Board of Directors

Gillian Hewitt Smith, President

Gillian Hewitt Smith is Senior Advisor, Corporate Affairs for RBC and Head of Communications for RBC’s Group Head, Strategy, Treasury and Corporate Services. Gillian’s extensive volunteer commitments span the arts and culture, social justice and education sectors.

 

Caroline Zayid, Vice President

Caroline is a partner at the law firm, McCarthy Tétrault. She practises civil litigation with an emphasis on class actions, product liability and administrative law. She has also worked in policy and issue management within the provincial government. Caroline has been active in community organizations, working for peace and social justice.

 

Leigh Knowles, Treasurer

Victoria Paris, Secretary

Victoria is a principal with Kim Orr Barristers P.C. Her practice focuses on securities and class action litigation and has also included several cases involving the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in which she's advocated on behalf of disabled and autistic children, same sex couples, victims of the tainted blood tragedy and aboriginal people with respect to inadequate housing. Victoria also teaches corporate governance at Queen's University Law School. Previously, she's served on the advisory board and the board of directors of an organization directed at providing heating assistance to Canadian families through the winter, and a national environmental organization. Victoria has been serving on the Board of The Stop since February 2008.

 

Charles M. Lennox, Past President

Charles is managing director of Lennox Millar Executive Search and a senior executive recruiter with twenty five years of business experience in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. Charles is a member of Timothy Eaton Church's Community Grants Committee. A Stop Director since 2003, Charles served as Board Chair/President from mid 2005 to January-2010. Charles received an Honours Bachelor of Arts from Huron College University at the University of Western Ontario in 1983. Charles is also a Certified Management Consultant (CMC).

Derek Clarke, Director

Derek has worked in aviation for over ten years at Bombardier in Toronto, and is currently part of the Commercial Aircraft Marketing team. He is a Professional Engineer and Certified Management Accountant and was attracted to The Stop because of its significant contribution to the community through its food programs and advocacy campaigns, as well as the highly enthusiastic and professional members of The Stop’s board, staff and volunteer teams. Derek served as the Treasurer at The Stop from 2005 to 2008, and in addition to continuing to support in a financial role, is now involved in helping other areas of the organisation.

 

Michael Curry, Director

Michael is a managing partner at Investeco Capital, Canada's first environmental investment company, focused on renewable energy, water, clean technologies and sustainable agriculture. He grew up on a farm in Southern Ontario and now lives in Toronto with his wife and three children. Michael has been vice chair at Organic Meadow since 2004 and chair of Rowe Farms since 2006, two of Canada's leading sustainable agriculture companies both of whom are strong supporters and partners of The Stop Community Food Centre. Michael is inspired by the success and mission of The Stop, and the idea of building healthy communities based on the simplicity and power of good food.

 

Rick Eagan, Director

Rick has long been involved in social justice issues and is Community Development Coordinator at St. Christopher's House.

 

Matt Galloway, Director

Matt has been working at CBC Radio for almost 10 years. He has hosted the CBC Radio programs The Current, Sounds Like Canada, Metro Morning, The Arts Today, Global Village, Music and Company, OnStage and many others. He also anchored CBC Radio's coverage of the 2007 FIFA Under 20 World Cup of Soccer. In 2008, he hosted CBC Radio’s coverage of the Summer Olympics live from Beijing, mixing breaking sports results with insightful looks into the changing face of Chinese culture. Since 2004, he has been the host of Here and Now, the drive-home program on CBC Radio One 99.1 FM in Toronto, moving from interviews with mayors, premiers and other newsmakers of the day to arts, sports, culture and food. For several years, he has promoted The Stop’s work on radio. His attraction to The Stop blends a passion for food, a desire to help his community and the opportunity now, at a time of increased food literacy within society, to connect and combine those two like never before. Matt lives in the west end of Toronto with his partner and their two daughters.

Seana brings several years of experience in the non-profit sector and a background in environmental studies. She is national program director of Evergreen, a non-profit committed to bringing nature to our cities through naturalization projects.

 

Laura Manes, Director

Laura Manes is a management consultant with Bain & Company and has worked with clients across many industries in strategic planning, project investment decisions, market intelligence and continuous improvement. She is passionate about social justice, healthy living and the role of the family, and is inspired by the Stop’s commitment to food security for all community members.