North Eastern Ontario Family and Children’s Services (NEOFACS) is managed by an Executive Director and overseen by a volunteer Board of Governors, composed of members elected from across the Districts of Cochrane and Timiskaming.

The Board of Governors has the duty and the responsibility to govern the affairs and oversee the governance of the organization within the established laws and standards of government.

Become a Board Member:

We are committed to having our Board represent our community with a broad mix of experience, knowledge, and skills. If you are interested in applying to become a member of the NEOFACS Board of Governors, please contact Louise Larose, the Board’s Executive Assistant, at louise.larose@neofacs.org.

Cléo Charlebois
Executive Director

BOARD PRESIDENT
Don Anderson
Location: Larder Lake
Number of years of service: 30+
Background: Law Enforcement, Municipal Politics, Business Owner
Community Involvement: Federation of Agriculture

BOARD VICE-PRESIDENT
Dean Lessard
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: 4+
Background: Post-Secondary Education, Business Administration, Community Services
Community Involvement: Northern College

BOARD TREASURER
Lindsay Cumming
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: 2+
Background: CDSB - Housing Services, property management, Administration, data analysis and quality assurance, social services

BOARD SECRETARY
Eugene St Jean
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: 1+
Background: House Parent with the Therapeutic Family Home Program (TFHP), Vice-President and Treasurer of the Foster Families Association Ontario North-East (FFAONE), consumer financing
Community Involvement: Canadian Forces Cadet Program

Tiphanie Hartling
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: 7+
Background: Social Services, Child Welfare, Health Care, Counseling and Psychotherapy
Community Involvement: Social Worker, Community Services Professor at Northern College

Denis Beaulac
Location: Kapuskasing
Number of years of service: 6+
Background: Healthcare, Kinesiology, Health Administration, Addiction Services
Community Involvement: Centre de santé communautaire de Kapuskasing et région, Kapuskasing and Area Family Health Team

Paul Jalbert
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: 6+
Background: Mental Health Services, Social Services, Human Studies
Community Involvement: Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), Registered Psychotherapist

Joel McCartney
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: 5+
Background: Psychological Services, Child and Adult Development, Speech and Language, Social Services, Accessibility
Community Involvement: Cochrane Timiskaming Resource Centre, Certified Psychologist

Mike Petrina
Location: Iroquois Falls
Number of years of service: 3+
Background: Business administration, operations, engineering and project development
Community Involvement: Canadian Institute of Mining, Royal Canadian Legion, Knights of Columbus – Iroquois Falls, Abitibi Golf Club, Block Watch, and B.C. Pets and Friends

Catherine Simunovic
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: 3+
Background: Non-profit organizations, social services, child and youth mental health, child welfare, organizational change, strategic planning and governance
Community Involvement: Chair of the OACAS Board of Directors, YMCA of Northeastern Ontario, Canadian Centre for Accreditation, CMHA Cochrane Timiskaming Branch and Ontario Division, Timmins and District Hospital Foundation.

Chantal Benson
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: 1+
Background: Collège Boréal, employment and immigration sectors, technical support leadership in library services.

Linda Kirwin
Location: Englehart
Number of years of service: 1+
Background: Early Childhood Education, Consultant, Elementary Teaching, Montessori, Paralegal Studies
Community Involvement: Crime Stoppers Kirkland Lake, Advocate for Children and Seniors (legal research)

Jennifer Sharp
Location: Timmins
Number of years of service: New Member 2025
Background: Nurse Practitioner, Timmins Pediatric Clinic–Mental Health Unit, Peds Maternal Child, Timmins and District Hospital, patient advocacy

Keval Brahmbhatt
Location: Iroquois Falls
Number of years of service: New Member 2025
Background: Municipal Councillor, Entrepreneur and Business Owner, Governance and Strategic Planning, Project Management
Community Involvement: Community Living Iroquois Falls, Iroquois Falls Public Library, OPP Detachment Board, Arts Council of Iroquois Falls

Meetings of the Board of Governors are open to the public, except in cases where matters are confidential and the meeting is deemed closed. Stakeholders interested in attending a meeting must provide twenty-four (24) hours of notice of their attendance to ensure that the venue can accommodate the presence of all stakeholders. Stakeholders who intend to make a presentation or request specific information from the Board shall provide seventy-two (72) hours notice and a summary of the information they intend to present or the information they intend to request. Stakeholders must also indicate the intended duration of their presentation.

Stakeholders who wish to attend one of the scheduled meetings must first contact Louise Larose, the Board’s Executive Assistant, at Louise.Larose@neofacs.org.

Board regular meetings for the 2025-26 session are:

• September 12, 2025 (AGM)
• October 28, 2025
• November 25, 2025
• December 16, 2025
• January 27, 2026
• February 24, 2026
• March 24, 2026
• April 28, 2026
• May 26, 2026
• June 23, 2026