Carolyn-Marie Goodwin

Despite several hardships in her life, Patrick Fogarty Catholic Secondary School graduate Carolyn-Marie Goodwin has made it her mission to give back to those in need.

After years of traumatic spousal abuse and nearly becoming homeless, Carolyn-Marie uses her experience to spread awareness with her charitable organization, Uplifting Blessings.

In 2018, Carolyn-Marie began working for the Carpenters Union in Toronto and witnessed homelessness everyday. Returning to Orillia, she realized that her hometown wasn’t much different. As a result, Uplifting Blessings was created, and has grown to include Bags of Hope, Comfort Baskets, Adult and Youth Clothing Drives, and Suitcases of Love - which aid homeless and vulnerable persons, children in the foster care system, and women experiencing domestic violence.

Carolyn-Marie is also the owner of Timberwolf Custom Carpentry. In addition to regular carpentry and construction jobs, she dedicates a portion of her time to fix property damage as a result of domestic abuse incidents at a discount rate. A portion of Timberwolf’s profits also goes to Uplifting Blessings.

As a regular speaker at schools and youth groups, Carolyn-Marie advocates for service to the homeless and vulnerable, promotes women in the trades, and shares her life story. Her goal is to inspire others to seek help in troubled times, find hope in adverse situations, to serve the community, and to pursue one’s passion and dreams, regardless of circumstances or gender.

For all of her incredible efforts, Carolyn-Marie was nominated for the City of Orillia Citizen of the Year, in 2019 and 2020. Most recently, Carolyn-Marie was awarded the 2020 Nelle Carter Woman of the Year award by the Orillia Business Women’s Association.