The Board for 2012 was elected by Meridian's Members and announced at the Annual General Meeting on April 24th, 2012.
The following Directors took office immediately thereafter. The Board also elected their Chair and Vice Chair that evening.
The newly elected Directors are indicated by an asterisk below.
Don Ariss - Chair
Jim Barr
Alan Caslin
Gary Cerantola
Mark Kraemer
Ross Lamont *
John Murphy
Richard Owen
Colleen Sidford *
Kevin Thompson * - Vice Chair
Karl Wettstein *
Helen Young
Don Ariss originally joined the
Meridian Board in 1993. A chartered accountant by profession, Don spent
over 24 years with Hydro One Networks Inc. and its predecessor, Ontario
Hydro, in a wide range of financial and executive capacities.
Subsequently Don spent nearly three years as Business Administrator for
Master's College and is currently retired.
Jim Barr is recently retired after a
46-year career with CUMIS Insurance most recently holding the position
of Senior Vice President, Corporate Relations and Corporate Secretary.
Mr. Barr has been involved in the cooperative movement and credit union
system for more than 55 years. He was also a past President/Chair of the
Boards of the Canadian Co-operative Association (CCA); the Co-operative
Development Foundation of Canada and the Burlington Chamber of
Commerce. Mr. Barr is also a past Director of the Ontario Credit Union
Charitable Foundation and currently serves on the Boards of the
Burlington & Greater Hamilton United Way and a condominium
corporation.
Alan Caslin was elected as a Director
in 2003 after having been a credit union member most of his life. He
holds a degree in Business, Economics and Management (1998) and a
masters degree in Operations Management (2005). Alan is employed with
General Motors of Canada as the St. Catharines Powertrain, Facilities
Manager. In addition to his Board role with Meridian, Alan is a proud
volunteer with a number of community groups including the boards of the
YMCA and St. Catharines Jets Soccer Club.
Gary Cerantola is a Chemical
Engineer, Chemist and has a Masters of Business Administration Degree.
He teaches at Georgian College and Meritus and Phoenix Universities.
For over 25 years Gary held vice president, management and technical
roles in hydro and telecommunications. He has 13 years of Board
experience including the Association of the Rehabilitation of the Brain
injured, as well as at First Calgary Financial, and Credit Union Central
of Alberta. Gary re-located to Ontario in 2010, and has a passion for
advancing sustainability and corporate social responsibility.
Mark Kraemer started his career with
the TD bank where he spent 12 years prior to becoming an entrepreneur in
1987. It is through these experiences, and owning and operating
numerous businesses, that Finance and Accounting became his interest. He
has found, that a rewarding aspect of serving in the financial services
sector, is helping someone succeed. Mark has been dealing with the
public for 37 years, including most recently for eight years as Mayor of
Saugeen Shores and two years as Warden of Bruce County. For the past
nine years, Mark has served as Chair of the Board of Westario Power, as
well as serving on their Audit Committee. Additionally he has served as a
member and Chair of the Board of Grey Bruce Health Unit. Mark is also
very active in various aspects of the Town of Saugeen Shores where he
resides with his wife Cathie.
Ross Lamont retired in 2011 from Bruce
Power after a thirty-three year career in the Hydro sector. During this
period he held a variety of senior positions in Finance and Community
& Government Relations. Ross holds a BA in Economics, as well as an
MA in Leadership. This latter degree having been obtained in 2007.
Throughout Ross’s life he has been actively involved in community
organizations and volunteering for many charitable causes. Ross was
elected to the Board in 2012.
John Murphy is currently the Executive
Vice President - Hydro with Ontario Power Generation. Mr. Murphy has
held senior leadership roles at OPG, Ontario Hydro, the Power Workers
Union, and the Electrical Power Systems Construction Association, for
over 25 years. Mr. Murphy also served as a Director on the Board of
Ontario Hydro, Ontario Power Generation, Electrical Safety Authority,
the Canadian Council for Public/Private Partnerships and ABC Literacy
Canada.
Richard Owen is the CEO of Home
Ownership Alternatives Non-Profit Corporation, which finances the
creation of affordable ownership housing and is based in Toronto. Mr.
Owen is an experienced financial and real estate executive, holding a CA
designation and an Honours Degree in Business and Economics. He brings
an extensive credit experience from both the lenders’ and borrower’s
perspectives. Mr. Owen has a strong knowledge of information technology,
having twice been the combined Chief Financial Officer & Chief IT
Officer for major corporations, and has been responsible for five
conversions of enterprise-wide computer systems. He is known for being
passionate about excellence and performance, yet retains a constructive
sense of humour when the going gets tough.
Colleen Sidford is the VP
Chief Investment Officer for Ontario Power Generation Inc. (OPG) and is
responsible for managing OPG’s large portfolio of investments assets
comprised of OPG’s Pension Fund and Nuclear Funds. Prior to assuming
this position in mid-2011, Colleen held the position of VP Treasurer at
OPG where she was responsible for the financing, risk management and the
corporate insurance programs. Prior to her employment at OPG Colleen
owned a European based private consulting business and held financial
positions with major banking institutions. Colleen has extensive Board
experience including serving on international boards. She is also a
graduate of the Institute of Corporate Directors. Colleen was elected
to the Board in 2012.
Kevin Thompson has been a Credit Union
member since 1978, and was elected to his first term as a Director in
2004. Kevin worked for over 31 years with Hydro One and Ontario Hydro in
operational, financial, and management capacities, and now provides
consulting services in the power industry. He resides with his wife and 2
children in Aurora, and has served in numerous volunteer organizations
over the years, bringing strong leadership and overall passion for the
financial sector to the Board.
n has been a Credit Union
member since 1960 and was elected as a Director in 1999. For over
thirty years, Karl worked with The Co-operators, one of Canada's most
recognizable insurance and financial services providers, in several
senior operational, corporate planning and human resources roles. Now
retired, he is a passionate member of the Guelph community. He is City
Councillor and an active member of Rotary.
Helen Young has been a Credit Union
director since 1994. She and her husband are the business founders of
Cave Spring Cellars, an estate winery in the Niagara peninsula and Inn
on the Twenty, a full service hospitality business comprised of an inn,
spa and restaurant. A lawyer by education, Helen has devoted the last
twenty years to the promotion of Ontario wine tourism through various
volunteer board memberships including the Ontario Tourism Marketing
Partnership. Helen currently also serves on the Brock University Board
of Trustees.
