The Pepper Pod is a non-profit organization that serves our vibrant community of women veterans, soon-to-be veterans and spouses of veterans.

We support women who are transitioning out of the military or RCMP into civilian life, and welcome you wherever you are in your journey—even if your release was many years ago.

The Pepper Pod was founded by Sandra Perron, Canada’s first female infantry officer. It embodies Sandra’s vision of creating a soft and safe space for women to land, come together, bond over shared experience and find support tailored especially for women who served.

Our home base is an inviting cottage nestled in the woods of Quebec’s Gatineau Hills, in Chelsea—a cozy village just 15 minutes from downtown Ottawa. It’s a warm and welcoming retreat centre, complete with a cozy eight-bed bunkie for our signature Lifeshops™. Surrounded by lush maple forests, The Pepper Pod has a firepit, meditation nook, fully-functional kitchen and everything else you need to host a rejuvenating weekend retreat for women.

We do our best to reach as many women as we can with our programs and events, which are available in-person, and through hybrid and virtual delivery. There’s no substitute for human connection though, so we also travel across Canada to deliver programming in person. As a result, there are communities—or “tribes” as we call them—of strong women peppered from coast to coast across Canada.