Our Board

Michelle Podhy, a Chartered Professional Accountant (recently retired in 2016) was formerly with KPMG Kingston as the Office Managing Partner where she was an audit partner for the past 20 years. During her senior executive years, she was honored by serving a six-year term with KPMG Canada’s Board of Directors. A fiercely loyal executive, she was with KPMG for 35 years since her graduation from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree.

Michelle has extensive experience in auditing public sector and not-for-profit organizations. This experience involves all aspects of audit planning, control and reporting, including liaison with audit committees, councils and boards of directors for large public sector clients in higher education, health care, municipal, foundations and other not-for-profits. Michelle was the client engagement partner for St. Lawrence College for 5 years up to the year ending March 31, 2013.

She has always lived in the Kingston area and has many years of experience working as a volunteer for many not-for-profit organizations. She currently serves on boards for Providence Care, Museum of Health Care at Kingston, Anna & Edward C. Churchill Foundation and The Ballytobin Foundation.

Florence Carey operates a solo law practice focussed on charities and non-profits. An experienced lawyer, Florence has 20+ years of experience at a regional firm where, in addition to a busy tax practice, she helped charities and non-profits address their legal issues. Today, Florence provides solid legal advice to help organizations incorporate, create by-laws, and apply for charitable status. She also helps her clients navigate Canada Revenue Agency regulation of charities and non-profits, including gift planning and fundraising rules, and provides advice regarding governance matters. She considers herself fortunate to work with many large and established charities as well as small start-ups, and her clients have a wide range of purposes. She provides advice to organizations (including the boards of directors), and offers training, workshops and access to legal information to help organizations fulfil their purposes while operating ethically, following good governance principles and rules of the regulator.

Florence has been recognized as a Best Lawyer in Canada, is a past-chair of the Canadian Bar Association Charities and Not-for-Profit Law Section, a past member of the Technical Issues Working Group of Canada Revenue Agency’s Charities Directorate, Chair of the Canadian Association of Gift Planners Manitoba Chapter, a member of the Canadian Tax Foundation, and past co-chair of the CBA’s National Charity Law Symposium. Florence completed the Institute of Corporate Directors’ NFP Governance Essentials Program in 2019, and received the full Directors’ Education Program (DEP) designation in 2021. She has served on the volunteer boards of directors of a number of local charities, and currently serves as Board President of the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra. She is also a board member at Imagine Canada. She is a frequent writer and lecturer on charity law subjects.

Alan retired from RBC Dominion Securities in December 2020, after a 36 year career in the investment industry.

His first 12 years were with BMO Nesbitt Burns, the last 24 years were with RBC Dominion Securities.

He started his career as an Investment Advisor, evolved into branch management, and later into senior management with RBC as a Regional Director.

In addition to work responsibilities and outside board activities, Alan has since 2004 been a volunteer for Palliative Care Manitoba, involved in End Of Life and Bereavement activities.

Alan’s main strengths throughout his career have been coaching people for greater success, and effecting change in the organization.

His personal interests are history, classical music, squash, and chess.

Experienced financial services executive (retired) focused on the wealth management needs of high-net- worth Canadian families. During a 30 year career at Royal Bank of Canada Doug had a series of executive positions including, President of Royal Trust Corporation of Canada, Head of Estate and Trust Services, Regional Vice President RBC Global Private Banking, and Head of RBC Financial Planning. More recently he has been actively involved in health care related charities and foundations and conservation land trusts. G Doug is married to Sue Gunton, retired Executive from the Metro Toronto Zoo.

Bonnie brings over 20 years of fundraising and leadership experience in the social / non-profit sector. She started her career in a rural sports outreach program in South Africa, before moving on to almost a decade of fundraising for the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education. She then joined the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF Canada) where she spent 8 years and progressed into the role of national VP Development to lead all high-value fundraising channels in Canada and their global ‘best practice’ working group for major gift fundraising. From there she was recruited to join the Equality Fund as the Chief Development Officer, where she led the design and initial execution of a significant fundraising strategy that helped secure the largest feminist funding partnership in Canadian history via Global Affairs Canada’s Partnership for Gender Equality. After a short hiatus from the sector during the COVID19 pandemic to support her young family at home, Bonnie joined Make-A-Wish Canada in January 2023 as their Vice-President, Central Canada. Bonnie holds a Masters of Education (Adult Education and Community Development) from the University of Toronto, and a Bachelor of Physical Education and Bachelor of Arts from Queen’s University.