Grace Ibrahima grew up in Trinidad, with very little formal education. As a young woman, she applied, and was accepted to a nursing program in England. She graduated from both Nursing and Midwifery school. While there, she met and married a man who would help her to change the course of her life.

They later immigrated to Canada with their two sons, and she continued her nursing career.

Years after arriving in Canada, she enrolled at McMaster University in the Addiction Studies program and was the recipient of the 1998-1999 (MAPS) McMaster Part-time Student Centennial Award. She invested her monetary prize and partnered with the university to educate students from Eastern Europe about the devastating effects of addiction.

Grace’s turbulent life journey was featured in the Waterloo Region Record, Waterloo Chronicle, Financial Post, CTV and Vision TV.