Inspiration for Activism! 

• Credited as being first lay nurse in North America and the co-founder of Montreal itself.
• Born in France, practiced nursing during 30-years war (1618-1638).
• Came to Canada as a lay person with missionary aspirations. Upon arrival in 1642, she used her home as a hospital to treat sick people.
• 3 years later, with financial support she had obtained in France, she founded the Hotel Dieu hospital in a settlement that became Montreal on a site where today stands a modern Hotel Dieu hospital with statue of Jeanne Mance in front of it.
• Served as hospital administrator for 17 years. During that time, she made 2 more arduous journeys across the Atlantic (at a time when it took 3 months to cross one way), to secure further French funding and staff to care for the patients.

More information here and here