2012 Board of Directors

Elissa spent the first 14 years of her career in the nonprofit sector, most recently as the Executive Director of the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research. Following the completion of her Executive MBA, only one thing could draw her away from the sector, and that was an opportunity to start a new kind of company – a social entrepreneurship. Now acting as the partner in charge of charity partnerships and Chief Operating Officer, Elissa is a co-founder of Better The World, a comoany that gives 90% of what it makes away to it’s charity partners and provides a new way to connect charities to corporate CSR programs. Elissa is currently developing the Entrepreneurial Fundraising course in Ryerson University's Certificate in Fundraising Management program.

Suzanne Duncan, MA, CFRE

Suzanne has been helping social service organizations reach their philanthropic potential for the last decade. At Eva’s Initiatives, YWCA Toronto, Frontier College and The WoodGreen Foundation, she connected visionary donors to innovative projects. Currently, as Senior Development Officer at the CAMH Foundation, Suzanne is responsible for a growing portfolio of major gift donors. Suzanne volunteers her services to grassroots charities and served as the Board Vice Chair of The Redwood. She is the co-founder of the Women Fundraisers for Social Justice Network and redeveloped the Introduction to Fundraising course at Ryerson University, where she is an instructor.

Len Gamache, CFRE

Len Gamache is President of the Children's Aid Foundation. Prior to his current role, he was Chief Development Officer at The Royal Conservatory of Music, where he played a leadership role in the Building National Dreams Campaign. Len’s professional background also includes, six years as the President of St. Joseph’s Health Centre Foundation in Toronto, five years as Executive Director of St. Joseph’s Health Care Foundation in London and ten years as Executive Director of Grand River Hospital Foundation. Previously, he managed public relations and marketing for The Seagram Museum in Waterloo, acted as executive director of the Radio Production Department at Northeastern University in Boston, and worked as press secretary for a democratic candidate in a leadership race for Governor of Massachusetts.

Mark Hierlihy, CFRE

Mark Hierlihy is Vice-President, Cause & Consumer Strategy for C’volution – a consortium providing expertise on Cause Marketing and Social Responsibility. For over 15 years, Mark has worked in a variety of sectors including health, the performing arts and sports. Mark began his career in Prince Edward Island by building a hospital fundraising program from infancy to maturity. He has worked in senior roles at Canada’s National Arts Centre Foundation, Special Olympics Canada Foundation and most recently at Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation’s Central Office where he drove a dramatic increase in growth in cause-related marketing, corporate sponsorship, direct response and events.

Jay Hooper, CFRE

Jay has spent most of the past 40 years working with not-for-profit organizations, primarily in a fund raising capacity. He joined WWF Canada in May of 2011 to give leadership to the organization’s major gifts fund raising program. Previously, Jay worked with the Canadian Diabetes Association as Executive Director of Fund Development, Plan Canada as Executive Vice President Marketing & Development, the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation as National Funds Development Director. He has held fund raising positions with the CNIB, The Donwood Institute and the YMCA. Jay’s career has also included experience in the for-profit sector as Director of Operations for a franchising company and as Vice President of a national conference company.

Susan Horvath, CFRE - President

Susan Horvath is Vice President, Leadership Philanthropy at the Canadian Cancer Society. Susan's involvement with AFP spans 17 years, serving on the Board for the past 5 years. Susan has held fundraising positions as President of Mount Sinai Hospital Foundation, Vice President External for Robarts Research Institute, Director of Alumni & Development for the University of Western Ontario, and Campaign Director at the United Way of London & Middlesex. Susan's 22 years of fundraising experience was preceeded by 10 years on faculty at UWO. Accredited with the CFRE designation in 1995, Susan received the SIRIUS Award for Fund Raising Excellence from the London & Region Fund Raising Executives in 1997 , and in 2002 the Canadian Council for the Advancement of Education honoured Susan for her leadership.

Steve Hoscheit, CFRE

Steve brings an impressive track-record of success working in both the private and non-profit sectors to the Trillium Health Centre Foundation. Steve joined AFP in 2008 from the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation (Calgary) where he served as President and CEO. Previously, he enjoyed a thirteen career with Ketchum Canada Inc. Steve started his career in 1993 at the University Hospital Foundation in Edmonton where, as Director of Development, he achieved significant results in many activities such as Board development, major gift solicitation, donor cultivation, planned giving, donor stewardship and recognition. A graduate of the University of Alberta with a Bachelor of Arts with Distinction in Economics, he continues to enhance his skills through a variety of professional education courses. He is also a Certified Fund Raising Executive through the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the only internationally recognized fund raising accreditation program.

Mridula Joyner, CFRE

Mridula Joyner is currently Director of Development at Children's Aid Foundation. She has over 14 years of experience in progressively senior roles within the not-for-profit sector. Her most current role was as Vice President, Philanthropy and Corporate Partnerships at the YMCA of Greater Toronto, where she was the strategic lead for the major gifts, planned giving and corporate partnerships portfolios for the YMCA. Previous to this position, Mridula provided strategic counsel to Toronto’s Ronald McDonald House and held the positions of Senior Director, Major Gifts at SickKids Foundation, Campaign Director for The Credit Valley Hospital Foundation’s $50 Million Capital Campaign and Senior Development Officer with UHN’s $400 Million Campaign.

Cathy Mann, CFRE

Cathy Mann, CFRE is the Principal of Cathy Mann & Associates, providing customized fund development solutions, taking into consideration an organization’s size, opportunities, constraints and culture. Cathy is also the Academic Coordinator and a faculty member in Ryerson University’s Fundraising Management Certificate program where she teaches both on-site and on-line courses. During Cathy’s tenure as Executive Director at Frontier College Foundation, the organization was awarded the 2007 Campbell & Company Award for Excellence in Fundraising from among the 28,000 members of the International Association of Fundraising Professionals. Cathy has been an AFP member since 1994, is a mentor and helped found AFP’s diversity committee.

Ken Mayhew

Ken Mayhew is President and CEO at William Osler Health System Foundation. Previously, he spent almost 20 years as Chief Development Officer at MS Society of Canada. Ken serves on the AFP Canada Counsel and as Chair of the Canadian AFP Government Relations Committee. Ken also serves as a member of Ketchum Canada’s National Advisory Board and is a member of Imagine Canada’s Tax Measures Working Group. Ken has helped a number of small nonprofit Boards including Best Buddies, Ontario Children’s Aid, Track Three Ski Association, Half the Sky Foundation and Streetlight Support Services.

Krishan Mehta

Krishan Mehta is the Executive Director of Advancement and Alumni at Seneca College. Prior to joining Seneca, he spent ten years in fund development at the University of Toronto, serving most recently as the Director of Advancement at New College. Krishan is also an instructor in Ryerson’s Fundraising Management Certificate Program and a PhD student at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education where he is conducting research on the philanthropy of first-generation immigrants in Canada. In 2010, Krishan served as the co-chair of Fundraising Day, and he remains an active volunteer with a number of local community organizations.

Mark Rittinger

Mark Rittinger is the Executive Director at the York University - Schulich School of Business, where he coordinates the long term relationships between the Schulich School of Business and its key stakeholders. Initially hired by the School in 1996 as one of its first fundraising professionals, he left Schulich in 1999 to join the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago serving as Campaign Director, New York Region, and ultimately as Director of Major Gifts. During his five year tenure, Chicago Booth was engaged in a successful seven-year, $250 million campaign as part of the University of Chicago’s $2 billion Chicago Initiative. Prior to returning to Schulich, Mark served as Vice President, Development with the Royal Ontario Museum Governors. In 1997, Mark received the Canadian Council for the Advancement of Education’s Rising Star Award.

Susan A. Storey, CFRE

Susan Storey, CFRE, Vice President, KCI (Ketchum Canada Inc.) has spent over 20 years as a senior level fundraising practitioner. Most recently she held the position of Senior Director of Development with The Kidney Foundation of Canada. Previous roles includes directing fundraising across western Canada for the Canadian Diabetes Association, Chief Development Officer and Campaign Director with the University of Winnipeg, and senior roles with the Health Sciences Centre Foundation and the Alzheimer Society of Ontario. Susan served two terms on the International Board of AFP and led the task force that created the first Core Curriculum Framework for the Education and Training of fundraisers worldwide. Susan received a B.A. from the University of Winnipeg with a major in French.

Karen Willson, CFRE

Karen Willson, Senior Vice President of KCI (Ketchum Canada Inc.), is one of the firm’s most accomplished senior leaders, providing clients with expert strategic counsel and direction that’s individualized to meet their needs, as well as leading staff and volunteer training. Her focus is to provide clients with custom solutions based on each organization's needs, their donors, and the culture in which they exist. Under her direction, many of Karen Willson’s campaigns have surpassed their fundraising goals. As a volunteer, she has served as a Board member for Toronto Youth for Christ, and as an advisory Board member for the Sanfilippo Foundation.

Sharon Wood

Sharon Wood is President and CEO of Kids Help Phone. Prior to her current role, Sharon served for eight years as CEO of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation in Ontario, as well as in an interim national CEO capacity several times. Previously, Sharon was also the Executive Director of Canadian Crossroads International, and the Director of Organizational Learning and Development at the Ontario Trillium Foundation. Sharon holds a M. Ed. in Adult Education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education/UT, and a Certificate in Non-Profit Sector Management from Ryerson University and the Canadian Centre for Philanthropy. Currently, Sharon serves on the Board of Directors of the Excellence in Literacy Foundation and on AFP's Ethics and Professional Advancement Committee. She is also a volunteer mentor at The Executive Roundtable.

About the Organization