M. Angie Armstrong

GHCHF

Angie has an extensive background in the For Profit and Non-Profit Sector. She is a Certified Professional Consultant for the Aged, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, UK., Certified Facilitator for CHFC and GHCHF and a Retired Licensed Cemetery and Funeral Director. She is currently the Property Manager at West Hills Co-operative in Hamilton.

Celia Chandler

Partner

Iler Campbell LLP

Celia Chandler is a partner at Iler Campbell LLP, Ontario’s go to counsel for progressive organizations of all types and sizes where she has practised since she was called to the bar in 2006. Celia has found her niche working with housing co-ops on member issues including evictions and human rights where she has developed a particular interest in issues related to mental health and housing. Celia is a familiar face for housing co-op members having spoken at the Golden Horseshoe Winter Workshops for a decade.

Warren Clarke, Ph.D.

Professor of Anthropology

Hi, I'm Warren. I am currently doing my doctorate in Sociology with a specialization in Political Economy at Carleton University. My broad research interests include Youth Cultures, Social Citizenship, Neoliberalism, Gentrification, Race & Ethnicity, Anti-Colonialism, and Masculinity. I have dedicated much of my academic and professional career to helping Black youth overcome social barriers in the likes of schools, and in the Ontario judicial system, which has inspired my work and research. I have strong ties to many Canadian communities, specifically youth-centered organizations, such as Trails Youth Initiatives.

Shawn Conway

Q. Med.

Shawn is a mediator, facilitator, and bridge builder. He has been working in the co-op sector for many years and works for several federations as a meeting chair/ facilitator, conflict trainer, coach, and mediator. He helps co-op boards, members and staff manage difficult conversations and conflicts and develop the skills to prevent disputes and conflicts.

Kathy Dimassi

GHCHF

Kathy Dimassi has been involved in the co-operative housing sector for over 28 years. She has been the manager for Halam Park Co-op for 23 years. She has been actively involved in many working groups supporting co-operative housing including the development of Hamilton's Housing & Homelessness Action Plan. Ms. Dimassi is an instructor for both GH CHF and CHF Canada.

Peter Gesiarz

CHF Canada

Peter Gesiarz has been a Co-operative and Planning Services Program Manager with CHF Canada for the last six years. He participated on the CHF Canada/CHFT committee that updated the Organizational by-law in 2015 and Occupancy By-law, version 1, in 2016. He has been familiar with the Organizational and Occupancy By-laws for the last 32 years.

Catherine Jolliffe

GHCHF

Catherine has been active in the co-op housing sector for the past 30 plus years as a property manager, neutral chairperson trainer and advocate. She is a past director of the GHCHF serving as treasurer for many years. She has also served on numerous housing committees for Niagara Region.

Safia Lakhani

Iler Campbell

I’m part of the litigation team at Iler Campbell, which means I get to work on a range of matters, from construction law and employment law to corporate governance matters. I also advise on co-ownership agreements for folks interested in co-buying property in Ontario. I came to law after completing a Masters in Middle-Eastern Studies at McGill. My degree took me to Morocco and Yemen where I studied the different forms feminist movements take in religious and secular contexts. I had been contemplating a career in academia but these experiences made me realize that I wanted a profession that would allow me to be more directly involved in social justice issues. Law struck me as one such path towards this goal and so I applied to law school at McGill. While in law school, I volunteered at a legal clinic and helped run sessions on tenant rights at a women's shelter. I became interested in the issue of Canada's national security policy, and spent a summer at a civil rights’ organization doing research on the Afghan detainee issue. I also helped co-ordinate a symposium on counter-terrorism and civil liberties, engaging academics, journalists, and lawyers in a conversation about Canada's counter-terrorism policy. I'm happy to have landed at Iler Campbell, where I take satisfaction in supporting the work of charities, NGOs, and progressive organizations. I sit on the board of CERA, the Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation, an organization dedicated to promoting human rights in housing and ending housing discrimination. I sit on the organizing committee for Toronto Artscape’s annual fundraising event, Creative TO.

Rosalind Morton

Agency for Co-operative Housing

Rosalind Morton began working with the Agency in 2018 as a relationship manager. Rosalind now works directly with housing co-ops under the rental assistance program to ensure they have the resources and information they need to meet the program requirements. Rosalind previously worked for a property management company responsible for several housing co-ops in Toronto.

Keith Moyer

CHF Canada

Keith Moyer is the Regional Manager, Ontario with CHF Canada working with the Ontario co-op services team. Before joining CHF Canada, he was a long-time housing co-op manager in Waterloo Region.