Join the Volunteer Canada Board of Directors
Our board of directors is responsible for setting Volunteer Canada’s strategic direction. The board represents a pan-Canadian perspective on volunteering and civic participation. Collectively they bring a breadth of experience and wisdom that is crucial to the development of sound organizational policies and maintenance of good governance.
Gina Jordan
Chair
Gina Jordan is Chair of the Volunteer Canada Board of Directors and previously served as Chair of the organization’s Governance Committee. She is a recognized leader in sustainability, communications, stakeholder engagement, and corporate citizenship, with nearly 30 years of experience spanning the energy, telecommunications, healthcare, and nonprofit sectors.
As Manager, Sustainability and ESG Policy at Enbridge, Gina leads sustainability strategy, reporting, and disclosure and advises senior leaders on stakeholder expectations, reputation, and emerging business issues. Throughout her career, she has held leadership roles in communications, corporate citizenship, stakeholder and Indigenous engagement, and sustainability. She has extensive experience leading volunteer and community engagement programs in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors, with expertise spanning governance, strategic communications, reputation management, stakeholder relations, and community investment.
A lifelong advocate for volunteerism and civic participation, Gina has spent her career helping organizations build trust, strengthen stakeholder relationships, and create lasting social impact. She is honoured to support Volunteer Canada’s mission of advancing volunteerism and fostering a stronger culture of civic participation across Canada.
Lisa Mort-Putland
Past Chair
Lisa Mort-Putland joined Volunteer Victoria as their Executive Director in June 2011. Currently, she volunteers as their Governance and Volunteer Management Specialist. Lisa holds a B.A. in Drama and a Masters in Public Administration with a focus on non-profit management. Prior to working with Volunteer Victoria Lisa was the Development Manager for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Victoria and spent 25 years working and volunteering in the museum and heritage sector.
Matt Erhard
Vice-Chair
Idalin McKenzie
Treasurer
Idalin McKenzie is a distinguished leader in finance, strategy, and business transformation with over 20 years of experience. As the Vice President of Finance and Asset Management at YWCA Hamilton, she provides strategic direction across Finance, IT, and Facilities. With an MBA from the Rotman School of Management and a CPA designation, Idalin brings a strategic mindset, financial leadership, and analytical prowess. Her extensive experience spans diverse sectors, including public and private. She is a dedicated mentor, board director, educator, and recognized speaker. She was named one of WXN’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada in 2023. Idalin’s commitment to excellence drives her impactful contributions to the social services sector.
Ambuj Laroiya
Secretary
A public sector leader for more than 15 years, Ambuj Laroiya grounds his life and work in generosity and compassion.
Ambuj lives in Nova Scotia, where he works at the Halifax Regional Municipality. Ambuj holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering (2007), a CEO award (2014), Mill’s award in marketing (2018), a Douglas C. MacKay award in academic excellence (2019), an MBA from Rowe School of Business at Dalhousie University (2019), and a Board Governance certification from Smith School of Business at Queen’s University (2023).
In his spare time, Ambuj volunteers with United Way Halifax and Karate Nova Scotia, which keeps him educated and informed on the societal issues of health, inclusion, diversity and equity. He is also a facilitator of change, volunteering at the Canadian Centre for Vaccinology, where he was a participant in the testing of the COVID-19 vaccine. Ambuj loves to read African Nova Scotian history and learn about the First Nations Mi’kma’ki peoples of Nova Scotia.
Ambuj makes every day a new day. He believes that life is a journey where mutual learning, empathy, and kindness make us better together.
Louis-Philippe Champagne
Member at Large
LP Champagne is a public affairs executive with over twenty years’ experience in federal, provincial, and municipal politics. He has a proven track record in government relations, strategic communications, and specializes in planning and executing successful advocacy campaigns. His diverse experience across industry associations, non-profit organizations and large corporations provides him with a unique perspective on Canadian public policies and legislative affairs.
His lifelong passion for volunteerism is deeply rooted in his own community engagement in politics, sports, healthcare, and emergency response. As a search and rescue volunteer and a medical first responder, Louis-Philippe had a first-hand opportunity to witness the profound impact of volunteers in our communities. As a champion and advocate for volunteerism and civic participation, he proudly serves as a Board member of Volunteer Canada, where he contributes his leadership and governance experience.
Brooke Cromar
Member at Large
As a senior leader in the non-profit and private sectors, Brooke strives to be a driver of positive change. Currently the Executive Director of the Randstad Foundation and corporate social responsibility lead for Randstad Canada, Brooke is responsible for driving sustainability initiatives and programs, including employee volunteerism, across Canada.
Brooke’s strengths as a big-picture thinker, strong communicator and problem solver were shaped in large part by her experiences working and volunteering on four continents. Now based in Montreal, Brooke is committed to her local community as much as to the global one.
Brooke recently served as the Co-Chair for Volunteer Canada’s Corporate Community Engagement Council, and is currently the Past-Chair. Brooke holds a Bachelor’s degree from St. Francis Xavier University, a Diploma in Environment from McGill University and a Master’s degree from Western University.
Rachel Dick
Member at Large
Rachel Dick is the Director, Member Experience at Coast Capital Savings Federal Credit Union. She has over 20 years of experience in the financial sector in a wide range of roles, including member experience, social purpose, innovation, leadership, retail banking, sponsorship and events, volunteer management, community investment, and corporate campaigns. She previously served as the Co-Chair and past-Chair of Volunteer Canada’s Corporate Community Engagement Council and currently sits on Coast Capital’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Council. Rachel holds a degree in Communications and a certificate in Public Relations from Simon Fraser University.
Tara Gilroy-Scott
Member at Large
Tara Gilroy-Scott has recently stepped out of the Past President role of Volunteer Management Professionals of Canada (VMPC) after spending seven years on its Board of Directors. As the Manager of Community Programs at the Victoria Police Department, Tara oversees all volunteer and community engagement programs for the Victoria Police Department. Tara’s experience in volunteer management extends over 20 years in sectors such as health care, arts, animal welfare and public safety. A graduate in Technical Production from the National Theatre School of Canada, Tara is also very experienced in event management, including leading several national conference committees focused on volunteering and volunteer management best practices.
A native of Calgary and educated in Edmonton and Montreal, Tara now lives in Victoria, BC. She holds her Certification in Volunteer Administration (CVA); completed the Community Learning Program with the Victoria Native Friendship Centre; and was Executive Director for two not-for-profit societies. Her experience includes six years as a member of the Greater Victoria Police Diversity Advisory Committee (GVPDAC) and three years with the Victoria Police Equity Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility Committee (EDIA).
Tara’s career is a testament to her deep commitment to community engagement and has herself been actively volunteering since she was eight years old. Today, she prioritizes recruiting diverse teams, building community trust and providing inclusive high impact experiences for the community.
Farah Kurji
Member at Large
Farah Kurji is a social impact leader with experience spanning Canada, the United States, and Central Asia. Throughout her career, she has worked across diverse cultural and business environments, guided by a belief that business can be a powerful force for positive change.
As Head of Social Impact Business Integration at TD Bank Group, Farah leads a team that helps integrate social impact into business priorities, enables strategic community investment decisions, and measures and applies insights to strengthen and scale impact over time. Since joining TD in 2017, she has held leadership roles across Marketing, Sustainability & Corporate Citizenship, and Canadian Personal Banking, including helping to launch the Bank’s social impact strategy.
Prior to joining TD, Farah worked with Hill+Knowlton Strategies in New York, where she advised organizations on integrating social impact into their core operations. Earlier in her career, she spent four years with Roshan, Afghanistan’s largest telecommunications company and part of the Aga Khan Development Network. The experience shaped her perspective on the role businesses can play in building trust, creating opportunity, and fostering connection in complex environments.
A lifelong volunteer, Farah’s commitment to community is deeply personal, informed by her family’s multi-generational journey as newcomers and entrepreneurs. She serves as Chair of the Steering Committee of Together Project, which supports newcomer and refugee integration through volunteer-based social support programs, and sits on the Board and Governance Committee of Volunteer Canada. She is also a Global Leadership Fellow with the Aga Khan Foundation.
Farah holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School.
Chad Lubelsky
Member at Large
Chad Lubelsky is the Executive Director at Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom - Canada’s oldest progressive synagogue. Previously he was VP, Strategy and Impact at Volunteer Canada, Program Director at the McConnell Foundation, Executive Director at Santropol Roulant developed leadership & community engagement programs for the Millennium Scholarship Foundation, and managed internet rights advocacy for the Association for Progressive Communications. An active volunteer, Chad regularly delivers meals on wheels, is on the Board of Directors of Bread and Beyond , and is the outgoing Chair of the Board at Open North.
Chad has a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Concordia University, and Master Degrees in Leadership from Royal Roads University and in Communications from San Francisco State University.
Laura Manning
Member at Large
Laura Manning throughout her career, Laura has worked in complex environments toward social and community good. As Executive Director of the Lyle S. Hallman Foundation (LSHF), she led a fast-growing, place-based grant maker seeking to build the strength and resilience of children and families in Waterloo Region. Under Laura’s leadership, LSHF shifted from a primary focus on constrained program funding to supporting unrestricted operating, neighbourhood micro granting and organizational capacity.
She facilitated partnerships with government, initiated collaborative granting alongside other funders, and deepened the foundation’s relationships with the community. Laura now shares her skills through Chilligo Consulting, a specialized practice providing supports to nonprofit and philanthropic organizations including strategic advisory services, mentorship for leaders, governance and board development, and deepening grantmaking practice. Laura’s wide experience covers many aspects of the nonprofit sector, including major gift fundraising, communications, program development and change management.
Laura volunteers as a coach to a young board director through the Fora Rise on Boards program. She has served as a board member and Chair of Philanthropic Foundations of Canada. She has played an active role in numerous collaboratives, federally, provincially and regionally, including the Early Child Development Funders Working Group, the Waterloo Region Children & Youth Planning Table and the Waterloo Region Smart Cities initiative.
Dr. Femi Ogunrinde
Member at Large
Femi Ogunrinde, C.Dir, ASC is an accomplished executive leader and community advocate based in Regina, Canada. As CEO of DAZOG Overseas Education Placement Consulting Inc since 2008, he has facilitated the recruitment of over 700 international students to Canada. Dr. Ogunrinde also serves as President/CEO of Lighthouse To All Nations, a faith-based charity focused on community transformation and refugee resettlement.
His extensive governance experience includes serving as Public Representative and Vice-President on the College of Physicians & Surgeons of Saskatchewan Council, Past President of the Canadian Mental Health Association (Saskatchewan), and Provincial representative on the National Board of CMHA. He currently sits on multiple boards, including the South Saskatchewan Community Foundation where he serves as the Vice-Chair. Dr. Ogunrinde holds a Doctor of Healthcare Administration, a PG Cert in Medical Education from Harvard Medical School and is executive fellow of the American College of Health Data Management.
Samantha Reusch
Member at Large
Sam Reusch is the current Executive Director of Apathy is Boring, a national, non-partisan organization that supports and educates youth to be active and contributing citizens in Canada’s democracy. She has been active in the democracy and civic engagement space for over six years, engaging as an advocate and educator to drive investment in positive and effective engagement practices and promote equitable and innovative approaches to civic participation and engagement.
She has continuously engaged a multi-sectoral network of stakeholders (including academic, civil society, private, and public) to advance new understandings of how young people contribute to change-making, volunteerism, and movement-building. Her work is rooted in the right for all citizens to have influence and access to shape our institutions and circumstances, and in the principles of democracy and of human rights for all.
Sam has contributed extensively to media commentary in Canada related to youth participation and elections, current events, policy, and democracy and has proudly published several works speaking on those issues.
Sam is also a proud Montrealer and alum of Concordia University, where she studied Anthropology, specializing in the intersection of identity, politics, and community.
Francis (Frank) Séguin
Member at Large
Frank Séguin, CPA, CA, has been involved with Volunteer Canada since 2009, having been our previous Treasurer, Vice-Chair, Chair of the Board of Directors, and is currently the Chair of the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee. He has been involved with numerous Board and not-for-profit organizations in the past. He is currently a professor at the University of Quebec in Outaouais and also provides advisory services to both private and public sector entities.
Deirdra Tindale
Member at Large
Originally from Sudbury, Ontario, Deirdra has provided strategic communications and public affairs counsel to senior leaders for two decades. She is currently Vice President at Crestview Strategy, a global public affairs firm that specializes in mobilizing public opinion.
Deirdra began her career on Parliament Hill, leading communications on key files at Canadian Heritage, Industry, and Aboriginal Affairs. She moved into the resources sector, working with senior leaders in two of the world’s largest mining companies and at the world’s largest bulk export port authority. During that time, she led communications and stakeholder engagement plans for mine approvals, major infrastructure projects, and key partnerships in the UK, West Africa, Australia and Canada.
A passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion, Deirdra received commendations for her work to promote the attraction and retention of women to the resources industry in Australia at both state and national levels. She now hosts ‘The Mining & Minerals Show’ podcast on the Oil & Gas Global Network.
Deirdra holds a bachelor’s degree from Laurentian University and a master’s degree from Université Laval. She is fluent in French and English and is a member of the Australia-Canada Economic Leadership Forum’s organizing committee.