Seeing my grandmother was always something I looked forward to when Christmas rolled around. Unchanging in her ways, I knew what to expect in our time together–cooking a little, hiking a little. I always had the impression that she knew everything and could teach me anything; I also always knew that behind all her pragmaticism she cared deeply for our family. But I hardly had time to really understand where she developed her distinct ways and values. This project was an amazing chance for me to really see her for everything she’s been through during her 81 years on earth.

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My grandmother, Jean, was born in 1943 in Glasgow, Scotland. Her parents lived apart at this time because her father was in the British Royal Air Force for 5 years as a radar operator in the Shetland Islands during WW2. Despite the war and its implications on her family, she remembers feeling happy as a child because of the close community and friends in Glasgow.

At age 5, Jean started school near Manchester, England. At age 11, she passed the “eleven-plus” examination, a requirement at the time, that determined whether  students entered either the grammar school or trade school. My grandmother felt lucky that she was able to receive a relatively well-rounded education in the grammar school, whereas many others did not. Her father, for example, only attended school up to the age of 13, after which he worked his way up in a Manchester textile company. As Jean was growing up, she had the impression that her father–despite receiving only minimal formal education–was very “self educated” with a wide-ranging knowledge of history, books and nature. These values, Jean said, rubbed off on her and her outlook on life was mostly captivated by adventure and curiosity about the world.

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At age 15, Jean had to choose only 3 related subjects to study for the last years of highschool. Although at this time, Jean was mostly occupied with her love of violin, music, and playing squash, she chose chemistry, physics and math. She chose these subjects out of vague interest and practicality–she never expected science would eventually become one of her biggest passions in life. My grandmother regretted, however, that the education system at that time meant that she was unable to experience a broader education that would have included history and literature.

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At age 18, my grandmother went to Bedford College, an all girls college of the University of London where she continued to study chemistry.The curriculum was very focused and did not include any courses other than chemistry and physics. Subsequently, she worked at a pharmaceutical company, but after one year she was encouraged by her boss to apply for the PhD program in Biochemistry at the University of Pittsburgh in the US. Studying science at such a high level was something Jean had never seriously considered, but seemed like an adventure to her. Consequently, in 1965, my grandmother began the challenge of studying biochemistry in a completely new country. On the first day, she took the elevator to her new lab on the 6th floor with a stranger who struck up a conversation with her about his recent travels to England. This chap was a PhD student working in the lab next to hers, and they became close friends. They married two years later (1967) in England. Marriage was a custom at the time, so my grandmother was glad to have her husband, Dennis–someone with whom she shared mutual respect, but could just as well have fun times with.

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Scientific research began to play a very important part in my grandmother's life. Upon completion of the PhD, she and her husband moved to Boston, where Jean was excited to start her new position teaching chemistry in a large university. Despite signing a 2-year contract as a faculty member, she received a letter 3 months later (on christmas eve) telling her that the position had been discontinued. In January, she discovered that her job was actually given to a male colleague of the department head. My grandmother feels that this type of discrimination would not be allowed to happen today.

While she was unemployed, she and Dennis had a son (my father) in Boston, and 2 years later, a daughter in Vancouver, Canada. Daycare was not accessible at the time, so she mostly stayed at home occupied with taking care of her kids. Family remains one of the most important things to my grandmother now, as she has told me many times. Despite doing only a little science during this 10-year period, raising her children made it worth every second.

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Eventually, she began to return to science by working in her husband's lab at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. Strangely, she was not allowed to be paid, as she was his spouse. She remembers facing several snarky comments from men at this time–one from a prominent US scientist who told her that her husband made enough money so that  she did not need to be paid for doing research. In 1987, her husband was recruited to the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. Although no position was available for Jean at the time, she was told that if she obtained a research grant she could become a faculty member. Her grant–despite being  very positively reviewed–was rejected by the most major research granting organization in Canada, on the speculation that “her husband had written it” Frustrated but resilient, she wrote a new grant, and was eventually able to start her own lab. Her dream of pursuing scientific research was finally taking off, and she started teaching students from around the world and publishing research papers for the entire scientific community.

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My grandmother’s research for the past  ~40  years has focused on the production of membranes within cells. Her major discovery began to explain how water-insoluble lipid molecules (that are required to build cell membranes) are transported through the liquid (water) cytosol of the cell . She showed that the part of the cell where the lipid is made physically comes into contact with the part of the cell where the lipid is required. In the early 1990s, my grandmother’s idea was originally greeted with skepticism; she remembers how others confronted her at conferences at that time. Not until the 2000’s did her research on lipid movement within cells become widely accepted and universally studied. In 2023, the European Molecular Biology Organization established an award “The Jean Vance Award” in her honor, to be awarded to scientists doing novel research on how lipids move in cells. She is now retired, but enjoys reading scientific papers, traveling to conferences and seeing how science continues to flourish and expand from where it once was.

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In her 81 years, my grandmother said that a lot of changes did occur around the world that she didn’t expect when growing up in England. Globally, she has been disappointed to see how violently split certain communities have become–places like the United States, which used to be regarded as a welcoming place for new people, innovation, and ideas. She reflects that if she had another chance at life, she would do more to persuade people about the importance of  “the truth.”

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In her own life she experienced changes she didn’t expect for herself, for example becoming serious about science was something she never dreamed of during her student days. Advice my grandmother has emphasized to me about my own future, not just during my conversation with her, has been “do what you love doing.” Reflecting back, she realizes how lucky she has been to hold this value throughout her life, and she hopes that everybody someday can have the same chance.