KPDC’s Board of Directors oversees and manages the affairs of the club. It keeps us pretty busy!
An active, engaged Board of Directors is at the heart of any organization’s success. Directors from diverse backgrounds with varied skills, experience and contacts help an organization grow. A good Director is one who takes an active interest in the organization and brings a unique set of abilities and perspective to the Board.
As President, I am proud to introduce the outstanding team of seasoned volunteers elected to KPDC’s 2013-14 Board of Directors in November. These individuals bring a broad range of not-for-profit experience on local, provincial and national boards and committees, and valuable professional and volunteer qualifications. Diverse but complementary backgrounds, skills, and talents – and optimism, creativity, enthusiasm, and commitment – are the hallmarks of this year’s Board.
KPDC welcomes four new Directors. Maria Conley, Cindy Greenlay, Kevin Gordon, and Ted Norrington who join the three returning Directors – Donna Henry, Kathleen Kirkman and Jeff Henry. (The Vice President’s position is currently vacant and the Board will recruit to fill the vacancy.)
2014 promises to be an exciting year for KPDC! Please take a few minutes to find out more about your new team.
Donna Henry – President
Donna and Terra have been hiking Kilcona’s off-leash trails since the family moved to North Kildonan in 2001. Franklin – Kilcona’s champion mouse hunter – joined the pack in 2004, and Hudson – the dog park “Nibbler” – in 2006.
In 2010 Donna was elected Co-chair of Kilcona Park Dog Club. For the past two years she’s served as President, motivated by a love of dogs and a desire to transform Kilcona’s under-developed off-leash area into a model dog park – a safe, appealing all-season recreation area for people and dogs; with well-constructed, accessible trails and quality amenities.
Donna is the Vice President of a business and project management consulting firm. She credits her professional experience as a Parks Canada visitor services officer, park superintendent, park and tourism management consultant, and a lifetime of “bus man’s holidays” in parks around the world for her capacity to understand the needs of visitors, protect resources and identify appropriate solutions to park management issues. As President she communicates regularly with members, represents their interests to the City, and advocates on behalf of Kilcona’s dog community.
As a former journalist and recovering news junkie, Donna enjoys the creative aspect of her volunteer position – contributing articles for KPDC’S website and creating educational materials. She has a BA (Hons) from Queen’s University.
Ted Norrington – Treasurer
Ted Norrington is a recently retired chartered accountant who now has time to devote to one of his passions - dogs!
For the last three years Ted and his wife Roma and their “enthusiastic” English springer spaniel, Newton have walked the many trails at Kilcona Dog Park.
Ted believes in giving back to the community and anticipates contributing to the Board of Directors to enhance the future of the dog park and all things concerning dogs.
Kathleen Kirkman – Secretary
Kathleen has been visiting Kilcona Dog Park for the past five years. On disability leave from her job in 2011, she wanted to involve herself with a charitable group and was delighted when she was asked to join the Board of Directors as Secretary.
Kathleen was an Instructor in the nursing program at Red River College for fifteen years, teaching a variety of subjects, including epidemiology and health assessment. Her teaching drew on her experience as a northern nurse at St Theresa Point and her work in ICU. Education has always been her forte and in 2003, she earned a Master’s Degree in Education.
While working in the north, Kathleen witnessed annual fall dog culls and arranged to fly out unwanted dogs so they could be adopted into loving homes. Later she adopted several pets of her own. These days she has four cats and a dog, Harry Potter (Harry for short), a lab shepherd cross. She adopted Harry five years ago after a Good Samaritan found the two-month old puppy playing on Logan Street, oblivious to the dangers of rush hour traffic, and delivered him to the doorsteps of Animal Services.
Kathleen brings to the Board a well-honed ability to work as a team member. She is a good communicator and enjoys working with people and dogs alike. She sees herself as being a strong voice for the existence and continued improvement of the dog park. She believes that Kilcona Park Dog Club can be an innovator and Kilcona can be a model for future off-leash parks in Canada.
Kevin Gordon – Director of Membership
Kevin lives in Windsor Park. He has have been taking his dogs Sadie and Ryder to Kilcona for several years.
Kevin was recruited to the Board this year, having served on KPDC’s Marketing Committee since 2010. Kevin has been an active volunteer, serving as grill master at many fundraising events. His company, engage6 is a KPDC Gold Sponsor that hosts and maintains the club’s website and internal email system.
Kevin is a marketing consultant and public speaker. He believes that anything worth doing is worth measuring. He works with his clients to build meaningful and measurable marketing campaigns through the proper combination of traditional media, new media, and custom technologies.
Kevin is a geek, and a bit of a nerd too. A certified computer technician, he spent almost a decade doing nerdy tech support stuff before making the leap to the business world. Having a thorough understanding of how technology works, he is able to bridge the gaps between his clients and the real big nerds who sit in dark rooms, drinking Red Bull and writing code.
Kevin thrives on knowledge, and has been a student for most of his adult life. Through the University of Manitoba and Red River College, he earned a diploma in Business, specializing in e-marketing. Then, because he’s a glutton for punishment, he went back and earned a Certificate with Honours in Project Management, and is currently working on his Certificate in the Business Analyst world.
Maria Conley – Director of Fundraising
Maria grew up in North Kildonan and regularly spent time enjoying the trails at Kilcona Park. She and her dog Wrigley (a Rhodesian ridgeback/lab, adopted from Winnipeg Humane Society) began visiting the off-leash area in 2002. These days Maria, her husband James and three-year old Wyatt, a weimaraner /doberman adopted from Winnipeg Animal Services Shelter are dog park regulars.
Maria began volunteering at KPDC fundraising events before being recruited to serve on the club’s Board of Directors. A strong believer in helping the community, Maria is motivated by a desire to grow Kilcona Park Dog Club’s community spirit. As the Director of Fundraising, her priorities are generating the funds needed to support KPDC’s activities while helping to increase the club’s public exposure, driving awareness of park issues, and helping support membership initiatives. She also wants to do whatever she can to help make the park a safe place for the dogs.
Maria brings a valuable combination of education, experience, talent and enthusiasm to the newly created Director of Fundraising position. She’s an award winning sales professional with a well-developed entrepreneurial spirit. A self-described “idea” person, she’s creative, highly motivated, and energetic.
A graduate of Red River College Management Development Program with a diploma in Business Administration, she also has completed Sandler Sales and Dale Carnegie leadership programs.
Maria enjoys running, hiking, and biking as well as landscaping, gardening, traveling, volunteering and spending time with her family.
Cindy Greenlay – Director of Events
Cindy brings outstanding professional qualifications and experience to the position of Director of Events. She is the Manager of Therapeutic Recreation, Volunteer and Support Services in a long term care facility in Winnipeg. An important part of her position is event planning, something she has done for over 20 years. Cindy has also been a part-time Instructor at Red River College for many years, with event planning being part of the certificate program she teaches.
Cindy has planned conferences, fund raising events, volunteer appreciation events, family fun days and many other events as part of her personal and professional life. She has a degree in Adapted Physical Education and Recreation from the University of Alberta.
Cindy is also a Certified Food Handler. Before she was recruited to the Board, she served as a volunteer, overseeing the safe preparation, cooking and serving of food at the KPDC – IAM’s National Dog Day Party in the Park.
In adding her adorable rescued puppy Cade (see KPDC’s Facebook page) to her life last April, she has become a frequent user of Kilcona Park. Cindy hopes to assist in improving what she sees as an essential service in the realm of recreational green spaces in the City of Winnipeg.
Jeff Henry – Director of Marketing
Jeff and Terra began visiting Kilcona in 2001 and Hudson joined them in 2006. They love exploring the park and enjoy mouse herding in particular (the dogs, that is!). All three love camping, fishing and hiking.
Jeff was elected to Kilcona Park Dog Club’s Board in 2010. As Director of Marketing he created KPDC’s multi-year marketing plan, and developed and implemented its cornerstone – the Corporate Sponsorship Program. Over the past three years the program, which provides benefits and discounts to members, helped drive KPDC membership sales from 35 to over 500. Jeff is also a Certified Food Handler who helps oversee food safety at club fundraising events.
Jeff credits the much of the success of KPDC’s marketing programs to his experience in business development, mergers and acquisitions, and industry/market analysis. He’s quick to point out that to be successful and sustainable, the program must provide benefits to both sponsors and members.
Jeff is the President and CEO of a business and project management consulting firm. He also teaches a variety of courses – including web marketing communications, customer relationship management, procurement and contract law, negotiating and influence, and ethics and corporate responsibility – at universities and colleges across Canada.
Jeff holds the Canadian Institute of Management’s Professional Manager (P.Mgr) and Chartered Manager (C.Mgr) designations, and the Project Management Institute’s Project Management Professional (PMP) designation. He has a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Queen’s University and is a Certified Electronic Engineering Technologist (CET) .
