Impact Report 2022–2023

Anne has a depth of knowledge and breadth of experience across all of WoodGreen’s program areas: seniors services, housing and community supports, family and neighbourhood services, employment and immigrant services. Anne has helped build WoodGreen from a single location with 40 staff members to a $47 million organization with 34 locations, 650 staff and 1,000 volunteers serving 37,000 people each year.

Her involvement in the development of innovative, client-centric programs such as Homeward Bound, First Step to Home, Rites of Passage and the Bruce/WoodGreen Early Learning Centre has been instrumental in successfully positioning WoodGreen as a leader in social innovation.

Anne has developed strong relationships with many community service partners and stakeholders through her significant work on several far-reaching initiatives. She led WoodGreen’s role in the Don Valley/Greenwood Health Link, the replication of Homeward Bound in other communities across Ontario, WoodGreen’s successful integration with Community Care East York and worked closely with the City of Toronto to lead the re-housing process for those who were evicted from Tent City in 2002.

She also serves as a volunteer board member with Toronto Neighbourhood Centres, International Federation of Settlement and Neighbourhood Services and previously with Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association and Riverdale Community Development Corporation and Access Loan Fund. Anne was also the long-time Chair of United Way of Greater Toronto’s Citizens Review Panel for Children and Youth.

Teresa is a long-time east Toronto resident and has spent the last 25 years of experience as a senior executive in the not for profit sector. Always looking to bring focus and attention to stellar organizations, Teresa has focused her leadership roles in philanthropy on connecting the right people with the right cause at the right time.

Teresa comes to WoodGreen with an impressive track record in the planning and execution of several multi-million dollar campaigns for organizations like WE (formerly Free The Children) and the Michael Garron Hospital (formerly Toronto East General Hospital). Teresa is credited with facilitating of one of the largest private donor gifts ever donated to a hospital in Canada. Her work at WE allowed her to gain an international perspective and where she helped develop and lead the organization’s first major gift campaign in celebration of the organization’s 20th Anniversary.

Teresa is a respected and trusted leader, a consensus builder, an authentic and motivational communicator with a strength in building profile, forging enduring donor relationships and exceeding ambitious revenue targets. As Executive Director of The WoodGreen Foundation, Teresa will be responsible for the strategic direction of the Foundation as it embarks on its exciting next stage of development.

Tishanth joined WoodGreen as its Chief Financial Officer in May 2021. Tishanth has the primary responsibility for the strategic planning, implementation, managing and execution of all financial activities of the organization, including financial services, financial planning & analysis, auditing, tax filings and regulatory compliance.

Tishanth has 10 years of experience in financial transformation in the public sector and not-for-profit industry. He brings proven leadership through prior experiences with multiple professional services firms and a large community hospital in the GTA. He has a passion for transforming finance functions from a people, process and technology lens to enable data-driven decision making at the program level. Tishanth will be responsible for the strategic direction of the Finance Department as it continues on its transformational journey.

Tishanth has a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree from the University of Toronto, along with his CPA, CA designation.

Randall joined WoodGreen as VP Human Resource in August 2016. Randall and his team are responsible for human resources at WoodGreen, including recruitment, compensation and benefits, talent management and labour relations.

Randall has more than 25 years of experience in human resources management and strategy in the professional services, media, consulting and high-tech sectors. He has been a member of several global executive teams where he was responsible for delivering result oriented and proactive HR programs and services. He has worked extensively in Asia, North America and Europe.

Randall has a Bachelor of Commerce Degree from Concordia University in Montreal and a Laboratory Sciences Diploma from Fanshawe College. He is bilingual in French and English.

Coming Soon

Elaine Levy became the Director of Child Care Services in August 1982 when WoodGreen operated two child care sites. Under Elaine’s leadership, in response to community needs and through successful partnerships with key stakeholders, the unit has expanded and currently operates seven licensed child care sites. The other family services provided by the unit include Special Needs Resourcing, summer camps, and an After-School program.

Elaine led WoodGreen’s role in developing and operating the Bruce/WoodGreen Early Learning Centre, a Toronto First Duty site, that integrates kindergarten, child care and parenting support into one comprehensive program. The program contributed significantly to Dr. Charles Pascal’s (Special Advisor on Education) 2009 report to the Premier, by providing the model for early years learning and full-day kindergarten.

Elaine is an active leader in the field of child care. Some of her current and past community involvements include:

• Toronto Child and Family Network
• The City of Toronto Child Care Advisory Committee (Past Chair)
• George Brown College ECE Advisory Committee
• Toronto District School Board Early Years Advisory Committee
• Toronto Coalition for Better Child Care (Past Chair)
• Quality Early Learning Network

Elaine holds a PhD. from OISE/University of Toronto in Early Learning, an M.Ed. in Early Childhood Education from McGill University and a B.Ed., and Early Childhood Services certification at the University of Alberta. She is a Registered Early Childhood Educator (RECE) and a member of Ontario’s College of Early Childhood Educators. Elaine also holds an Honours Certificate in Voluntary Sector Management from York University.

Mehran joined WoodGreen in 2001 in the role of chief information officer. He is responsible for the IT strategy, operations, processes and IT infrastructure at WoodGreen.

He oversees all aspects of information technology, information security, data processing, application development, analytics, network, computing, servers, storage, collaboration and infrastructure across the entire agency and its business units. Under Mehran’s leadership, WoodGreen’s IT has developed and grown to a complex group that supports WoodGreen and number of other agencies, with over 50 sites.

Mehran led WoodGreen’s private-public sector partnership role in developing, implementing and operating the Housing Opportunities and Marketplace Exchange (H.O.M.E.) portal. The H.O.M.E. portal won the prestigious 2016 ISM’s “Application of New Technologies” Award. The ISM Awards recognize innovation in service delivery, application of new technologies, and collaboration across traditional boundaries and excellence in individual leadership in the application of information technology.

Prior to WoodGreen, Mehran spent 10 years in the private sector, including eight years as a managing director of a private company providing a full IT services to universities, government agencies, and large companies. His professional accomplishments include enterprise architect, MRP and ERP implementations, IT infrastructure, Portals, and VoIP.

Mehran holds an MBA from the University of Liverpool, UK and an honours BA in Computer Engineering. He also holds an honours Master Certificate in Public Management from York University, Schulich School of Business, and is a member of the Professional Engineers of Ontario. Mehran serves as a volunteer member with the Ontario Ministry of Health HRIS advisory committee and served as volunteer member with the Finance and Audit committee at Mackenzie Health.

.

Patricia has over a decade of experience in executive roles in Canada and in the United States and has organizational, financial management and stakeholder relationship skills. Patricia’s oversight of programming includes employment services for individuals experiencing significant barriers to employment including immigrants, people living with disabilities and those struggling to re-enter the workforce following an absence. Patricia has successfully led her teams through transformative periods including shifts in funding, programming and operating models. Patricia is known as a respected people leader who builds strong relationships by creating a clear connection between the purpose of the organization and the contribution of each person on the team.

Rajnoop (Nupi) Zubair is the VP, Wealth Shared Services Business Management at TD Bank Group. She has professional experience in Business Strategy, Change Management, Profit & Loss Management, Leadership and Inclusion & Diversity, and has also engaged in social programing through volunteerism and board involvement. This has offered Nupi both a sense of deep personal satisfaction and the opportunity to learn more about the communities where she has lived and worked. She has some experience with WoodGreen through TD’s involvement with the Homeward Bound program and, more recently, direct involvement as a leader of the TD Wealth Visible Minority partnership on two WoodGreen engagements. Nupi holds a Bachelor of Arts, Honours Degree in Psychology and a Master of Business Administration Degree.

Nupi feels that WoodGreen is a particularly exciting organization because of the breadth of programs and segments of the population that the organization serves. As the child of Indian immigrants that built a new life in Canada, she connects with WoodGreen’s purpose to enhance self-sufficiency, promote well-being and reduce poverty through innovative solutions to critical social needs.

Karen Myers is the President and CEO at Blueprint. She manages a diverse and experienced group of staff to develop innovative solutions that enable evidence-informed design and delivery. Over the past twenty years, Karen has built a solid reputation for her ability to lead large-scale, complex projects in workforce development and skills training, from comprehensive program reviews to complete multi-phase system transformations. In addition to her deep expertise in workforce development, Karen brings experience at a high level in a range of policy domains including poverty reduction, income security, and housing affordability. She has extensive experience as a researcher, policy analyst, performance consultant and program evaluator that spans the public, private, and non-profit sectors. Blueprint is one of three partners leading the Future Skills Centre – a six-year initiative with a mission to develop and rigorously test new approaches to help Canadians develop the skills necessary to succeed in the new economy. Karen holds a Ph.D in Sociology from the University of Toronto, and a Master of Public Administration from Queen’s University.

Sean Mullin is an economist, public policy wonk, consultant and think tank leader. Currently, Sean is the Executive Director of the Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship at Ryerson University, a new entity with a mandate to enhance the role of innovation and entrepreneurship within Canada.

Prior to joining the Brookfield Institute, Sean gained extensive experience in public policy, serving as Deputy Director of Policy in the Office of the Premier of Ontario and in senior advisory roles to Ontario’s Minister of Finance. Sean has also worked in the private equity industry and as an economic and business strategy consultant.

Sean has a degree in Economics and Computer Science from the University of Toronto, an M.A. in Economics from McGill and an MBA from the University of Oxford.

Alia Kamlani is a public sector leader, passionate about making a difference. She brings experience working inside government and as an advisor to public sector organizations, across a range of portfolios. Alia is regarded as a transformation expert, having engaged extensively with senior executives, political leaders and front-line staff across a range of strategic initiatives and complex project implementations. At Deloitte, Alia serves as the provincial health and human services leader, bringing sector-specific knowledge of the operating environment and policy context, as well as global trends and best practices. Alia holds an undergraduate degree in International Relations and Ethics, Law & Society from the University of Toronto, and a Master’s of Public Administration from Columbia University. She’s a proud resident of Toronto’s east end where she and her husband are raising their two young sons.

Antonella Ceddia is a litigation lawyer at the City of Toronto, with expertise in human rights law and policy. In addition to being litigation counsel, Antonella advises the City of Toronto, its agencies, boards and commissions and the Toronto Police Services Board and Chief of Police on policies, practices, and how to provide services to the public, equitably and free of human rights barriers. Before joining City Legal, Antonella was a litigator at McCarthy Tetrault LLP for six years. She completed her articles of law at the Court of Appeal for Ontario where she clerked for Justices Abella, Moldaver, Feldman, and Austin.

Before studying law, Antonella held senior professional roles in the public and private sectors, with a focus on strategic policy advice and analysis. She worked at the Ontario Cabinet Office, the Office of the Mayor (City of Toronto, Mayor Barbara Hall), the Ontario Human Rights Commission, and Ryerson University. Antonella operated her own management-side consulting practice and advised large private and not for profit corporations on human rights matters including investigations, complaint resolution, development and training on human rights policies, and procedures, and how to create the conditions for a workplace culture that respects human rights, that is equitable and inclusive.

Antonella has an LL.B (Queen’s) and M.A. (Waterloo) and B.A. (University of Toronto). She holds Certificates in Advanced Alternative Dispute Resolution (Windsor Law) and in Not-for-Profit Governance (Rotman School of Management).

In the legal community, Antonella was Co-Chair of the Practice Advisory Committee to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario. She has served on the Executive of the Ontario Bar Association Constitutional Civil Liberties and Human Rights Section, and the Executive of the Women’s Law Association of Ontario. She teaches at the Osgoode Professional Development Intensive Course on Written Advocacy, each year for the last 15 years, and the Osgoode Certificate in Human Rights Theory and Practice. She is a regular presenter, each year, at legal conferences. Each year, for the past eight or nine years, Antonella lectures at Ryerson University in graduate and undergraduate courses on human rights law and incorporating human rights requirements into planning of cities. At Ryerson, Antonella developed and taught Canada’s first full-time course on human rights, equity and urban planning.

Antonella has served on several boards of directors including the United Way of Toronto where she was Chair of the United Way Allocations Committee, responsible for oversight of United Way member agencies’ organizational performance, use of donor dollars and allocation of donor funds. Antonella also served as Chair of the Community Resources Consultants of Toronto, an organization focussed on services for consumer-survivors. Antonella was national Chair of the Canadian Association Against Sexual Harassment in Higher Education (CASSHE). In the last six years and continuing, Antonella has lead a women’s network that she founded called MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Antonella speaks Italian, French, and some Spanish. She is a first generation Canadian whose first language is Italian; she was raised in central/downtown Toronto where she continues to live today.

Eric Tung is the General Manager for Receipt Bank North America, a technology company with a mission of supporting accounting professionals to make better small businesses. Prior to joining Receipt Bank, Eric was an executive at Scotiabank, where he was responsible for driving growth across Scotiabank’s 15 million retail and small business customers across Latin America and the Caribbean. He also played a key leadership role in launching Scotiabank’s global digital transformation. Eric started his career as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company and has held several marketing roles at eBay. Eric is an active supporter of the United Way and served as a Board Chair at St. Christopher’s Anglican Church. Eric holds a Bachelor’s of Applied Science in Industrial Engineering from the University of Toronto and Masters in Business Administration and in Public Administration in International Development from Harvard University.

.

Janice Winton recently retired from Ryerson University, where she held the position of Vice President, Administration and Finance from 2014 to 2018. She is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA), a Ryerson Business graduate, and holds a Master of Education (Higher Education) from the University of Toronto. Prior to becoming Vice President, Janice served Ryerson as Executive Director, Financial Services and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for over 24 years. Before joining Ryerson, Janice held a number of finance and accounting positions including Vice President, Finance at York Finch General Hospital. Raised in the Bahamas, Janice’s first career was as a registered nurse.

.

Karl Pelowich is the Head of Culture & Colleague Experience at TD Bank Financial Group where he has enterprise accountability for colleague listening & insights, the employee value proposition, employment branding and TD’s career & redeployment practice. Karl is a seasoned HR executive and has held roles accountable for developing and implementing talent management strategies & frameworks for significant business transformations. Prior roles also include Head of HR for TD’s North American Contact Centres and Technology Infrastructure teams where he was responsible for the development and delivery of people strategies. Prior to joining TD, Karl held a variety of roles at BMO Financial Group in Human Resources, Salesforce Effectiveness, Personal & Commercial Banking, Finance and the Contact Centre. Karl is actively involved in the community as the Board President of JobStart and is an active contributor to Ryerson University’s Top 200 mentoring program. Karl has a BBA from Wilfrid Laurier University and an MBA from Dalhousie University.

Kelvin Vo is an Investment Analyst at NYX Capital and provides analytical support for all acquisition, development, and asset management activities. Kelvin specializes in the areas of investment sales, mix-use developments, and market research across multiple commercial real estate asset classes. Kelvin has previously held board positions with AIS Toronto and UVSA Eastern Canada. Kelvin holds a Bachelor of Commerce with high distinction from the University of Toronto.

Raphael Schapiro has worked as an executive at BMO Financial Group since 2010. His current role is as Head, North American Customer Contact Centre Transformation, where he is responsible for technology initiatives, voice of the customer, and change management, all in the service of building a leading customer experience.

Prior to this he held multiple roles in the Technology & Operations Group building his strategy, technology capital budgeting, project management, and risk management capabilities.

Prior to BMO, Raphael spent six years as a consultant with McKinsey & Company working with clients in multiple sectors on performance improvement and strategy. Raphael holds a D.Phil and M.Phil from the University of Oxford in Economic and Social History and a B.A. from McGill University.

Rasha El Sissi is the Head of Canadian and International Benefits, Human Resources at TD Bank. She is an experienced banking executive skilled in Corporate Governance, Stakeholder Relations, Finance & Audit, Risk Processes and Controls, Prudential Regulation and Legal Writing. She has a law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School, York University and a Master of Science in mass communications from the College of Communications, Boston University.

Roanne Argyle is senior vice president for Argyle Public Relationships, one of Canada’s largest independent public relations firms. She is an award-winning communications strategist who offers significant experience managing large-scale public information and advocacy programs that include stakeholder and public engagement, thought leadership, issues management and crisis communications. She is a trained and experienced facilitator.

As a passionate purpose-driven leader, Roanne is deeply committed to supporting and building capacity in organizations that serve the public interest, such as WoodGreen Community Services.

She recently volunteered as a Founding Board Member and Chair of the Leaside Sports Hall of Fame, partnered with Social Venture Partners Toronto, and served as the branding and marketing team lead with Eva’s Phoenix Print Shop and as a member of the Public Profile Committee at Eva’s Initiatives. She also spent 10 years as a volunteer and board member of the Leaside Girls Hockey Association.

Roanne has a Bachelor of Arts in English, Film and Communications from McGill University, and a Masters Certificate in Marketing Communications Management from Schulich School of Business, York University.

Shabnum Durrani is the Director of Public Affairs and Stakeholder Relations at the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA), representing Ontario’s publically funded hospitals.

She has an extensive background in advocacy and policy development with not-for-profits.

Prior to working at OHA Shabnum worked in a number of settings with a focus on community health, including: a poverty issues lawyer in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, focusing on tenants’ rights, and mental health and addictions issues; a senior policy advisor to the Ontario Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, as the lead in some key files including poverty reduction strategy, women and children’s health, aboriginal health and community health centres.

Shabnum has a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Alberta, a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law, a Masters in Public Policy, Administration and Law from York University, and Masters in Public Health from John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.