Anastasia P.

Anastasia has been a participant at Sistering for the last two years and she was formally trained as an Early Childhood Educator, at Mothercraft College in Toronto Ontario. Her background includes over 15 years work as an ECE within Toronto and the GTA. Anastasia’s primary focus is on assisting marginalized individuals to obtain the support and vital services which are a challenge to access within their communities. This has been achieved through her work with YMCA Childcare Center subsidy programs, in the before and after school programs as well as a poignant volunteer position within Dr. Roz’s Healing Place, as a Children’s Programs Assistant. Anastasia looks forward to providing her insights and ideas to this exciting and dynamic position within Sistering’s Board of Directors.

Kristen Lloyd

Kristen is an immigration and refugee lawyer in Toronto. She has previously served on the steering committee of the Law Union of Ontario, and she is interested in the role legal workers can play in community organizing and within social movements. As a law student, Kristen worked for Parkdale Community Legal Services and Legal Aid Ontario, where she gained a greater understanding of the intersections between legal and other social and economic issues. Kristen has experience volunteering and organizing around a number of social justice issues, including migrant justice and the campaign to end immigration detention in Canada. Kristen has been very interested in Sistering’s work since she moved to Toronto and began walking by the drop-in center, and she is excited for the opportunity to serve on the organization’s board.

Cynthia Daley

Originally born and educated in Jamaica, Cindy furthered her nursing education in England. She practiced midwifery in Glasgow, Scotland and then spent most of her nursing career in Birmingham England and various locations in Ontario, Canada where she settled in Toronto. Cindy has been a long-time supporter of Sistering and understands the issues that the women go through.  She has a strong sense of social justice and is interested in advocating for women, trans people, and seniors who attend Sistering’s programs. Cindy currently gives back to the community by volunteering regularly at Scarborough Hospital.

Jennifer Cho Chee

Jennifer, originally from Trinidad & Tobago, joined Sistering in 2015 through Spun Studio’s program. She was the President of Parents Council at her son’s high school, a former Canadian Reserve soldier, and an Organ Transplant Athlete at Canada games and the world Transplant Games. Jennifer has been a long-time supporter of Sistering and understands the need for women to find equitable opportunities to thrive and participate in inclusive communities. She especially enjoys the various art activities at Spun studio and is delighted to serve on Sistering’s Board of Directors.

Joey Noble

Secretary

Joey Noble has been volunteering at Sistering for over 14 years, teaching weekly ESL classes, helping in the Sistering Kitchen and assisting with special events. She became involved with Sistering because she witnessed the joy experienced by women and trans people participating in programs at Parkdale Outreach. She recently retired after a 20-year career as a Professor of Social Sciences at Humber College, but continues to teach part time. Prior to Humber, she worked for 15 years in the social service sector. Past roles include work as a community organizer with a variety of low-income groups, primarily women and immigrants.  She has experience with fundraising, grant writing and working closely with volunteer Boards.

Michaela Ferguson

Co-Chair

Michaela is a participant and volunteer at Sistering for over 10 years, has both first hand knowledge and experience about the issues facing the homeless and venerable. Michaela is passionate about self-advocacy, self-care and connecting women with services that bring stability and purpose to their lives. She has served on the YMCA Board of Directors and has volunteered in a number of capacities with several organizations including Dr. Roz’s Healing Place and the Salvation Army, and is looking forward to serving on the Sistering Board.

Paula Douglass

Paula is a social services worker for over 20 years. She brings a wealth of strengths to Sistering’s Board of Directors in the form of lived experiences of trauma, mental health, addictions recovery and education. Most recently, Paula has adjusted her life to accommodate a permanent physical disability. The past 20 years of working in various roles at Parkdale Activity – Recreation Centre; and presently in the area of financial literacy; gives Paula a well rounded background in systems navigation, advocacy, policy and service provision.  The majority of her work life was having multiple jobs to stay housed and independent and this has included over ten years as a Relief Crisis Worker with the Gerstein Centre. Building a stable life and constantly striving for self improvements has been Paula’s main life’s work. Paula adds, “there’s no light at the end of the tunnel if it’s just for you, so giving back or paying it forward has always been an important facet of my life.” Paula is in love with polymer clay crafting and also plays more than her share of video games.

Sarah Halsey

Sarah is an entrepreneur and founder of Hilborn Digital, a digital marketing agency in Toronto that is dedicated to supporting and providing opportunities for women in the tech industry. They also give back to the community by providing pro-bono services to charitable organizations. She attended York University for a degree in Business where she co-founded the WAY (Women At York) Association, and currently attends the University of Toronto for Mandarin Chinese. She is passionate about empowering women and trans people, in all their diversities; providing opportunities for folks to thrive and participate within our community; and advocating for women and trans people’s rights.

Sara Fruchtman

Sara is a PhD student at the Centre for Criminology and Sociolegal Studies at the University of Toronto. Her research explores the legal history of poverty and migration in North America. Sara comes to Sistering with ten years of experience working in the non-profit sector as an employee, volunteer and board member where she led a variety of research and advocacy initiatives. Sara is passionate about working with organizations that support access to justice. She has worked on issues including sex workers‘ rights, human rights, youth justice and criminal justice, and has also worked with a number of arts and culture organizations.

Stephanie Mazzocut

Stephanie Mazzocut has been attending and supporting Sistering`s programs for over 20 years. Her past experience includes roles as an assistant cook, and managing clothing donations at Sistering’s past location on College St. Stephanie immigrated to Canada from Italy over 50 years ago. Her first language is Italian but along with English, she can communicate in Spanish. Mental health is a topic Stephanie understands from a personal level due to caring for family members experiencing it and she has been involved in groups that share information and provide support.  As a result, she has become knowledgeable on providing support to others who have had similar experiences and she is interested in services that also do this work. Stephanie is thrilled to be on the Board to help and give back to Sistering. Stephanie regularly participates in the yoga program at Sistering and when available, takes part in the knitting program. Her past involvement includes being part of the sewing program for over a year. Her work background is in fashion design.