Directors
Chair | Huntsville ON
Glen is a 4th generation Huntsvillian. After graduating high school, he left to pursue post-secondary education and a career in landscape architecture, then commercial banking. He finished his working career in February of 2020, as the Director of Economic Development for the City of Hamilton. He and his wife Jacqueline now reside on Lake Waseosa. Glen holds an MBA from the Ivey School of Business at Western, and is a CPA/CMA. He is currently the Chair of Amity Goodwill of Hamilton and has served in the past on the local boards of Easter Seals and United Way, as well as numerous corporate boards.
Secretary | Muskoka Lakes ON
Ruth’s family roots date back to 1840 in Muskoka. Ruth was raised between Muskoka, Sudbury and Scarborough. Her formal education took part at UBC in Urban Land Use planning, and further at community colleges dealing with business management. Ruth was a director managing a large real estate firm in the district of Surrey BC primarily involving land assembly, development and marketing. Ruth returned to Muskoka 30 years ago managing a design/build operation with her husband Ted. Her son Connor is a marine biologist with a masters in Environmental Science. She has been a very active community volunteer and has held 5 terms on the Township of Muskoka Lakes council with the last 3 terms as a District of Muskoka councillor. Ruth is very active in trail development and currently sits as chair of the Muskoka Trail council.
Past Chair | Bracebridge ON
Born and raised in Montreal, Bill attended Queen’s University at Kingston, earning a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1972. After graduation, he settled there and eventually worked for Alcan. In 1982 the company transferred him to Muskoka to work in their Foils plant. After the plant closed, he was a partner in a small engineering firm in Bracebridge for several years. He is an avid sailor and enjoys spending summer days on his boat on Georgian Bay. He has had a long association with Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons and has taught boating safety courses over the last 30 years. He volunteers at Manna, the local food bank. Bill swims for fitness and has been on the executive of MUSAC, the swim club based in Bracebridge.
Director | Muskoka Lakes ONValerie was born and raised in Brantford Ontario and attended the University of Guelph where she attained her Bachelor of Commerce degree. She spent over 30 years in the consumer packaged goods industry including VP/Country Manager for Whitewave Foods. Upon retirement in 2017, Valerie and her husband Steve made their cottage, near Port Carling, their full time residence and has volunteered with a number of community organizations including Muskoka Lakes Association, the Township of Muskoka Lakes, Windermere Golf Club, and the co-founder of 100 Women Who Care Muskoka. She and her husband Steve spend their winters in Mexico and enjoy travelling and golf.
Stuart McKinnon
Director | Bracebridge ON
Stuart has been a resident of
Bracebridge for the last 28 years, and while he spent time in Peterborough where he studied Biology
at Trent University, and Sudbury where he studied Paramedicine, he couldn’t be happier being able to
return to Muskoka and raise a family. Stuart is currently the Deputy Chief of Muskoka Paramedic
Services and Emergency Planning, and has previously held roles as Commander, Acting Superintendent,
Public Relations Coordinator, Association Treasurer/Union Executive, and Paramedic Education Faculty
with Sunnybrook Base Hospital. Paramedics love giving back to their communities, and Stuart
organized/hosted the Muskoka Paramedic Charity Softball Tournament for 7 years, seeing hundreds of
Paramedics attend from all over the Province, raising over $35,000 for Campfire Circle (formerly
Camp Ooch) for children with cancer. In his spare time, and while not busy spending time with his
wife and two children, Stuart restores classic cars.
Vice Chair | Bracebridge ON
Tina Kilbourne’s municipal career spans more than 20 years. SHe began as a Communications Specialist at the Regional Municipality of York, then moved to Conservation Ontario where she helped launch Source Water Protection outreach initiatives related to the newly created Clean Water Act. Since 2011, she has been with the District Municipality of Muskoka. Most of her time has been in Community Services working on programs to support vulnerable children and families. She is most recently the Team Lead of the Continuous Improvement Unit where one of her main roles has been developing the District’s Indigenous Relationship Strategy and helping to establish the Muskoka Area Indigenous Leadership Table. Tina is also an award-winning author of books for Young Adult and Middle Grade readers. Her books have won several awards over the years and she is a four-time recipient of Ontario Arts Council grants for Works in Progress. Her writing has been translated into Slovenian, Ukrainian, Portuguese, Spanish and Braille! In her personal time, Tina enjoys cycling, paddling, hiking and hot yoga.
Treasurer | Gravenhurst ON
Bob has lived in Gravenhurst with his wife Joan since moving from Stratford in 2004. With experience in the lumber business Bob opened the Gravenhurst Home Building Centre in 2010. In 2019, he sold the business to his son Stephen and daughter LeeAnne. Bob has been an active community member and a member of the Gravenhurst Chamber of Commerce for 15 years. He is the past president and treasurer of the Chamber. Bob is a member of the Founders Circle and a Gravenhurst Ambassador through the town economic development department. Bob has been active in community and business organizations at the ground and board level throughout several locations in Ontario and Manitoba. He enjoys curling and golf and is looking forward to the return of the social aspect that working and volunteering in the community provides.
Director | Bracebridge ON
Marilyn is a lifelong resident of the Bracebridge area. She holds the Deputy Treasurer role at the Township of Muskoka Lakes. She has a H.B. Com degree and a CPA/CGA designation. She has been a Director with the Ontario Fencing Association and has participated in a variety of local volunteer positions. She enjoys taking part in programs that benefit area residents and has seen the positive results they can make in a community.
Larry Jackson
Director | Huntsville ON
Larry is a professional writer,
producer and broadcaster who moved to Muskoka in 2020 with his wife Karen. From their new home in
Huntsville, they are enjoying a more leisurely business pace and quality of life. Currently he is
producing communications projects for several corporate clients and continues to write and host two
weekly radio series, The Immortals and Celebrity Spotlight, for AM740 Zoomer radio in Toronto. Larry
began his media career in the mid-1970s with his first professional job as a morning radio newsman
on
CJCS radio in Stratford. By the end of the decade, he was a reporter on Global Television, based in
Toronto. Through 16 years at Global he travelled the world as a reporter and producer. At the time
he
left the network in 1995 he was the senior producer for the network with responsibilities for
producing
a variety of news, public affairs and other shows. In 1995 he formed Editorial Edge, a marketing
agency
focused on helping primarily early-stage companies find success through effective communications. He
continues working with a select list of clients today. Larry’s commitment to Muskoka Community
Foundation is a continuation of his lifelong belief in giving back to the communities he lives in,
in
any way he can. During his years at Global he produced four critically acclaimed documentaries in
conjunction with UNICEF Canada. As president of Editorial Edge Communications, he served on several
charity boards in the Toronto area. In his free time Larry travels the world. He has spent time in
more
than 40 countries. At home in Muskoka he plays golf as often as he can with friends and colleagues
from
his newly adopted home.
Staff
Executive Director
Lynn was born and raised near Parry Sound and has lived in Muskoka for 20 years. She holds a B.Ed from Nipissing University and a M.A. in Social Justice and Equity Studies from Brock University. Lynn taught as a part-time faculty member at Nipissing University’s Muskoka Campus in the Department of Child and Family Studies. She is an active member in her community volunteering her time in a variety ways.
Andrew T.C. Griffith
Linda Lowden
Tom Steadman
Joan VanDuzer
Daniel Bradbury
Ev Doherty
Mary Jane Fletcher
Marg French
Chris Gun-Munro
Steve Hayhurst
Jodi Holder
Jane Hunt
Harry Oswin
Rebecca Paul
Robert P. Seagram
David Sprague
Scott Young
Eva Zachary
Steve & Linda Lowden
Jennifer Tournour
Kim Doughty
Richard Hay
Coel Balmer