Chris Tulloch, Chairperson Rowan House Society, Board of Directors, 2017-18 Box 5121 High River, AB, T1V 1M3 24-Hour Help Line: 403.652.3311 Admin Office: 403.652.3316 www.rowanhouse.ca Charitable Registration #899496707RR0001 Chris immigrated to Canada in 2006 from the UK, and became a proud Canadian Citizen on Canada Day, 2011. Chris is married to Tina, and is the proud father of two adult children. Chris spent the 1980 s in Germany, working for the US Air Force in telecommunications, travelling all over Europe. Since then, Chris has been working as an independent consultant in IT project management for over 20 years. Chris joined the Rowan House Board in 2013, bringing a passion for driving change through strategic thinking and building on strengths. He is determined to help change our community s attitude and reaction to domestic violence. Status Quo is not an option! Chris is a serial volunteer he can be seen regularly in his capacity as an Off Ice Official at the Okotoks Oilers AJHL Hockey games. Leslie MacRae-Krisa, Vice-Chairperson Leslie was raised on a farm in rural Saskatchewan and moved to Calgary in 1997, where she attended the University of Calgary. Leslie was awarded a Bachelor of Arts (First Class Honours) in Sociology from the University of Calgary in 2002 and then moved on to graduate school at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario where she was awarded a Master of Arts in Sociology. Leslie returned to Calgary and began work as a research associate at the Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family in February 2005 before accepting the position of Coordinator of Alberta-Based Research Projects in the fall of 2007. There she conducted and published numerous studies on topics related to law and family. Leslie accepted the position of Research Social Planner with the City of Calgary in 2014, where she designs and implements research and evaluation projects on city-delivered social programs for seniors, children and youth, and neighbourhoods. Leslie moved to Okotoks in 2008, and continues to live there with her husband and two children. She began volunteering with Rowan House Emergency Shelter in 2008, became a member of the Board of Directors in 2009. Louise Wasylenko, Secretary Louise Wasylenko is a semi-retired Certified Professional Accountant (CPA CMA), with 35 years experience in senior management positions in Municipal administration and Health Care organizations. Originally from Fort Saskatchewan, AB, she has lived in the Okotoks area for the past 18 years. Louise has a strong background in management, finance, human resources and corporate services. She is currently a Public Representative on the Board of the Law Society of Alberta and has served on the Boards of the Alzheimer s Society of Alberta & Northwest Territories and the Foothills Music Society and was a volunteer in the early formation of the Foothills Country Hospice Society. Rowan House Trauma Informed Services take into account an understanding of trauma in all aspects of service delivery. Safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration and empowerment are the core values of Rowan House.
Louise is an avid traveller, hiker and yogi, a committed foodie and loves to spend time on her acreage. Louise and her husband, Eric, have six adult daughters and two granddaughters. Betty Foran, Treasurer Betty was born and raised in Okotoks and has resided in this area for her entire life. For many years she has owned and operated her own bookkeeping and tax preparation company. Currently she spends time volunteering at the Oilfields Hospital/Rising Sun Long Term Care facility and facilitates a SOS group which is a group for widows in our area. She has also volunteered at Rowan House for many years and served on the boards of the Sheep River Health Trust, Okotoks United Way, and the Turner Valley and District Food Bank. Anna-Marie Plante, Director Anna-Marie was born in rural Manitoba and then moved across the Prairies to southeastern BC with her family where she was raised. She received a diploma in Business Administration from the College of Rockies in Cranbrook BC and has worked in the credit union system for over 29 years in Kimberley BC, Calgary, and High River/Okotoks (from teller to commercial lender and every role in between). Anna-Marie moved to High River in 1990 and has been with Servus Credit Union just as long. Since living in High River, Anna-Marie has volunteered with the local Girl Guides, High River Fish & Game Association, Museum of the Highwood, and Abbeyfield House Society as well the Board of Directors for Literacy for Life for 4 years (and is on the board once again). She has been on the board of Rowan House since 2012 and is very happy to continue to be a part of such a worthwhile organization. Kim Anderson, Director Kim was born in Regina, Saskatchewan and has lived in Alberta for most of her adult life. She is a sales professional and Certified Emotional Freedom Technique practitioner. Kim is married to Wayne Anderson, MLA for Highwood. She has one son who is married and lives in Edmonton. Kim has volunteered in the past on the board for the Calgary Women Emergency Shelter for four years and with the Calgary Humane Society. She enjoys reading, golfing and travelling. Kim has served on the Rowan House board for two years. Page 2
Sue Stefan, Director Sue was born and raised on a mixed farm in central Alberta. She started her career with Royal Bank in 1977 and worked in Alberta and BC for RBC until her retirement in 2014. She worked at many different positions with RBC and spent her last 20 years in High River as a Personal Financial Planner, helping families identify and meet their financial goals. She and her family moved to High River in 1994 and she and her spouse raised their son here. She is now in a position to give back to her community and is excited to be a member of a team dedicated to such a worthy cause. She enjoys travelling, golfing and spending time in her garden. Jocelyn Kolkman, Director Born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Jocelyn moved to Calgary in 1993 along with her three young daughters. Shortly after her move out west, Jocelyn joined TELUS and spent 10 years building a strong foundation in both Customer Service and Operations. For the last 13 years, Jocelyn has been with Accenture bringing her extraordinary client relationship management skills to the organization, the result of which has been substantial growth and prosperity for her employer and her clients. Although Jocelyn s heart is in Alberta, her work has pulled her back to Ontario; in her most recent promotion, Jocelyn has added the role of Managing Director of Canadian Operations and oversees the Operations accounts primarily focused in Ontario and Alberta. When Jocelyn isn t back East, you can find her in Okotoks with her husband enjoying the calm atmosphere with a fine glass of wine and great food. Leonard Wiens, Director Leonard was raised in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, but made the move to Alberta about 15 years ago to his definite new home in Calgary. Leonard has a BA in Business Administration, Finance Concentration. He has spent time working in Banking, Professional Services Consulting and Energy Industries, supporting clients in delivering large complex projects, supporting company's IT and Digital Strategy, optimizing costs and delivering operating efficiencies. Leonard left working directly for larger organizations to pursue a more entrepreneurial path and has been a Partner within boutique consulting companies for the past 7 years. He currently owns his own company which has offices in both Canada and the United States. The company's core values include giving back to the communities where they work, and as such, they volunteer their time supporting a number of charities and good causes. Leonard volunteered in disaster relief work in High River during the flood, and is very humbled and privileged to join such a caring organization as the Rowan House Society in further supporting Southern Alberta communities. Leonard is married to his lovely wife Sasha, loves the outdoors and is learning photography in his spare time. Page 3
Tannis Gibson, Director Tannis was born and raised in a farming community in rural Manitoba and moved to Alberta in 1990. A Geologist by training she is one of the cofounders and current Vice President of Geology and Geophysics of Saguaro Resources Ltd which is an oil and gas company operating in N.E. British Columbia. She has volunteered in the community since an early age and most recently sat on the Foothills Country Hospice board for 6 years and currently sits on the DARE board for Okotoks, High River and surrounding communities. Tannis is married to Gord. They have 3 children and two grandchildren. Michelle Ball, Director As the managing partner of Ballco Group of Companies, Michelle is both passionate and committed to her primary role in promoting Brant Lake Wagyu. She has been involved in this family driven business since 1993. Her initial role was Chief Financial Officer for the diversified agricultural business group. The group of companies encompasses custom feeding, grain farming, cattle breeding and the newly launched production of their branded beef Brant Lake Wagyu. Prior to being in the agricultural industry, she worked in the hospitality industry installing Point of Sales systems into restaurants and cooking in restaurants. She now enjoys both her love for the culinary world and cattle by dedicating her time and energy into the promotion and marketing of Brant Lake Wagyu in both the domestic and international market place. Aside from her dedication to the family business, Michelle also sat on the Board of the High River District Health Care Foundation for 6 years. Philanthropy in High River and its surrounding areas provides great satisfaction for her. Michelle s other passion are health and wellness. She keeps active outdoors cycling and works out at the gym regularly. Her adult son attends Olds College taking Ag Management, learning the ropes to be able to carry on the family business and her daughter is working in the music industry in Vancouver. Her father in-law Jack Ball, who is her mentor in their Wagyu business, is also a long standing Rotarian in High River. Cheryl Bryk, Director Bio not available Sherrie Botten, Executive Director Sherrie has been in the position of Executive Director for Rowan House Society, formerly Region 3 Family Based Care Society, overseeing the operations of Rowan House Emergency Shelter and Eagle House Group Home, since May 1, 2008. Prior to this, Sherrie was the Outreach Counselor at Rowan House Emergency Shelter. Sherrie s background is in social work and human service and she has worked with several not-for-profit Boards during her Page 4
career. Sherrie has degrees in Psychology & Non-Profit Management with over 35 years of relevant experience. Sherrie has worked in the field of helping children and families for the majority of her career, with the last several years focusing in the area of domestic violence. During her career, she has worked in government, private industry, not-for-profit and school settings. Sherrie led the Rowan House Society through a three million dollar capital campaign to build the new, state of the art Rowan House Emergency Shelter in High River, which opened in the summer of 2012. She was also instrumental in taking the facility and the Society through the devastation of the June 2013 flood, re-opening stronger and more solidly funded than before. Sherrie is a strong advocate for vulnerable populations and volunteers in several capacities in her community. Sherrie has presented internationally on the trauma-informed practice that has been developed at Rowan House Society and is woven through all aspects of Rowan House programming. Sherrie currently sits on the Boards of The Alberta Council of Women s Shelters (ACWS) and the Rural Advisory Board of the Alberta Rural Development Network (ARDN). Sherrie was awarded the Government of Alberta Inspiration Award in November 2014 for Leadership in Family Violence Prevention. Page 5