Board of Directors

  • BRENDAN HOWARD – CHAIR

    PARTNER, CIEL CAPITAL

    Brendan is a Partner with Ciel Capital. His strategic insight, his willingness to “get his hands dirty”, his youthful energy, and his passion to make a difference make him an invaluable asset to the Start2Finish team.

    In his role with Ciel, Brendan oversees strategy and growth for portfolio companies and is an active part of new company evaluation and onboarding. Brendan built his career as a strategy professional, first with Secor Consulting, then with KPMG Management Consulting, and then Aimia-Aeroplan. Brendan holds an M.Sc. in Public Policy and Administration from the London School of Economics (First Class Honours) and an HBA from the Ivey School of Business (with Distinction). He is a competitive Triathlete and an active alumnus of the Ivey Business School.

  • BENJAMIN WINOGRAD – TREASURER

    MANAGING DIRECTOR, GLOBAL NEXT GENERATION STRATEGIC CLIENTS, ROYAL BANK OF CANADA

    With his background and proficiency in financial management, Ben provides oversight to Start2Finish’s financial processes and reporting. Ben is a member of RBC’s Enterprise Strategic Client Group and engages with the next generation of RBC’s most strategic families to provide guidance as they prepare to take on leadership roles within their family enterprises, or start their own ventures. Through the delivery of bespoke solutions, in his role as Managing Director, Global Next Generation Strategic Clients, he works closely with family members to support them as they prepare for the responsibilities that come with wealth, including through social impact.

    Ben also serves as the Co-Chair of Major Gifts for the RBC Employee Giving Campaign, as a Board Member of Sunnybrook Next Generation, and as an Olympic Supporter with the Canadian Olympic Committee. Outside of his other commitments, he enjoys being active, travelling, reading, and spending time with his family including his wife and two young children.

  • SHEVAWN ADAMS – NOMINATING COMMITTEE CHAIR

    PRINCIPAL, INNER DIMENSION DESIGN ASSOCIATES

    Shevawn served as Chair of the Start2Finish Board of Directors for a five-year term and is now currently the Nominating Committee Chair, introducing new and potential board members to the organization. Since joining in 2007, her powerful commitment and enthusiasm towards Start2Finish has never ceased, and her relentless passion to be an advocate for the most vulnerable children in our communities has served to connect many key stakeholders to the cause.

    In addition to owning her own design firm with projects in both Canada and the USA, Shevawn brings 35 years of experience in not-for-profit board management.

  • HEELA OMARKHAIL – DIRECTOR

    VICE PRESIDENT, SOCIAL IMPACT, THE DANIELS CORPORATION

    Heela brings lived experience as an immigrant to Canada at a young age, growing up in a vibrant social housing community in Toronto’s inner suburbs. She is passionate about improving access to education and opportunity for children through programs like Start2Finish’s. She lives and works in the Regent Park community which is home to one of S2F’s programs.

    Heela is Vice President of Social Impact at The Daniels Corporation, member of the Management Committee of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) Toronto Chapter, and Co-Chair of the ULI Program Committee. She has a professional background in real estate development as a platform to drive positive social change and city building. In her spare time, Heela loves to spend time with her huge extended family, discover new local restaurants and, every year, visit at least two new destinations from her ever-growing travel list.

  • KELLY HYATT – DIRECTOR

    SENIOR PUBLICIST, SMITTEN CREATIVE BOUTIQUE; MINDFUL SELF-COMPASSION TEACHER

    With her background in PR for over 20 years, Kelly has been working to build the profile of Start2Finish nationally. Her career began in the Canadian Book Publishing industry and then shifted into supporting Canadian magazines. Currently she works for smitten creative boutique, a Marketing, Events and Public Relations firm.

    In addition to being a board member, Kelly wanted to experience the work S2F does firsthand. She joined our Brainworx! program as a virtual “coach” and looks forward to the experience every week. From engaging kids in physical activity to developing their social-emotional learning skills through the ‘Word of the Day’, Kelly is always impressed with the program and the positive impact it has on the children who participate.

  • PETER LAMBERT – SCHOLARSHIP COMMITTEE CHAIR

    INVESTMENT ADVISOR, BMO NESBITT BURNS INC.

    Peter has been a board member of Start2Finish almost since its inception and is currently Chair of the Scholarship Committee.

    For the past 40 years, Peter has been active in the field of wealth management serving the needs of individual and institutional investors. Prior to Start2Finish, Peter was a founding member of Oakville Little League Baseball where he was president for 3 years. Peter holds a Master’s of Science degree in Motor Learning from Pennsylvania State University.

National Cabinet

  • GAVIN LAWRENCE - MISSISSAUGA, ON

    VICE-PRINCIPAL, PEEL DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD

  • CHANTAL MCLAUGHLIN - LONDON, ON

    MANAGER, INVESTMENT TECHNOLOGY, CANADA LIFE

  • DENISE ROBSON - HALIFAX, NS

    TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST, MANULIFE

  • PAUL HUYER - TORONTO, ON

    CPA AND SENIOR FINANCE PROFESSIONAL, RETIRED (TD BANK)