Meet the Board

Help the Aged (Canada)'s (HTAC) volunteer Board of directors currently has 16 members from a variety of professional backgrounds.

Executive Committee

Jacqueline A. Bannister (Chairperson)

Jacqueline has over 20 years experience in strategic planning, organizational effectiveness, public relations, marketing and is currently completing her Masters in Public Administration at Queen's University. She is currently Chairperson of the Board and is the lead on the strategic planning and SWOT analysis for Help the Aged Canada. She has worked with seniors and health in her career and has traveled throughout the world including Europe, Egypt, China, India, Nepal, Australia and New Zealand. She joined the HTAC board in December 2004.

Pierrette Leonard, APR (Vice Chair)

Pierrette joined us in 1993. She is currently vice-chairperson of the Board, after occupying a variety of positions within HTAC. She was born in Quebec, but grew up in Ottawa. She pursued a career in public relations and communications and currently is the Senior Advisor-National Partners for the Canadian Patient Safety Institute. Pierrette has also had the opportunity of visiting Pakistan on behalf of Help the Aged (Canada). She describes this as a defining moment in her life in seeing the harsh conditions and extreme poverty in so many areas of the country. Before volunteering with HTAC, she spent 14 years volunteering for different organizations including the Canadian Cancer Society, the Victorian Order of Nurses and the Canadian Public Relations Society. In her spare time she enjoys photography, tennis and downhill skiing.

Peter Hamilton (Secretary)

Peter is a partner with the Ottawa law firm of Hamilton/Appotive LLP, where since 1989 he has practiced in the areas of corporate/commercial law, wills and estates and real estate law. He and his wife Joanne sponsor a Gran in Dominica. He has been on the Board since 2004.

Jacqueline Hallé (Treasurer)

Jacqueline works with the Federal and Provincial Affairs Division with Revenue Canada in Ottawa. She has degrees in Accounting, Business and Chemistry. Jacqueline has been a member of a mission to the French-speaking region of Belgium to raise awareness of non-traditional careers for women and was a member of the selection committee for the Corporation of Craftsmen and Women of Quebec.

Directors

Charlotte Bélanger

Charlotte lives in Quebec City area and joined the board in August 2007. She has degrees in Health Management, Gerontology, Nursing and Care and Education Management. She worked in the medical field for forty years until her retirement in 2001. She is also a member of the Board of Directors for “Coeur de Marie,” a residence for the self-sufficient elderly in Charny.

Jacques Bertrand (Executive Director - Help the Aged Canada)

Agathe Gagné-Collard

Agathe lives in the Quebec City area. She travels frequently and has been to Africa several times. She does fundraising in Quebec for Help the Aged. She has a masters in Psychology, and a doctorate in Ethnology. Currently is a professor at the University of Laval. She has been a Board member since June 2005.

Rosalie Gelderman

Rosalie is a registered social worker and has worked with Operation Friendship Seniors Society in Edmonton’s inner city for twenty years. She enjoys traveling and has seen much of West Africa and a few countries in S.E. Asia. She has also traveled within Canada and has seen every province and territory except Nunavut.

Philip Gross

Philip Gross has volunteered with Help the Aged since 2000 and formally joined the Board in August 2006. He is invaluable to the running of the Ottawa office as he is our information technology expert and keeps our computers running. Retired, Phil has 42 years of experience providing computer-based technical, consulting and training services to businesses, governments and charitable organizations. He has a Bachelor’s and Masters of Civil Engineering.

Ivan Hale

Ivan joined the board in 2009. He obtained a Bachelors degree in sociology from York University. He is currently the Executive Director of the Quebec Farmers’ Association and raises beef cattle and organic grains on a farm in West Quebec. Ivan has extensive experience as a board member with organizations such as the International Federation on Aging (Vice-President and Treasurer), the International Alliance for Macular Degeneration, the Canadian Institute for Health Information, and the YM-YWCA Ottawa, along with many others.

Alexandra Katseva

Alexandra joined the board in 2009. She has two undergraduate degrees (physics and economics), as well as her Masters of Science in Management of Technology. She is currently a senior consultant with Systemscope Inc. She has several publications in the CIO Governments’ Review. She has volunteer experience with the Canadian Information Processing Society, and Big Brothers/Big Sisters Ottawa.

Dr. Betsy McGregor

Dr. McGregor joined the board in 2009. As well as being a qualified teacher, she has a Masters degree in Geography and is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. She is currently an instructor at Trent University where she teaches a 4th year course on global environmental policy. She has been a member of the board of directors for organizations such as the Women in Leadership board at Harvard University, the Canadian Association for Girls in Science, and SHAD Canada’s Science and Entrepreneurship Youth Leadership, among many others. Dr. McGregor is a frequent motivational speaker for youth and young women in science in Canada.

Gordon Metcalfe

Gordon joined the board in 2009. He has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Carleton University as well as a certificate in managing human resources from the School of Business Administration at the University of Western Ontario. Throughout his career Gordon held several director of human resources positions at companies such as Bell Northern Research Limited (Nortel) and Northern Telecom Limited. From 1988-1993 Gordon held the position of Commanding Officer, 763 (Ottawa) Communication Regiment on the Canadian Forces. Gordon is currently retired and devotes much of his time to volunteer work with organizations such as the Conference of Defence Associations (Secretary-Treasurer), Canadian Forces Communications and Electronics Assocation (Secretary-Treasurer), and the Community Information Centre of Ottawa-Carleton (Board President).

Yves Morneau

Yves was the Project Officer in charge of Help the Aged (Canada) for CIDA from 1999-2004. Once he retired he was asked by Pierre Barbeau, our Executive Director to join the Board. Yves loves to read and is currently pursuing a Masters in Conflict Studies at St. Paul’s University in Ottawa. His role on the Board is primarily related to our international projects. His interests lie in Africa.

Marcel Pouliot

Dr. Pouliot joined the board in 2009. He is a Medical Doctor and is a certified specialist in medical biochemistry. Throughout his career he held several positions as a biochemist-consultant at various hospitals in Quebec. He is also an accomplished academic with numerous publications in academic journals. He currently holds a position as a professor in the Faculty of Medicine at Université Laval (Dept. of Biochemistry). Dr. Pouliot travelled to Haiti (Carine, Ouanaminthe, Dillaire, and Cap-Haitien) as a volunteer with Help the Aged Canada in April 2009.

Bluma Teram

Bluma lives in Toronto, Ontario and joined the board in 2001. She is married and has one grandchild. She has worked with the regional government as a Public Health Planner. She has a Masters degree in Social Work, as well as in Gerontology and Health Studies. She has worked in program development and management for many years in the social service and public sectors. She has done work for Help the Aged in Zimbabwe and Kenya . Recently, she took a year off to travel to Africa and Australia . She has also traveled to Kenya to monitor Grans in the Adopt-A-Gran program.