The Board

The Winnifred Stewart Association's Board of Directors is committed to community service and its members bring an effective combination of diverse backgrounds, skills, knowledge, and experience to help ensure the successful governance of the organization.

Winnifred Stewart Association Board of Directors:

Tony Roccia (Vice President)
Tony has been a member of the board for two years and spent the past year as vice president. Tony is also the current president of the Edmonton Down Syndrome Society, and was a major supporter of the Joey's Home project. Outside of his extensive volunteer work, he is owner of Diamond Paving, a
successful local paving company in Edmonton. Tony has three children, one of whom receives support from WSA.

Stefan Scott (Past President)
In May 2007, Stefan took on the role of board president. An active WSA board member for the past six years, Stefan brings with him extensive non-profit board and foundation experience. He completed his graduate studies at the U of A and is a partner at SWCS Consulting, a computer software firm. Stefan enjoys outdoor sports with his wife, Lisa.

Stan Fisher (Vice President)
A previous member, Stan returned to the WSA board last year. As current CEO of St. Michael's Health Group and previous CEO of Chrysalis, Stan's work with non-profit organizations is invaluable. He also has extensive experience working with local, provincial, and national non-profit and industry association boards, including Alberta Continuing Care Association and Lakeland College. He is married to Gail and they have two adult children, one of whom receives support from WSA.

Leon Pfeiffer (Treasurer)
Leon has been Treasurer of the WSA board for over a year. He is U of A, BComm graduate and became a CA in 1997. Since then, he has worked exclusively in the audit and assurance advisory services area. In 2000, Leon joined Kingston Ross Pasnak LLP. His extensive knowledge of the non-profit sector comes from experience with key issues, such as governance, financial visibility, and risk management.

Judi Bell (Secretary)
Judi has been a WSA board member for the past eight years, and this past year was Director at Large. She also currently sits on two WSA board sub-committees that involve accountability and organizational decision-making. Judi's extensive volunteer and community experience, including working with condo boards, policy development committees, and the YMCA, earned her the Governor General's Award for Voluntary Service in 2002.

Nada Thiru-Chelvam - Foundation President
A member of WSA's Board of Directors since 1992 (and president for three of those years), Nada is currently president of the Winnifred Stewart Foundation. After 15 years of service as the administrative director of clinical services for Caritas Health Group, he became the CEO for VALID, a not-for-profit group in Vegreville and joined the provincial Health Facilities Review Committee. Nada has also been an active Mayfield Rotary member since 1986.

Mark Bosworth
Mark has been a WSA board member for two years, and was previously involved with the association's board and WSA foundation to impart his widespread knowledge of meeting facilitation. Mark is currently a principal with Kesa, an Alberta-based organizational development firm, and he has extensive experience working to facilitate meetings for corporate, school, government, and non-profit boards. Mark and his wife Bonnie have two children.

Diane Reid
Diane knows WSA well. She has been involved since her sister, now a resident of Parker Stewart House, began receiving support in the association's early years. For the past two years, Diane has sat on the WSA board and is also an active volunteer with various school committees and her community league. Diane is married with three children.

Beverly Fausak
Beverly has been a WSA board member for three years. Her initial interest grew as a result of being her sister's legal guardian. Beverly works for Cartoonigans, a child and family entertainment group, and MGI, where she does team-building and leadership training. She has also served on boards for Family and Children's Services and Women's Mental Health, and, together with her husband, owns and operates Sprucehaven Farms. Beverly is married to Ray and they have two adult daughters.

Susan Surgenor
Susan has devoted 18 years to the secretary position on WSA's board. She lends her time and skills to numerous volunteer and service club organizations and is employed at the federal government's Outreach Office where she focuses on working with seniors, pensions, and Old Age Security benefits. Susan is a passionate gardener, entertainer, and traveler.

Elizabeth Kjellbotn
Elizabeth joined the board just last year, but has a long history of involvement with WSA through her family, specifically her sister, who is currently receiving support from the association. Elizabeth has over 25 years experience providing production services for local, regional, network, and international television programs. Her most recent experience has been with Kaizen West Productions Inc. and Aquila Productions. She is working towards a Bachelor of Arts with a major in English at the U of A.

Margo McKinnon
Margo joined the WSA board last year. She holds a Masters of Arts in Anthropology and is currently an Account Executive with Incite Solutions Inc., WSA's marketing firm. Margo has significant experience working with non-profit clients, such as The Lung Association and the University of Alberta. She is founder of The Snowball, a charity fundraiser for the Cross Cancer Institute that she organized for five years after her own treatment experience at the Cross. Margo is an active community volunteer and current board member of the McKernan Child Care Society. She is also a mother to three beautiful daughters.

Alice Sears
For the past year, Alice has brought the invaluable knowledge of a Registered Nurse to the WSA board. She has 40 years experience in acute, continuing, and palliative care, and is a Regional Director of Operations with the Good Samaritan Society. She holds an MA in Health Care Administration and also has a personal connection to the field: she is blessed to be raising a young boy with a developmental disability.

Louise Syme
Louise previously served as a member of the WSA Foundation board before joining the WSA board last year. Her connection to WSA is strong, as she has a family member with a developmental disability. Previously a Legal Aid, Louise now practices law and is currently affiliated with Alberta Family Court. Her direct experience with the association combined with her law background has made Louise an invaluable addition to the WSA board. She is married to Dave and is a proud mother.

Robyn Kowalski
Robyn got involved with WSA after seeing firsthand the benefits it can bring to family life. As well as WSA, she does event planning and fundraising with several organizations and works for the government of Alberta as a Legislative Assistant. Robyn lives in Morinville with her husband.