Strong Wagga women raising even stronger daughters

Among those three influential women was her mother Kylie Carroll, a strong and fierce character who is motivated every day to be the best role model she can be for her daughter.

Ava, 11, said the asset she's most inspired by when it comes to her mother is her bravery, a trait put to good use when delivering her power speech to a room full of people.

"I think it's really exciting and good to speak out and to be able to look around at all the people here who change people's lives," Ava said.

Kylie said being raised by a strong woman herself has made her who she is and now it is her mission to raise her daughter to be even stronger.

"It's important for me because I've lived all of over Australia so therefore I've experienced many walks of life, I've worked in many levels professionally," she said.

"The important thing to note is to practise what we preach in the example that we talk about setting for our daughters and the advice we give our girlfriends.

"In any situation, I look at it and say, is this acceptable to be telling my daughter, what would I be telling her to do?

"I think regionally we have a very good opportunity to do that with the Country Women's Association and things like that."

Event emcee Nic McHenry handpicked the three guest speakers, which also included Rachel Whiting and Jane Robertson.

Ms McHenry said when tasked with picking the guest speakers she wanted to find women who were relatable and could tell a similar story but differently.

"It's as much about their achievements and what they do every day and the fact that they come from fairly diverse backgrounds but I know the work they do is fairly similar," she said.

The event was organised by Member for Wagga Joe McGirr and the Country Women's Association of NSW.

Royal Australasian College of Surgeons president, associate professor Kerin Fielding, was the keynote speaker at the event.

The guest speakers spoke on three topics including innovation, inspiration and inclusion.

"International Women's Day is a great opportunity to celebrate the achievements of women around the world and right here in the Wagga electorate," Dr McGirr said.

"With its core themes of 'innovation, inspiration and inclusion', the day is a powerful vehicle to raise awareness about discrimination and take action to drive gender parity - and because inclusivity is at its heart, it's something that everyone can support.

"Locally, it celebrates those women who've made a difference in their community and I'm looking forward to announcing the local woman of the year among a field of talented women who are leading the way towards creating a better, fairer world without discrimination or stereotypes."