Transforming Lives: Learners at AU
Brandi Morpurgo: A life full of books
It’s a space for the people who have provided support and encouragement throughout their journey. It’s also a forum for sharing how AU is helping them achieve their educational goals and realize their future potential. Their stories are worth shouting from the rooftops! Have an inspiring story of your own to share? Email us! We’d love to hear it.
I am an Athabasca University (AU) student, a wife, mom, and business owner.
Currently enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts program, I have five classes to go before I graduate. Being an AU student has allowed me to juggle all the roles in my life without feeling overwhelmed.
Previously, I had been a social worker, but the freedom to pursue learning while owning a business fuelled by passion was too difficult to fit into such a boxed-up, emotional, nine-to-five life.
I have learned how to manage my time thanks to the self-discipline required to succeed in my studies and assignments, in my own time. This has been so beneficial to balancing a family, business, and student life. AU has encouraged success as a student without sacrificing my other priorities.
Not only am I studying English literature, I am also the owner of Daisy Chain Book Co.—a new and used bookstore dedicated to creating a community of readers.
What started as a mobile book truck and transformed into a book shop has all been a bit of a wild dream that became a reality in 2018. Books and stories have been a foundational part of my life for as long as I can remember. The dream of driving into communities and offering used books to eager readers was something that never left my mind.
And while shuffling from book truck to book store during a pandemic may have seemed like a bizarre endeavour, the book community that supported the truck came along with us on this adventure to the bookshop. I am so grateful for that.
“Our mantra is “creating a community of readers” because people need people—especially during this these wildly uncertain and exhausting times. Community is more valuable than ever. ”
– Brandi Morpurgo
I am grateful that AU allows me to take a break from my studies while I focus on the store’s growth, my daughters (who are also AU students), the evolution of my podcast, The Bookshop Chronicles, and my passion for Edmonton’s readers.
The liberty and permission I have become accustomed to through my AU pursuits have taught me to thrive in out-of-the-box thinking. I’m so grateful for the chance to pursue a degree in something I am enthusiastic about without having to choose between being a parent, a business owner, or a student.
