Board Members
Chairman - Dr. Richard Northcott
Dr. Northcott is one of the founders of Canadian Humanitarian and has been actively involved with the organization since its inception. He travels frequently to Ethiopia and has led numerous expeditions over the years to Ethiopia and St. Vincent. Dr. Northcott is an emergency room physician in Medicine Hat, Alberta. He and his wife have seven children, two of whom were adopted from Ethiopia, and five grandchildren. Dr. Northcott has served as the Chairman of the Board for the past four years.
Treasurer - Vern Hyde
Vern Hyde is a financial planner in Medicine Hat, AB. He is married and has six children. Vern has travelled to Ethiopia twice to visit our projects. As an amateur magician he has entertained hundreds of children (and staff) at our projects. In the Fall of 2008 Vern passed on his knowledge of magic to a few select children at Kid's Hope and PATH. These children are now using their new magic skills to entertain their peers and possibly find employment in restaurants, hotels, etc... Vern has been on the CH Board since the Spring of 2008.
Secretary of the Board - Georgia Thul
Georgia Thul hails from small town Marquis, SK. She is a mother of four children; one of whom was adopted from Haiti. For over 18 years Georgia worked as a registered nurse, mainly in obstetrics. She is currently back in school working on a Masters Degree in Business. Georgia has travelled to Ethiopia three times and is very familiar with all of our projects. In the summer of 2007 Georgia and her two daughters raised over $8,000 for CH projects by biking from Moose Jaw, SK to our office in Medicine Hat, AB (400K) in two days!!! Georgia has been on the CH Board since the Fall of 2007.
Vice Chair - Ted Cowtan
Dr. Cowtan is currently employed as an emergency room physician in Medicine Hat, Alberta. In the past Ted has worked as a physician in Saudi Arabia and a refugee camp in Sudan. He has been a board member since 2006.
Board Member - Berthe Bourque
Berthe Bourque has been a board member since the fall of 2007. She is a Social Science graduate from the University of Ottawa. For the past 20 years, Berthe has enjoyed a career with the Government of Canada and currently works as a Special Advisor for Service Canada in the NB Region. She has visited projects in Ethiopia twice and is committed to CH's work. Berthe resides in Fredericton, NB with her family.
Staff/Volunteers
Executive Director - Bryce Meldrum
Bryce began at Canadian Humanitarian as a volunteer to Haiti in the summer of 2005. Each year he returned to Canadian Humanitarian to work as a summer student. He recently graduated from the University of Calgary with a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations. Bryce is excited to be back with Canadian Humanitarian in his new role of Executive Director. Bryce and his better half Diana were recently married in December 2008.
Expedition Coordinator - Deb Northcott
As one of the founders of Canadian Humanitarian and the former Coordinator for Canadian Advocates for the Adoption of Children Deb is extremely knowledge about Canadian Humanitarian projects and Ethiopian culture. She and her husband Richard Northcott have seven children, two of whom are adopted from Ethiopia and five grandchildren. Deb has travelled to Ethiopia numerous times.
Committees
Web Committee - Dan Northcott
Dan lives in Medicine Hat, AB and uses his expertise in web design to keep the Canadian Humanitarian website updated and easy to use. He also volunteers his time to help us at the office set up computers and deal with computer "issues". In the Fall of 2007 Dan travelled to Ethiopia to set up the computer lab at the PATH Center and train the staff.
Project/Policy Committee
Headed up by CH Board members Berthe Bourque and Georgia Thul, this committee reviews new project proposals and works on policy development and revisions.
We would also like to acknowledge the many individuals who support Canadian Humanitarian by becoming members of CH.