By Eva Friesen
Conference Chair Eva Friesen
I am thrilled to be serving as Chair of CFC 2013 Conference. It is truly an honour to be asked to preside over such an important, and sure to be invigorating, event.
It feels like a wonderful fit, since Winnipeg – where we will convene June 6-8 – is my hometown. And, of course, the birthplace of the community foundation movement in Canada.
In fact, I’ve just returned from a whirlwind winter trip to the city, where our conference planning committee held its first meeting. It was a fruitful meeting, and I’m excited to welcome the committee members. They are:
- Jane Humphries (Conference Director), VP, Community Foundations of Canada
- Rick Frost (Conference Host), CEO, The Winnipeg Foundation
- Leanne Hammond Komori (CFC Board Liaison), Executive Director, Central Okanagan Foundation
- Annette Aquin, VP, Finance and Administration, Hamilton Community Foundation
- Mike Batchelor, CEO, The Erie Community Foundation (USA)
- Andrea Dicks, Executive Director, Community Foundation of Greater Peterborough
- Sheherazade Hirji, VP, Client Services, Tides Canada
- Trina Prior, Manager, Grants and Community Initiatives, Vancouver Foundation
- Kerry Longpré, VP, Communications, The Calgary Foundation
- LuAnn Lovlin, VP, Communications, The Winnipeg Foundation
- Trevor MacVicar, Blennerhassett Family Foundation (Manitoba)
- Clare Northcott, Executive Director, The Greater Saint John Community Foundation
- Kathy Ritchie, Board Member, Morden Area Foundation Inc.
- Marg Rose, Director of Community Initiatives & Grants, Victoria Foundation
- Rosemary Smith, CEO, The Kitchener and Waterloo Community Foundation
- Brian Toller, Chair, Board of Governors, Community Foundation of Ottawa
- Chantal Vinette, Director of Communications and Marketing, The Foundation of Greater Montreal
They are a talented and energetic group of people who bring diverse skills to the table, all of which we will put to good use in planning and executing CFC 2013 Conference.
Thanks to the members for attending this initial meeting, and for their commitment, ideas and enthusiasm.
CFC’s 2011 Conference was an incredible event that, not surprisingly, was one of the highest rated events CFC has ever held. We have big shoes to fill, but our conference committee is determined to match the success of Vancouver in every way.
In the coming weeks we will be working on finalizing our conference themes and we’d like your input. Tell us about the issues, questions and topics that are top of mind for you, and how you would like to see them addressed during CFC 2013 Conference.
Post your comments here, on our conference blog, and let’s get the discussion percolating!
Eva Friesen is President & CEO of The Calgary Foundation, and Chair of CFC 2013 Conference
