Paula de RondePaula de Ronde was born on the fabled island of Jamaica. She arrived in Canada in 1967, a time of celebration for the country and for her. She completed her Master's degree at the University of Toronto to become a librarian who would work with childrn, teenagers and adults for almost 30 years. In the process, she rose in the ranks to become a leader at Toronto Public Library, one of the largest public institutions of its kind in the world, and in the national and international forums of librarianship.

Her successful professional life opened volunteer opportunities to foster and advocate for a diverse number of people and causes. She passionately supported literacy and the significance of libraries to the lives of people in their communities. Her efforts for the black community in Canada are legion. Awards and recognition endorse it all. She was profiled and published in Jamaicans In Canada: When Ackee Meets Codfish, a book honouring the achievements and contributions of Canadians of Jamaican origin to their adopted home.

She married Hubertus (Bert) de Ronde, who had come to Canada from the Netherlands to build his own successful courier business. Their life together has been filled with joy including world travel that has become so extensive, it is its own story. They have shared life with two spectacular boys, living highs and lows that defy description.

Her advocacy and leadership has now taken an unexpected and dramatic shift with the contraction of Alzheimer's by her Bert. The disease has drawn her into a cauldron of new issues from long term care to the exigencies of the disease itself. A lifetime of experience is now immersed in the most human of all her journeys as she observes, prods, enlightens and challenges the strange shadows of this unfathomable disease.

She is a 2022 Honouree: 100 Accomplished Black Canadian Women.

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