of equity, accessibility and inclusion.
(photo from the Facebook page of Lieutenant Governor Joan Marie J. Aylward; biography content from Government of Newfoundland and Labrador press release, Jan. 27, 2026)