Hamilton, 15 June 2023 –
The Annual General Meeting of Goodwill, The Amity Group was held in Hamilton, Ontario, June 14, 2023. Among the agenda items was the election of Directors, appointment of Officers, and recognition of departing Directors.
Re-elected to three-year terms were:
Glen Norton, CPA, MBA
Glen was first appointed to the Board in June 2020 then elected to his first three-year term in September of that year. He was elected Vice Chair in September 2020 and re-elected at the 2022 AGM. Glen spent over 22 years in Canadian mid-market commercial banking in Southwestern Ontario. Between 2009 and 2020 he worked at the City of Hamilton. His last position before retirement was as Director, Economic Development. Glen has volunteered with community organizations including the United Way. He is the incoming Board Chair for the Muskoka Community Foundation.
At the AGM Glen was also elected Chair.
Cortney Oliver, MA
Cortney was elected to the Board in September 2020. She is Senior Manager, Environment, Social & Governance for Baffinland Iron Mines Corporation. She brings expertise in sustainability, governance, policy, and government relations to the Board.
At the AGM Cortney was also elected Vice Chair.
Newly elected to three-year terms were:
Scott James, MBA, PMP
Scott James currently leads the engineering modifications and sparing programs for L3Harris Wescam in Canada. Scott has over 25 years of direct experience with complex engineering programs in highly regulated, international markets. Scott has extensive experience in domestic and international mergers and acquisitions. Spending much of his career in project management, continuous improvement and strategic planning, Scott has extensive knowledge and experience leading large international programs. Scott has an MBA from the Smith School of Business at Queens University, a BA in Labour and Industrial Relations from the University of Toronto and a Project Management Professional designation (PMP).
Gaetano Sferrazza
For the last eight years, Gaetano has owned and operated T4Tax in Burlington. As an entrepreneur and employer, he has used Goodwill’s Employment Services to hire many of his staff members. Indeed, for his support of Goodwill job seekers, many of whom face barriers to employment, T4Tax won Goodwill Amity’s Employer of the Year Award in 2022. But his connection to our organization began years before that when he was looking for work and Goodwill helped him find an opportunity. His experience as both a job seeker and employer will be a benefit at the Board table.
Continuing Board members are:
Akosua Alagaratnam
Akosua is the Executive Director of First Work, Ontario’s Employment Network. A network representing employment service providers serving jobseekers, especially youth, with help in bridging the gap to employment. Prior to her work in the employment sector, Akosua worked as a senior public affairs professional in a variety of political roles provincially in the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Children and Youth Services. Specifically, she served as an advisor to Ministers on policy and legislative files spanning a diverse portfolio inclusive of labour, children and youth services, and community and social services, to name a few. As part of her role in the Network, Akosua represents Ontario’s service providers on the board of the Canadian Coalition of Community-Based Employability and Training. Akosua was first appointed to the Board in January 2022.
At the AGM Akosua was also appointed Chair of the Board Development Committee.
Andrea Donlan
Andrea joined the Board in 2019, when she was the President and CEO of Manifest Communications, a social change firm. In January 2020 she joined MacMillan Vantage Policy and serves as a Vice President, engaged in public affairs and strategic communications with a particular focus on corporate purpose and social impact. She has been Chair since September 2020.
Andrea has served as Goodwill Amity Chair since 2020 and was thanked for her leadership as new Chair, Glen Norton, assumed that role.
Khadija Hamidu
Khadija is the Executive Director of Workforce Planning Hamilton and Founder of Melanin Market. Over the last 10 years, she has fostered leadership around strategic planning and governance development through non-profits organizations in the hopes of creating innovative pathways to a better local economy from a sociological framework. With experience in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Khadija founded Melanin Market, where she leads and supports BIPOC Business on a national level with a goal to bring the necessary spotlight to businesses and creators who need extra support with funding and marketing. Khadija is the recipient of Top 40 Leaders Under 40. Khadija has served on the Goodwill Board since March 2022.
Indira Naidoo-Harris
Indira is a trusted public leader, policy-maker, journalist, and human rights advocate currently serving as the Associate Vice-President of Diversity and Human Rights at the University of Guelph. She is a former MPP for Halton and has held several cabinet posts, including Ontario’s first ever Minister of the Status of Women, Minister Responsible for Early Years and Child Care, Associate Minister of Finance, and Minister of Education. Before entering politics, Naidoo-Harris was an award- winning journalist in Canada and internationally with outlets including NBC, PBS, CBC, OMNI, TVO, and CTV. Indira was named one of Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women by the national Women’s Executive Network in 2022. Indira joined the Board in June 2021.
Carmela Trombetta
Carmela Trombetta is the Vice President of Private Banking for Southwestern Ontario. She leads a team of private bankers who provide customized advice and holistic wealth management solutions for high-net-worth clients, their families, and their businesses. With over 30 years of experience, Carmela has held a number of unique blend of front-line and leadership roles across RBC within Personal and Commercial Banking and Financial Planning, including as Vice President, Commercial Banking for Greater Hamilton. Carmela has been a volunteer leader in the region, having served as a campaign cabinet member with United Way Halton & Hamilton, and on the Boards of organizations including the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce, Mohawk College Foundation, and St. Joseph’s Healthcare Foundation. Carmela joined the Board in June 2022.
The Departing Director recognized for his service was:
David Rathbun, MBA, FLMI, Director
David was re-elected in September 2020 to a second three-year term. He has 30 years of executive experience across a number of sectors. Previously an Executive Vice President of Bell Aliant, President of xwave Solutions and Chief Talent Officer at Clearwater Seafoods, he currently consults on strategy, organizational development, and change management. He is also a Senior Consultant with the Atlantic Leadership Development Institute, a former member of the Counsel of Human Resource Executives for the Conference Board of Canada and past Chair of the Prior Learning Centre.
About Goodwill Amity
The mission of Goodwill, The Amity Group is “changing lives and strengthening communities through the power of work.”
Since 1935, we have delivered that mission through Employment Services and Social Enterprises for people who face barriers to work. In Employment Services, we help people enter or re-enter the workforce and serve employers in recruiting and retaining the teams they need to meet their operational objectives. Our Social Enterprises, which include two thrift stores and a café and catering division, generate proceeds for our employment mission and offer hands-on training to job seekers.
For our job seekers, finding work is transformational. It can lead to financial stability, provide food and shelter, give purpose to someone who has lost a career, help newcomers join the Canadian labour market, give an individual with a disability the skills to pursue employment, or launch a youth from school to work.
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Contact information:
Kelly Duffin, President and CEO
kduffin@goodwillonline.ca
905-526-8482 x 2222