ABOUT US

Judy Brinson is from Change Islands, and moved to Fogo Island in 1998 to start working as a nurse at the hospital. She is a full-time Cub Scout leader, part-time Beaver Scout leader and is also a Sunday School leader with the Church of the Holy Spirit. Judy is part of the group working to develop a Junior Canadian Rangers group on Fogo Island, and is the World Ocean’s Day Beach Clean-up Leader for Island Harbour, as well as the leader for the Beaver/Cub Scout Shoreline clean-up. She is actively involved in many facets of the community she lives in, and now serves on Shorefast’s Board of Directors. Judy and her husband, also from Change Islands, have three children and continue to live on Fogo Island.

Tim Brodhead was from 1995 to 2011 President and CEO of The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation. In 2013-2014 he served as Interim President of the Pierre Elliot Trudeau Foundation. Prior to joining McConnell, Tim spent twenty-five years working in international development, mainly in West Africa, Sudan, and India. He was the Founding Executive Director of ACORD, based in London U.K., and co-founded the Canadian development agency Inter Pares.

Currently Tim co-chairs Canadians for a New Partnership and is a board member of The Natural Step, Engineers Without Borders (EWB-Canada), the Arctic Inspiration Prize, the Fondation Lucie et André Chagnon, and the Jarislowsky, Omega, Inspirit, and Ottawa Community Foundations. He is a member of the Waterloo Institute for Social Innovation and Resilience (WISIR) and is on the Advisory Boards of the McGill Institute for Health and Social Policy, and the Children and Youth in Challenging Contexts Network. 

In 2001, Tim was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada. He holds honourary degrees from McGill, Carleton, Dalhousie, and the University of New Brunswick. He lives and farms south of Ottawa.

Alan Cobb enjoyed a long career in the senior ranks of the federal public service and in the private sector. He has worked in policy and operations for a number of federal ministries including Industry, Science and Technology, Treasury Board, and Employment and Immigration. He also headed the initial federal offshore oil and gas regulatory agency, based in St. John’s. After retiring from the federal government, Alan provided strategic management consulting services to the public and private sectors, and worked with a leading technology firm as advisor to the CEO. He now devotes his time to serving on Shorefast’s Board of Directors.

Growing up on Fogo Island, Zita developed a deep belief in the inherent value of place and a profound respect for the human ways of knowing that emerge from respectful relationships with nature, culture, and community. After completing high school on Fogo Island, Zita decided to study business in order to understand the global economic systems that had disadvantaged Fogo Island and numerous other small communities – bringing many to the brink of extinction. After completing university in Ottawa, she took on increasingly senior financial roles in the high-tech industry. She is most recognized for her work with JDS Fitel, subsequently JDS Uniphase, where she contributed to building the company into one of the most successful high-tech innovators in history. Zita returned home to Fogo Island in the early 2000’s and, along with her brothers Anthony and Alan, began to build Shorefast’s initiatives. In 2016, Zita was awarded the Order of Canada in acknowledgement of the work of Shorefast in collaboration with the community of Fogo Island to help secure a more resilient future for this singular rural place. She now dedicates her full time and energies to the active direction and management of Shorefast and our projects on Fogo Island.

Barbara McInnes retired as President and CEO of the Community Foundation of Ottawa in 2014. She was with the Foundation since its inception in 1987, overseeing its growth to what is now one the largest and most highly regarded of Canada’s 190+ community foundations. Barbara was awarded the Order of Canada in 2008 for her contributions as a leader and catalyst for the development of community-based philanthrophy in her city, across Canada, and around the world. Active in her community, she has been a Governor of Carleton University, President of the Ottawa Estate Planning Council and of the Ottawa School of Art, and board member of United Way, Impact Hub Ottawa, and numerous other professional associations and voluntary sector boards. Having received many honours and awards for her work, she is now enjoying the next very active phase of her life. In addition to serving on the board of the Shorefast, the Telus Ottawa Community Board, and the Match International Women’s Fund, she is on the Advisory Board of PAL Ottawa and recently helped develop Refugee 613 and Compassionate Ottawa.

Josh Quinton has been a leader in the financial industry for the last 10 years, managing the US east coast business at Bloomberg L.P. from New York City. He holds a Master’s degree in International Economics from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Commerce from Memorial University of Newfoundland. Josh is an award-winning global business manager, building analytics to bring transparency to the financial markets and advising some of the largest money managers in the world, including multinational corporations, pension funds, hedge funds, central banks, and heads of government in the United States and Canada.

In addition to working with several other charities in Newfoundland and New York, Mr. Quinton serves on the finance committee of the Grenfell Association of America in New York, which is committed to providing health care, education, and social services to the coastal communities of northern Newfoundland and Labrador. He has been a strong mentor and advocate for Memorial’s Faculty of Business, regularly advising and connecting students with industry leaders. In 2011, he negotiated the donation and set-up of a state-of-the-art White Trading Lab at Memorial University. Josh was the recipient of Memorial’s Alumni Horizon Award in 2012, and was appointed to the Innovation Council of Newfoundland and Labrador in 2017. Josh grew up in a small family business in Newfoundland and is passionate about supporting local entrepreneurship as well as promoting self-sustainability and innovation in the province.

Robert Sirman is a retired cultural executive who enjoyed a distinguished career in the Canadian cultural sector before hanging up his hat as Director and CEO of the Canada Council for the Arts in 2014. Previously he served for 15 years as co-director of Canada’s National Ballet School where he tripled the School’s facilities and reinforced its standing as a world leader in professional dance training. Other highlights include 10 years at the Ontario Arts Council, five years in Ontario’s first Ministry of Culture, and a seven-month stint as acting-CEO of the George Cedric Metcalf Charitable Foundation in Toronto.

Bob has an MA in Sociology from the University of Toronto where he taught in 2016. He has been widely published throughout his career and volunteers on several not-for-profit charitable boards. In 2002 Bob served as librettist for James Kudelka’s full-length ballet, The Contract. 

Gordon Slade, originally from Placentia Bay, has spent much of his career in public service, serving as Deputy Minister of Fisheries for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, and as Vice-President of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. In 1996, Gordon became an independent consultant in the fields of heritage, cultural tourism, and community development. From 2002 to 2010, he was CEO of One Ocean, an organization that encourages dialogue between the fishing and petroleum industries. Gordon is the former Chair and Managing Director of Battle Harbour Historic Trust. In 2005, he was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada in recognition for his work in preserving and promoting the province’s heritage. In 2020, Gordon was invested into the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador for excellence and dedication to the province throughout his career.