2024-25 Foundation Board of Directors
Bruyère Foundation is thankful for the commitment and hard work of its community-minded Board of Directors. These dedicated volunteers provide guidance and help us achieve our fundraising goals.
Chair: Scott Brooker
Scott Brooker has completed over $1.3 billion in commercial transaction value since joining Cushman & Wakefield Ottawa in 2009. He has specialized in the acquisition and disposition of investment properties across all asset classes. He has executed real estate transactions delivering exceptional value for local investors as well as some of Canada’s largest institutional investors. Scott has also executed over 1.3 million square feet in lease transactions over his career for clients including Dentons, Ernst & Young, Pfizer, Postmedia Group and Costco Wholesale.
Scott is a consistent top sales performer for Cushman & Wakefield Ottawa, ranking 2nd (2019, 2018, 2016, 2014, 2013), 3rd (2015), and 5th (2012). He is the Ottawa Single Point of Contact for the Cushman & Wakefield Future Leaders program. He is an internationally recognized leader in the commercial real estate field. He has been a speaker at the Ottawa Real Estate Forum, delivered Green real estate workshops in the United States and Canada, and been quoted by and contributed to a variety of media outlets.
He holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree in International Business from Dalhousie University and the Copenhagen School of Business. He was awarded the Commerce Alumni Association Award in International Business for Academic Achievement, and the Northstar Trade Finance Fellowship. Scott also holds two diplomas from Algonquin College in Business-Marketing and Business Administration.
While at Dalhousie he was a Commerce Society Student representative and part of the Dalhousie Chapter of the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research.
Vice Chair: Joanne Kudakiewicz
Joanne has trailblazed a career path as a successful entrepreneur, award-winning financial advisor, business development strategist and recipient of the Forty Under 40 award in 2019.
As a Community Relations Manager with Desjardins Financial Security Independent Network, Joanne provides client tailored insurance and estate planning strategies for high-net-worth families and business owners. She works closely with her clients to understand their specific needs and financial goals, and analyzes the net, after tax impact of various investments. As a former business owner herself, she has a real passion for ensuring that income remains in the hands of her clients all while helping them maximize the impact of their charitable donations.
Joanne is deeply passionate about her involvement in the community. She is a co-founder of Recovery Matters, an Ottawa based initiative, raising money to help local families and business owners struggling financially due to cancer diagnosis. Additionally, she is a Board Vice-Chair for the Canadian Centre for Mental Health and Sport (CCMHS) The centre is the first in Canada to offer collaborative sport/performance focused mental healthcare services to athletes, coaches and performing artists to achieve their goals while preserving their mental health and well-being.
Joanne is a busy mother of 2 young kids who enjoys outdoor activities such as skiing, hiking and ultimate frisbee.
Treasurer: Rob Moffatt, CPA, CA, LP
Partner, Vaive and Associates Professional Corporation
Rob obtained his designation in 1983 and was a partner for seventeen years with
Moffatt LeBel Chartered Accountants before joining Vaive and Associates. His
practice has been focused on the areas of accounting, tax preparation, planning
and advice to small business owners, professionals, and individuals.
Over his career, Rob has served on various volunteer boards,
including the National Capital Region YMCA-YWCA from 1989 to 2004, during which
time he was Board Chair for a three-year term from 1999 to 2002.
Rob and the Moffatt family have deep roots in Ottawa and he
is committed to giving back to his community through his involvement with Bruyère.
Corporate Secretary: Thomas A. Hewitt, CFRE President, Bruyère Foundation
Tom is an accomplished executive with experience in a university setting as well as several hospitals with academic affiliations. He brings a wealth of experience in fundraising and has been associated with donations in excess of $700 million to four distinct charities.
Most recently, Tom served as the Chief Development Officer at Queen's University and helped lead a half-billion campaign for his alma mater. Prior to that, Tom worked as President of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute Foundation for ten years and launched a $100 million campaign to create the largest ever endowment for cardiovascular medicine.
A co-recipient of the Outstanding Fundraising Professional award in 2000 from the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Ottawa Chapter, Tom is a recognized leader and brings a results-oriented, strategic approach to his work.
Tom is involved as a volunteer in several charitable endeavors including being a founding member of the Canadian Career Apprenticeship Initiative and a committee member for the Black Opportunity Fund, established to combat the impact of anti-Black racism in Canada.
Directors:
Todd Beech
Todd is a seasoned professional with a wealth of experience in the commercial real estate industry. Joining Regional's Investment &Leasing team in 2019, Todd currently holds the role of Director, Commercial Leasing, where he oversees all aspects of leasing for the company's extensive portfolio spanning 2.3 million square feet, encompassing office, industrial/warehouse, and retail spaces.
One of Todd's remarkable achievements is his recognition as a Co-Star Power Broker Award winner for Retail Lease Transactions in 2022, 2021, and 2020. This consistent recognition underscores his exceptional expertise and outstanding performance in the field. In addition to his impressive Power Broker accolades, Todd was also named the Co-Star Power Broker Lease Transactions winner for 2021.
Prior to joining Regional, Todd honed his skills during his remarkable10-year tenure in commercial leasing with Cushman & Wakefield, where he consistently stood out as a Top Performer. In this capacity, his responsibilities encompassed a wide spectrum of real estate services, including tenant representation, property acquisition and disposition, marketing, and leasing, all for a diverse portfolio of both local and national accounts. Todd's journey in the world of sales and customer service began with Reebok Canada's Sports License Division.
Today, Todd brings his multifaceted expertise, deep industry knowledge, and a remarkable track record of success to Regional's Commercial Leasing team. His dedication, experience, and commitment to excellence continue to drive exceptional results in the dynamic world of commercial real estate.
Guy Chartrand, President and CEO, Bruyère
Mr. Chartrand is the President and CEO of Bruyère. In this capacity, he acts as Secretary of the Board of Directors and is an ex-officio member of all committees of the board. He is also an ex-officio member of the Bruyère Foundation board and a director on the Bruyère Research Institute board.
Throughout his career, Mr. Chartrand has held a number of senior positions in hospital, long-term care and community care environments, including president and CEO of Collingwood General and Marine Hospital (CGMH), and president and CEO of the Mattawa General Hospital and the Mattawa Senior’s Living organization.
He is a strong advocate for local health system integration to ensure positive care transitions. Mr. Chartrand is known for his leadership in the redevelopment of CGMH and for the amalgamation of the Mattawa Hospital and Algonquin Nursing Home. While at Collingwood, he led a sub-region transformation journey of integration through designing a shared accountability and balanced scorecard amongst all service delivery partners.
In addition to obtaining an MBA and an Honours Bachelor of Commerce degree from Laurentian University, Mr. Chartrand taught in the School of Business for 13 years as a part-time MBA and undergrad professor. A life-long learner himself, he is currently pursuing his PhD through Pécs University in Hungary. His thesis, Leading Teams, aligns perfectly with his professional mandate to “infuse life into organizational design”.
Mr. Chartrand is a family man who enjoys a number of outdoor activities such as skiing, boating, hiking and biking.
Christine Irvine
After a long career in, sales and marketing and hospitality management, Christine relocated to Ottawa from Toronto in 2000.
Since moving to Ottawa Christine has dedicated a large portion of her energies to fundraising for a number of Ottawa charities including the Ottawa Women’s Health Council – founding the Shirley E Greenberg Women’s Health Council at the Riverside Hospital, The Hnatyshyn Foundation for the Arts, Harmony House Women’s Shelter, the Community Laundry COOP and most recently served as Chair of the OutCare Foundation Board.
Christine joined the Bruyère Foundation Board in April 2024.
Loretta Layton
Regional Brand Manager Virology at AbbVie Corporation
With over two decades of experience in the pharmaceutical
industry, Loretta works towards the World Health Organization's
ambition of eliminating Hepatitis C in Canada by 2030.
Conducting significant projects within the health care
community, targeted at finding and treating individuals, Loretta's
contributions lead to making inroads towards this lofty goal.
Loretta is also a Founding Director and Past President of
the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. Her history with the Canadian
Breast Cancer Foundation and her career in the pharmaceutical industry greatly
inform her interest in health care and feed her passion to make a difference in
the quality of life of others by joining the Bruyère Foundation Board.
Kelly Rhodenizer
Kelly Rhodenizer is the Vice President of Commercial & Multi-Family Development and is responsible for every aspect of developing Regional Group’s pipeline of assets, from Multi-Family to Commercial and Industrial properties. In collaboration with Regional’s internal divisions, Kelly oversees the entire process from acquisition, entitlement, planning through construction to marketing, lease-up strategy and acting as the liaison with project stakeholders.
Responsible for Regional’s first institutional capital partnership, Kelly spearheaded the negotiations and closed agreements for two new purpose-built rental properties, Milieu Modern Apartments & Ballantyne Luxury Apartments, in the master-planned and highly sought-after community of Greystone Village in Old Ottawa East. Under Kelly’s leadership and despite the uncertainty and supply chain issues steaming from the COVID-19 pandemic, Regional Group successfully delivered the two buildings - representing 235 rental units with ground floor retail (at Milieu). These properties address a need for high quality rental housing options within the greater community.
Kelly has been working within the greater Ottawa area since 2005 as a Land Use Planner and Developer. She is the founding member of WiLD (Women in Land Development) – a locally run group of women that work in the land development industry in the National Capital region, mentoring other women and creating a positive networking space.
Honourary Directors:
Daniel C. Fernandes
Lawyer practicing with his own firm named Fernandes Law Offices with 4 clerks and an associate lawyer, specializing primarily in commercial real estate, leasing, commercial mortgage financing and land development. Prior to becoming a sole practitioner in 2001, he worked for and helped establish a small boutique commercial real estate law firm (Hebert McKinley Ramonat) and started his career at Goldberg, Shinder, Gardner & Kronick.
He was called to the Ontario bar in 1994. He holds both a B.S.Sc. in Economics and Political Science and a LL.B. from the University of Ottawa. He is a founding member of ELCRO (Luso-Canadian Entrepreneurs of Ottawa) since 1997 and a member of the Canadian Bar Association, County of Carleton Law Association (“CCLA”). He was a board member of the JDRF Ride Campaign for seven years. He is a board member of the CCLA Real Estate Lawyers Committee and has been for the last ten years. He has given numerous seminars to financial institutions, lawyers and to groups of entrepreneurs and trades in the areas of commercial real estate and corporate law.
Daniel enjoys skiing, golf and traveling. He was born, raised and educated in Ottawa and loves the city. He is a first-generation Portuguese with his father being one of the first Portuguese to the city in 1956.
Patrick Kennedy
Patrick Kennedy is a Principal with the Earnscliffe Strategy Group, in Ottawa. A public affairs professional with twenty years’ experience in and around policy and politics, he is known for his collaborative approach to public policy issues and stakeholder engagement, facilitating trusted relationships, and emphasizing the importance of building partnerships to work toward desired outcomes.
Patrick offers valuable insight into public affairs strategy and the policy development process, incorporating a number of critical perspectives based on his involvement inside government, with trade associations, and within the corporate sphere.
Prior to joining Earnscliffe, Patrick worked with CF Industries, the world’s largest manufacturer of nitrogen products, where he established and led the company’s public affairs practice in Canada. Previously, he worked with financial services leader CIBC, and with the Canadian Bankers Association, in key government relations roles. Outside of the private sector, Patrick held a role as a senior policy analyst in the federal civil service and served as Chief of Staff to the Speaker of the House of Commons – a role at the heart of the machinations of Parliament, during two of Canada’s recent minority governments.
Patrick holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts in Political Studies from Queen’s University, and a Master of Science in Public Policy from the London School of Economics, where he was a Chevening Scholar. He is the Past President and former member of the Board of Directors of the Government Relations Institute of Canada, a co-founder of the Canadian Advocacy Network, and a former member of the Board of Directors of the Writers’ Trust of Canada. In 2012, he was chosen to attend the Governor General’s Canadian Leadership Conference.
Clifford T. Lebarron
As a retired Real Estate Financing professional with over 40 years of Corporate Banking experience in Ontario, Cliff currently holds the position of Regional Assistant Vice President of the National Capital Region and Eastern Ontario/Western Quebec for Laurentian Bank of Canada with 12 staff locally. He holds a B.Econ. from Waterloo Lutheran University and an HBBA from Wilfrid Laurier University.
As a proud supporter of Bruyère, Cliff notes that he “has had the privilege of being part of Bruyère in various capacities for over 12 years with this great organization being my only charitable passion.”
As a proud father and grandpa, Cliff spends free time at the lake house where he is a member of the Lake Association and on the executive of the North Frontenac Lake Associations Alliance being part of FOCA. He enjoys home renovations, cottage life including fishing, water sports, skiing.
Nik Lemieux
Giving back to her community is an idea that holds a special place in Nik’s heart. Over the past 5 years, she has made space in her life to dedicate more time to local causes. She is on the board of directors for Ski for Kids, a local fundraiser for CHEO and Children’s Aid Society. She also spends time each semester, mentoring children through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ottawa.
Professionally, Nik is the founder and CEO of Mirabel Management Inc. A company that works with a niche clientele requiring special assistance in finance. Since 2014, the company has grown and flourished. The holistic approach has drawn in clients from all walks of life. She ensures that any company or project she works with gives back to the community and has a mentoring component.
In university, she sought out courses that would challenge her, teach her new practices, or open doors to new industries. It was during this time she became interested in business. Every project that she has dedicated herself to has provided a new experience or lesson. Nik has long believed in the importance of learning new skills and acquiring new experiences while contributing to causes that are important to her. This belief is what led her to join the Bruyère foundation in 2018.
She has evolved by continuously seizing every opportunity and ensuring that each new endeavour contributed to her growth as a businesswoman and created stronger ties to her community. Nik strives to organically build relationships as she goes through life and continuously apply these relationships and life lessons to advocate for those that may be in need.
Lesley Pincombe
In the spring of 2014, recognized industry sales leader Lesley Mackay joined the Ottawa Tourism Meetings and Conventions team as Director of Meeting and Events. In 2018 Lesley was promoted to Vice President, Meetings and Major Events. Lesley continues to lead the meetings team in Canada, the US and overseas as well as the Major Events department for Ottawa Tourism who are responsible for attracting meetings and major sporting events to Ottawa. Lesley came to Ottawa Tourism after a long career at Delta Hotels and Resorts Corporate Office.
Over the years Lesley has sat on the MPI Ottawa Chapter board of directors and held various committee positions for both Canadian Society of Account Executives and PCMA Canada East Chapter, Co-Chair for the One Young World 2016 Summit held in Ottawa and most recently chaired the Canadian Society of Association Executive annual 2018 conference and showcase.
An Ottawa born native, Lesley is a graduate of the Algonquin College Hospitality Program and is a certified Convention and Event Planner and 2017 Forty Under 40 award recipient.
Mark White
Mark has been involved in the commercial real estate industry for more than 30 years and today is an integral member of the executive team at Colonnade BridgePort. He is responsible for the marketing and leasing of the company's property management portfolio which consists of 6.9 million square feet of commercial space in Ottawa and the Greater Toronto Area.
Ottawa-born, Mark has always been an active member of the community following his belief that an important measure of every individual is what they give back to their community. Over the years, Mark’s volunteer initiatives have included participation in local business associations, coaching youth hockey and participating in fundraising campaigns for local healthcare facilities.
Mark has been working closely with the team at the Bruyère Foundation and to the challenge of raising funds for such a vital and important cause.
John Wright
John is a partner in Vaive and Associates Professional Corporation, a public accounting firm in Ottawa. He achieved his chartered accounting designation in 1992 and has over 25 years working at national and regional tax and accounting firms. He is considered as a seasoned financial professional and results-oriented team player with extensive business experience in finance and accounting, business planning and executive management.
John has been an ambassador of the accounting profession, mentoring students and speaking at events to encourage new students to join the profession. He is a former member of the governing council of CPA Ontario. John is also a volunteer leader in the community and sat on a number of boards of local charities and not-for-profit associations. He is currently the Chair for the OMS Ottawa Montessori School and external board member.