The Excellence of Black Philanthropy: Panel Discussion

As the chairman and founder of WeShall Investments Inc, a private equity firm with a diverse portfolio of companies predominantly supporting BIPOC entrepreneurs, Wes Hall comes from humble beginnings in rural Jamaica. He grew up in a plantation worker's shack as one of several children supported by his grandmother. Despite these challenges, his grandmother instilled in him the value of hard work, ambition, and industriousness. In 1985, Wes immigrated to Canada, where he set about to become the businessman you see today. Dressed daily in a suit, Wes started as a mail clerk at a leading law firm in Toronto. His curiosity, intelligence, and ability to spot opportunities allowed him to turn a $100K loan from the bank to start his first business, Kingsdale Advisors, into becoming the most preeminent shareholder advisory firm in Canada. 

Wes' expertise was invaluable on the complicated dispute between Toronto-based Goldcorp and Nevada-based Glamis Gold from 2004 to 2006, Xstrata PLC's USD 18-billion takeover of Falconbridge in 2006, and the $19-billion merger between Suncor and Petro-Canada in 2009.

A staunch philanthropist, Wes is deeply committed to community upliftment. He is the founder of the ambitious and highly successful BlackNorth Initiative designed to help end systemic anti-Black racism in Canada. He has instructed Black Entrepreneurship & Leadership at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, a first-of-its-kind course in North America. Wes is the vice-chair of the Board of Governors at Huron University College, a member of the Capital Markets Modernization Taskforce, and sits on the board of directors for SickKids Foundation, TIFF, and Pathways to Education Canada. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce awarded him the Canadian Business Leader of 2022. Wes has received Honorary Doctorates from Queens University, Toronto Metropolitan University, the University of Ottawa, and the University of the West Indies. He also received the Medal of Distinction from Huron University in 2022.

Wes’ other accomplishments include penning a bestselling memoir, "No Bootstraps When You're Barefoot". He launched a podcast in partnership with the Toronto Star, "Between Us with Wes Hall", and is also on the hit CBC series, "Dragons' Den."

Brentyn oversees the strategic operations of WeShall and its portfolio companies and Wes Hall’s Dragons’ Den investments. He partners with internal and external stakeholders to execute strategic, operational, and financial mandates. Brentyn holds a B.B.A from Wilfred Laurier University and sits on the board of QM Environmental, Mobile Business Express, Friendly Fables Productions. He is also a Youth Committee Member at The BlackNorth Initiative.

Colin Lynch, MBA is the Managing Director and Head of Global Real Estate Investments at TD Asset Management and the Co-founder and Board Member of the Black Opportunity Fund. He is also the member of the Board of Directors of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, and Toronto Investment Board. Finally, he is a member of the Advisory Board of OneEleven, the Emeritus Trustee of Queen's University, and the recipient of the 2020 Top 40 Under 40.

Claudette McGowan is a global information technology leader with more than 20 years of success leading digital transformations, optimizing infrastructure and designing new approaches that improve service and cybersecurity experiences. She has worked in the technology industry for several organizations such as Deloitte, Metropolitan Police Services, North York General Hospital, Bank of Montreal and TD Bank. 

At BMO, Claudette served as the Chief Information Officer, Enterprise Technology Employee Experience, and at TD she was the Global Executive Officer for Protect Fusion & Cyber Experience. 

Claudette is currently the Chief Executive Officer for Protexxa, a Canadian-based cybersecurity software and services company.

Claudette is an active member of the Canadian innovation ecosystem. She is the Founder of the Black Arts & Innovation Expo, and the Chair of the Coalition of Innovation Leaders Against Racism (CILAR), a group of senior business leaders committed to fighting systemic racism within the innovation economy. McGowan recently co-led the launch of Phoenix Fire & The Firehood, a multi-million dollar women-focused angel fund and network for women in technology.

Her commitment to community is evidenced by her multiple board /council appointments for leading organizations such as SickKids Hospital Foundation, CILAR, Elevate Technology Festival, Women in the Economy Task Force, and the U.S. Consul General of Toronto U.S. & Canada Innovation Council.

McGowan completed her studies in Canada and graduated with Bachelor of Arts and Master of Business Administration degrees. In June 2022, Claudette was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Carleton University in recognition of her distinguished career as a global information technology leader.