Amy Coupal is the CEO of the Ontario Caregiver Organization, a charitable organization funded by the Ministry of Health that was formed in 2018 to support Ontario’s 4 million caregivers. A visionary leader with 15 years of experience in the not-for-profit sector, Amy has extensive experience building organizations from the ground up and is excited to be leading the Ontario Caregiver Organization through its early days of growth. She has held a number of CEO roles, including CEO of Learnography and My Class Needs Foundation, and has expertise in the latest innovations and technologies related to learning and education. Amy is passionate about mobilizing change through knowledge sharing and building collaborative initiatives that positively impact the lives of individuals and communities.

Amy has a Masters of Education from the University of Calgary and is an Adler-trained coach. Her insights have been shared through speaking and media engagements, both internationally and here in Canada.

Amy has a deep understanding of the benefits and challenges associated with caregiving. As a caregiver for most of her life, Amy helped to support her brother who had Cerebral Palsy. She was also a caregiver to her mother throughout her cancer journey and now supports her elderly father.

David has focused his career on improving the health care system in Canada.  He is currently the Vice President of Business Development for Novari, a firm dedicated to reducing surgical wait times and improving access to care.  He is on the board of MitoCanada, an organization focused on raising awareness, funding research and providing support for people with Mitochondrial disease. David also sits on the CanChild Advisory board which is based at McMaster University and focuses on children’s disability research.  David has a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering and Management from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. 

David is also the proud father of his  20-year-old daughter, who at the age of one, had a metabolic event that caused a brain injury and left her developmentally delayed and requiring a feeding tube. David’s own unique caregiving journey inspires him to want to improve the journey for other caregivers.

Yves Savoie is an executive coach and strategic advisor to charities and philanthropists.

His practice builds on more than thirty years as the CEO or chief fundraiser of large charities including as CEO of Heart & Stroke Canada and the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada. For the past two decades, Yves has worked as a CEO in health and human services where he has been a tireless policy advocate for people with episodic disabilities, for healthy eating, and for patient-centered approaches to system change.

He is a graduate of the University of Toronto, obtained his MBA at Concordia University, and later completed a Master of Management at McGill University. Yves is francophone and grew up in the Acadian region of northern New Brunswick. He has a deep understanding of the reality of francophone minority communities. Yves was a remote caregiver to his parents in New Brunswick.

Janet Beed has more than 40 years of experience in the Ontario health care system, most recently as President and CEO of Markham Stouffville Hospital. Prior to that position she held a number of leadership roles at the University Health Network/Toronto General Hospital, Princess Margaret Hospital/Ontario Cancer Institute, and the Hospital for Sick Children. Janet was also a Partner with Deloitte Consulting working globally in the Change Management Service Line.  

Janet’s understanding of the needs of caregivers began when she was a Clinical Nurse Specialist in the Cardiac Care division of the Hospital for Sick Children. During this time, she became involved with Bereaved Parents of Toronto and served on their professional Advisory Board and the Board of Directors. During her tenure the organization transformed to Bereaved Families of Ontario, a provincial volunteer-based organization focused on providing support by bereaved parents to bereaved parents through a self-help model under the guidance of a Professional Advisory Committee. Over the past 10 years, Janet has been an active caregiver to friends and family members during acute and palliative times of need. 

In 2017, Janet was engaged by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to examine how to strengthen supports for caregivers in Ontario. Janet consulted widely with caregivers, Ontario organizations providing supports to caregivers, and caregiver organizations in other jurisdictions. The Ontario Caregiver Organization is based on recommendations in Janet’s report “Expanding Caregiver Support in Ontario.”

Kasia Czarski is a creative executive with career experience in public and private business, as well as the not-for-profit sector. Her core expertise is strategy, marketing and customer experience. Kasia has held CEO and senior/vice president roles at Alzheimer’s Society – Ontario, Foresters Financial, Heart and Stroke and Speedy Muffler. Kasia’s Board experience includes positions on numerous industry associations, including the American Fraternal Alliance, LIMRA, Canadian Marketing Association and the CMA Ethics and Privacy committee. She has served as the president of the Foresters Prevention for Child Abuse charity, as well as varied roles with Children’s Miracle Network, Kaboom Children’s Playgrounds and Heart and Stroke. She holds a business degree from Ivey at Western University.

Kasia has lived experience as a caregiver, caring for her good friend and neighbour who is on a cancer journey, her elderly parents, and has supported numerous employees on their own caregiving journeys.

Janine Pajot is an accomplished Senior Executive with 25+ years of experience in pharmaceuticals, agriculture & consumer health. Prior to her current role as Vice President of Human Resources at Bayer Canada, Janine held several positions of progressive accountability in the areas of marketing, sales and communications.

Janine provides expertise in corporate strategy, human resources, risk management, mergers and divestments, corporate governance, transformation/change management, leadership and team development and talent management.

Janine understands the rewards and challenges associated with caregiving through her personal experience caring for her grandmother and mother in their final months.

Aarushi Puri is Senior Legal Counsel at Metergy Solutions. In her role, Aarushi advises the organization on all legal, regulatory, corporate governance and strategic matters. She is deeply passionate about tackling complex legal, governance and social problems and building consensus toward sustainable, long-term stakeholder value creation. Previously, Aarushi worked at Stikeman Elliott LLP (Toronto) and Allen & Gledhill LLP (Singapore), where she focused on corporate and securities law, including cross-border mergers & acquisitions, corporate governance, financings and competition law. Aarushi is a lawyer licensed to practice in Ontario and holds a Juris Doctor from Osgoode Hall Law School and a Bachelor of Social Science in Economics from the National University of Singapore.  

Aarushi appreciates the importance of caregiving in holistic healthcare through her own experience in providing care for her grandmother and now, as a remote caregiver to her parents. It is important to Aarushi that caregivers have the support they need to thrive.

Tyson J. Roffey is an instructor at York University’s Schulich School of Business within the Master of Health Administration Certificate Program. He is also a Certified Information Privacy Technologist and has been an active participant on several Boards and Committees such as: Ronald MacDonald House, the Health Information System Society (HIMSS) and others. Tyson was the past Chair of the Digital Health Program Advisory Committee at Algonquin College, designed to foster the next generation of health IT professionals.

Tyson is passionate about sharing his knowledge and giving back to the community. A caregiver himself, Tyson has supported family members with chronic diseases, concussions and mental health challenges and strongly believes in the need to support caregivers in their role. 

Dr. Ravinder Singh is a trained General Surgeon working in North Bay. As the past Chief of Surgery for North Bay Regional and Surgical Representative for the North Bay Ontario Health Team, Ravinder has a strong interest in health care quality improvement and efficiency, and an interest in bridging the gap between healthcare providers and the healthcare system, as well as with community and people. Ravinder graduated with a Master’s degree of Business Administration from University of Tennessee and holds a Master’s degree in Healthcare Management from Harvard University. Ravinder is also a board member and VP of the Ontario Association of General Surgeons and is working towards his certification in Life and Wellness Coaching.

Emma Stainton is the Associate Director, Client Relations at Black Creek Investment and has worked in the asset management industry for 10 years. She previously worked at RBC Philips, Hager & North Investment Counsel as a Project Manager, where she focused on building the technology, training, marketing and roll out of many projects. She then moved to RBC Global Asset Management where she managed National Accounts, servicing mutual fund dealers, insurance companies, and other asset managers. Emma holds an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Bishop’s University and is a CFA^® charterholder.

Emma was a caregiver for seven years, supporting both parents throughout their cancer journey.     

Nicole is a professional event planner, inspirational speaker, author, community advocate, and host of the “Victory Speaks” Podcast and the “Victory Speaks Online Show”.

Ms. Waldron works for the advancement and prosperity of her community, raising awareness on Co-op housing, mental health, and other issues. She sits on the board of The Cooperators, the Cooperative Housing Federation of Canada (CHF Canada) and the Ontario Caregiver Organization. Nicole serves on committees with the Canadian Mental Health Hospital (CAMH), Stella’s Place, and the Family Caregivers Advisory Network (OFCAN). Nicole was named one of the 100 Black Accomplished Canadian Women and one of 150 Women in Canada by How She Hustles’ HERstory in Black series. She is the recipient of the 2020 Brian Burke Community Service Award from CHFT, the Outstanding Community Service Award from Dance Caribe. Nicole was also presented with the Social Housing Service Corporation Kathleen Blinkhorn Award for Excellence in Volunteerism.