Michael Allen
President and CEO
United Way / Centraide Ottawa

Michael was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and after 22 years in this community he now calls Ottawa home. Following a career that saw Michael practising law and then working on Parliament Hill, Michael was drawn to United Way/Centraide by the opportunity to help others in his adopted community. For Michael, what really sealed the deal was the ice storm, which took place during his first year at United Way/Centraide. “At a time when the community really had to pull together, United Way/Centraide didn’t seem to have a role in helping during that disaster,” says Michael. “I wanted United Way/Centraide to be thought of as a place where the community could turn to in these different times of need. More and more often, that’s happening today.” Michael gets involved in other ways in his community, a committed soccer dad, he has also been a fundraiser for his children’s hockey teams. For Michael, working at United Way/Centraide is a constant source of inspiration. “Our volunteers are here helping out in their spare time and our staff is extremely committed and motivated. We share a common goal of helping others in their community.”.

DENNIS JACKSON*
Board Chair, United Way/Centraide Ottawa
District Vice-President, Scotiabank 

Originally from Northern Ontario, Dennis’ job took him across central and eastern Canada before he settled in Ottawa for the long term. As someone who personally benefited from the work of United Way/Centraide in the late ’80s, he was keen to want to demonstrate his thanks in a tangible way: “A provider suggested that one day I could return the favour by helping out. When that day arrived, I was thrilled to help make a difference.” Dennis plans to continue to volunteer for many tomorrows to come. “A volunteer friend of mine is 88 years old; I’m aiming for at least 99,” he says. For Dennis, the best part of working as a volunteer is “knowing that individually and collectively we can, and do, make a difference; we are helping to make Ottawa the best place in which to live, work and play.”

JAMES McCRACKEN*
Director of Education & Secretary Treasurer
Ottawa Catholic School Board

Campaign Chair

Mr. McCracken has been with the Ottawa Catholic School Board for 20 years in several capacities, having arrived from the Dufferin-Peel Catholic School Board.  He has served the Ottawa Catholic School Board as Vice-Principal, Principal, Supervisory Officer/Superintendent of Schools in several families of schools and a number of portfolios including Information Technology, Continuing Education and Staff Development, Evaluation and Research, before assuming the role of Deputy Director and Assistant Secretary-Treasurer in 2000.

In 2003, Mr. McCracken was appointed Director of Education and Secretary-Treasurer.

Mr. McCracken is an active member in the Ottawa community and education sector with the following organizations:

Chairperson, Campaign Cabinet United Way for 2009
Chairperson, Success By 6
Member of the Board of Directors, Shepherds of Good Hope
President, Catholic Education Foundation of Ottawa
President, Nectar Foundation

Mr. McCracken is widely recognized for his organization and communication skills and continues to be approached as a keynote speaker for both national and international conferences.

On a personal note, Mr. McCracken has been married to Colleen for thirty-four years and they have three children.  His recreational interests include music and art.

MARK SUTCLIFFE*
Past Chair, United Way/Centraide Ottawa
Columnist/Broadcaster, Ottawa Citizen/CFRA

ERIC GIRARD*
Treasurer
Partner, Deloitte
Assurance and Advisory Public Sector

CATHERINE LANE*
Chair, Community Services Cabinet
Community Volunteer

Originally from Alberta, Catherine has lived across Canada. “I grew up with United Way,” she says. “It was part of my mother’s volunteer work, so it really has been a part of my life.” Catherine knows that United Way/Centraide brings strength to the community and when she was planning her retirement, she knew that United Way/Centraide was where she wanted to devote her time. “I believe in what the organization is doing and how it is evolving,” says Catherine. Learning about community issues and working with the committed and motivated staff at United Way/Centraide are two things that keep Catherine committed to the movement. The most important reason though is the way the organization touches so many people in the community.

DAVE SEIBEL*
Chair, Resource Development
Past Chairman, Accenture Canada Inc.

SAL IACONO
2008 Campaign Chair
Senior Vice President (Retired), Bell

Sal was born in Belgium and was just a child when his family emigrated to Canada. The family settled in Montreal and Sal moved to Ottawa when he joined Bell Canada. A long-time United Way/Centraide supporter and donor, Sal became a volunteer member of the Campaign Cabinet in 2005 and in 2008 he is the campaign chair. “My experience has been absolutely wonderful. It was the right thing for me. I am delighted to be associated with United Way/Centraide because of the great impact we make in our community.” For Sal, the best part of being a volunteer for United Way/Centraide is “knowing that our work makes a huge difference today in the lives of many people and it builds opportunities for brighter and better futures.”

RICK GIBBONS*
Chair, Operations Committee
Publisher & CEO, The Ottawa Sun

JANET YALE*
Chair, Board Development
Executive Vice-President, Corporate Affairs
TELUS Communications Company

CHANTAL BERNIER*
Assistant Privacy Commissioner
Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada

A native of Quebec, Chantal strongly believes in human solidarity as the only way to develop fairness between the most and less fortunate people in our community.  She says, “United Way/Centraide provides an accountable, strategic process that supports this solidarity. It is an organization that fulfills its goals in an exemplary manner.” Chantal has been involved in charitable work for more than 30 years and has no plans to stop. For Chantal, the best part of being a United Way/Centraide volunteer is “the inspiration that comes from dealing with the expert and dedicated staff and volunteers, and the joy of seeing pain and misery diminished and in some cases eliminated.”

KAREN WILLIAMS
Director, Product Operations
Business Intelligence & Performance Management
IBM Software Group

With more than two decades of experience in the high tech industry, Karen Williams oversees operations, business transformation and communications for the Business Intelligence & Performance Management (BI & PM) Products organization at IBM Software Group. Ms. Williams leads process adoption, management and transformation to support product development and delivery for the BI & PM segment.  She is also responsible for facilitating portfolio investment and driving management decision-making to realize the BI & PM strategy for growth and innovation.

Previously, Ms. Williams served as Vice President, Product Marketing at Cognos, which was acquired by IBM in 2008. In this position, she led Cognos product marketing initiatives focused on the strategic application of business intelligence and corporate performance management solutions. Working in partnership with key executives and decision-makers within the Global 3,500, Ms. Williams and her team established and delivered the solution vision for Cognos.  Ms. Williams also held several other management positions throughout her 13 year career at Cognos. Prior to joining Cognos in 1996, Ms. Williams held both business and technical roles in the technology sector including at Fujitsu Canada and Symantec.

THOMAS C. BARBER
Partner, Burke~Robertson LLP

MICHEL BILODEAU
President & CEO, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario

Michel is originally from Quebec City and has lived in Ottawa since 1983. In his role at CHEO, Michel has a birds’-eye view into the needs of the community. Volunteering at United Way/Centraide is a natural fit for Michel and he plans to be active in his community for a very long time. Why? Because he sees United Way/Centraide’s results in the community in which he lives and works.

DR. NALIN BHARGAVA

Dentist

Since graduating as a Doctor of Dental Surgery from the University of Toronto in 1987, Dr. Nalin Bhargava has held leadership positions as chairman of the Ontario Dental Association’s Membership Services Committee (1997) and president of the Ottawa Dental Society (2001). Since 2003, he has been a member of Ottawa’s Bytown Dental Study Club and has donated his time to many other Ottawa-area charities. Nalin’s community involvement includes member of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute 1991 telethon committee, co-chairman of the Ottawa Dental Society–Ottawa Hospital 2001 fundraising gala and member of the Canadian Cancer Society’s 2005 Relay for Life organizing committee. For the past three years, he has been a member of the Bruyère Continuing Care Foundation Board. Since 2006, Nalin has chaired the Maharaja’s Ball, one of Ottawa’s newest and most popular charity events, which supports a range of community organizations.

CASSIE DOYLE
Deputy Minister, Natural Resources Canada

A native of Canada’s west coast, Cassie is passionate about how she can help to build a community in which everyone is proud to call home. Earlier in her career, she volunteered with Oxfam Canada as a member of the board and as its chair in 2002. Cassie was chair of the Government of Canada Workplace Charitable Campaign (GCWCC) in 2007. In this position, she saw firsthand “the great alignment between the work of United Way/Centraide and the values of the public service.” A committed volunteer to United Way/Centraide, Cassie says, “It’s important to connect to our community. I am proud to be helping to build a compassionate and inclusive community on both a local and national basis. I absolutely intend to stay involved for years to come.”

ROBERT GILLETT
President & CEO, Algonquin College

An Ottawa native, Robert was thrilled to be invited to join United Way/Centraide Ottawa’s board as a volunteer. He considers this an important organization that is doing terrific work for his community. For Robert, the best part of volunteering with United Way/Centraide is learning more about his community. He says “United Way/Centraide teaches how our help means so much and makes a difference for so many in our community.”  

KAREN GREEN
A/Senior General Counsel & Executive Director
Federal Centre for Workplace
Conflict Management
Department of Justice Canada

SCOTT HANNANT
News Director, CTV News, Ottawa

A Toronto native, Scott has lived all over the world. In 1988 Scott and his wife decided that Ottawa was a great place to raise their children. Scott got involved with United Way/Centraide because of the work that is carried out for so many organizations. He says, “United Way/Centraide is like the hub of a wheel with charitable spokes extending its work into many parts of our community.” For Scott, volunteering is a lifelong vocation, and during his travels has also volunteered for other charitable organizations, including Child and Youth Friendly Ottawa, Child Haven and children’s causes in India, Nepal, Tibet and Bangladesh.

MARIA FITZPATRICK
Regional Executive
Vice-President of the National Capital Region

Maria began her career in the Federal Government in 1982 with Transport Canada, moving to the Correctional Service of Canada in 1983.  She remained in the field of Corrections until June 2008 at which time she was elected as the Regional Executive Vice-President for the Public Service Alliance of Canada, responsible for the National Capital Region.  Prior to being elected to this position, Maria was an active member of the Regional Women's Committee, Education Committee and was an Alliance Facilitator in Ottawa and well as in Edmonton.  In addition, while in Edmonton, she was a member of the May Works Committee.  Maria was part of the Volunteer United Way team in her workplace in Ottawa and in Edmonton.  Her  educational background includes four years at Memorial University of Newfoundland in the field of Education and Physical Education, a Diploma in 'Train the Trainer' (teaching adults) from St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, NS, along with a multitude of courses through the union and the employer over the last 26 years.

ZUL KHOJA
Education & Mediation Consultant

From his childhood in the Asiatic Bazaar — a segregated area of Pretoria — Zul an apartheid survivor, has been a life-long volunteer. “I am proud to be associated with United Way/Centraide,” he says. “As a life-long learner, I continue to grow with United Way/Centraide. Who knows where I may be able to apply what I’ve learned in establishing another such organization in South Africa … or elsewhere?”

STEVE KANELLAKOS
Deputy City Manager of
City Operations
City of Ottawa

Steve Kanellakos is the Deputy City Manager of City Operations at the City of Ottawa.  Steve is responsible for over 11,500 city employees, with a budget of $1.3 billion.  Steve oversees the operations and delivery of services to residents of Ottawa, such as fire, paramedic, social services, recreation and culture, surface operations, traffic and parking, and corporate support services.

Steve has held several senior positions during his 23 years in municipal government within the Ottawa region.  These include 15 years with municipal police services as Director of Administration, Gloucester Police Service and Director General of Corporate Services, Ottawa-Carleton Regional Police.  In 2000, Steve was appointed General Manager of Emergency and Protective Services for the newly amalgamated City of Ottawa.  In 2004, Steve was appointed Deputy City Manager of Community and Protective Services and in 2008, he was appointed Deputy City Manager of City Operations, both with the City of Ottawa.  In each one of his appointments, Steve has been responsible for leading significant change and amalgamation of numerous services.  Steve is currently focused on ensuring that city services are client focused and financially responsible.

Steve has a Masters of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Administration (Honours) from Carleton University.

LYNNE CLARK
Director of Marketing
Ottawa Citizen

As Director of Marketing for the Ottawa Citizen, Lynne manages marketing, promotions and external communications as well as the papers community investment. In addition, she oversees the regional implementation of Canwest’s corporate programs, Raise a Reader and the Canspell Spelling Bee.  Lynne’s community activities include the Citizen’s Literacy Foundation Board, the United Way Campaign Cabinet, the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce and the Bruyere Continuing Care Foundation Board. She previously served a term on the United Way/Centraide Ottawa Board of Directors from 2004 – 2008.  Lynne is past Chair of the Newspaper Business Development Network Board (Chicago) where she received the Helms-Colluci Award in 2007 for her leadership in the newspaper industry.

MARC QUESNEL
President, QMR Staffing Solutions Inc.

MEENA ROBERTS
Management Consultant

ELIZABETH ROSCOE
Executive Vice President
Strategic Policy & Public Affairs Planning, Canadian Association of Broadcasters

Elizabeth was born and raised in Ancaster, Ontario, a small community that has instilled many of the values she sees reflected in Ottawa — community support, strong personal support groups and an active and engaged community. For Elizabeth, United Way/Centraide epitomizes community-building. Many of her friends and colleagues have been involved in Ottawa’s charitable organizations, and Elizabeth says, “United Way/Centraide is a great fit. For me, the best part of being a volunteer is learning about the difference we can make on a daily basis in our community.”

SHEILA STANISLAWSKI
Senior Director,
Civic Institute of Professional Personnel

Born in Montreal, Sheila has lived in several North American cities but considers herself an Ottawan-by-marriage. Sheila decided to get involved with United Way/Centraide and in a number of other boards and charitable causes because she feels that its important to lead by example. Sheila strongly believes in community and sees herself as a role model for other members of the community and her own family. For Sheila, the best part of being a United Way/Centraide volunteer is ‘yet to come.’

NATHALIE THIRWALL
Co-Chair, Interfaith Ottawa
President of Capital Region Interfaith Council

Nathalie, a Montreal native, has called Ottawa home since the early 1970s. Her work with United Way/Centraide is one way that she can put her faith — the call for service to others and promoting the well-being of humanity — into action. Nathalie has devoted her time and career to working with a wide range of people to build capacity and develop our community. She believes that social transformation brings positive and lasting change, and plans to continue this work: “Because systemic issues cannot be solved in isolation, United Way/Centraide plays a vital role in bringing the different aspects of community together to find solutions. This is an extremely powerful experience.”

MARY ANN TURNBULL
Director, Turnbull School

MICHELLE VALBERG
Owner, Valberg Imaging

Michelle is an Ottawa native who’s been involved in many local charities. She had heard wonderful things about volunteering with United Way/Centraide, so when she was invited to participate she seized the opportunity. Michelle plans to stay involved with United Way/Centraide for as long as she can. According to Michelle, the best part of being a volunteer is the chance to give back to community.

DEBORAH WEINSTEIN
Founding Partner, LaBarge Weinstein, LLP

WAYNE WOUTERS
Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet
Office of the Privy Council