Kadine Taylor
2018 Honourees
Kadine Taylor is an experienced human resource professional with knowledge and experience in the areas of employee relations, compensation and benefits, recruitment and selection and labour relations. She has a passion for people and makes a positive impact in the lives of those she encounters. Kadine has a Bachelor’s in Business Administration majoring in Human Resources and she is currently completing her Master’s in Human Resource Management. She holds Certificates in Adult Education and Training and Policy Development. In recognition of her academic achievement during her studies, Kadine has been the recipient of the Premier’s Award for Excellence in the Public Service in 2012, and the Academic Silver Scholarship from the University of Regina on two occasions. 2013 and 2014. This is an annual award that recognizes the job contributions that individuals have made to the Government and the citizens of the Province of Saskatchewan. The vision of the Government of Saskatchewan is to be: “The Best Public Service in Canada”, dedicated to service excellence, innovation, collaboration and transparency, effective and accountable, use of resources and promoting engagement and leadership at all levels.
Kadine worked as Project Lead for ten months at SaskPower, the principal electric utility in Saskatchewan. She later worked in the role of Employer Relations Officer for over four years with the Government of Saskatchewan.
“Starting our non-governmental organization, SMILE, to empower and inspire marginalized single mothers to soar to new heights through education. The ability to impact the life of another in a meaningful and transformative way is both rewarding and humbling. I am also very proud of the work I do as a trade unionist, negotiating fair collective agreements and advocating for decent working conditions for all Canadians.
Kemi Jacobs, with over 30 years of community involvement, has been a leader in the non-governmental and public sectors, serving as the President of the Canadian Council for Refugees, Executive Director of CultureLink Settlement Services, and Delta Family Resource Centre, Chairperson of the National Anti-Racism Council of Canada, Director of Housing at Toronto Community Housing and Chair of the Board at Canadian African Social Services.
She is an African-Caribbean woman who has lived in Toronto for longer than she has lived in the Caribbean. Kemi is deeply rooted in her identity as an African woman, and has a deep appreciation for the African continent. She comes from a strong, but rapidly shrinking family where integrity, joie de vivre, engagement and focus are valued. Birth and chosen families are all deeply appreciated. Equity, Afrikan people, self-actualization (her own and others), living zestfully and having a singing soul are important life values …. work on all five areas, is on-going.
Kemi’s career has been defined by work with resilient and under-resourced communities. Her contribution has been the creation of soft spaces for individuals from such communities to land; places where youth and residents of often ignored constituencies and communities can explore new ideas, find common ground with others and opportunities to plan, grow and develop their full potential in supportive communities which expect them to soar and achieve wonderful things.
Kharoll-Ann Souffrant was born in Montreal to parents of Haitian descent. She lived with depression symptoms for most of her childhood, and it was not until as an adult when she was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. Mental health issues were not discussed openly in Kharoll-Ann’s family. Despite that, she learned to recognize how her condition manifested itself, so she rebuilt her confidence and regained control of her life. She completed a DEC (pre-university studies) in Delinquency Intervention at Collège Ahuntsic in Montreal. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work and is now pursuing a Master’s Degree in Social Work with an option in Feminist Studies at McGill University.
Kharoll-Ann has an impressive list of accomplishments. She has been volunteering in the community for various social causes since the age of 12. She has offered her time to Amnesty International, the Foundation of the Lakeshore General Hospital, the Link (a newspaper), the Centre for the Help and Combat of Sexual Assault (Calacs) of the island, Tel-listen/Tel-elders and Academos. Through her commitment, Kharoll-Ann has been interested in issues of respect for human rights around the world, violence against women, loneliness among elders, and vocational guidance and perseverance in schools. She was named Young Woman of Distinction by the Y Women’s Foundation of Montreal and received the Terry Fox Humanitarian Award.
Kharoll-Ann is a lecturer on the topic of mental health.
Kike Ojo is a Toronto-based Educator, a Thought Leader and Institutional Change Agent. As the principal consultant for KOJO KONCEPTS, she specializes in supporting organizations around the world, to achieve equitable outcomes for their staff and clients, using principles of anti-oppression, anti-racism, human rights and cultural safety. She is the daughter of a Trinidadian mother and a Nigerian father, Kike experienced “internal racism” which is sometimes described as a by-product of colonialism. Anti-African sentiments within the Caribbean community was a constant presence including suggestions that the sometimes lighter colour Blacks from the islands was preferable to any shade of black from Africa. This began her thinking about race as a social construction and how ‘whiteness’ as dominant and ideal had been developed through colonialism and slavery, while she sought to understand why people make such arbitrary distinctions.
Establishing SCAGO and being an integral part of the establishment of the Sickle Cell Disease Association of Canada (SCDAC).
Recognized as a leader by governments, institutions and Francophone communities across Canada, for her leadership and volunteer work
Dr. Lisa Robinson is a Professor, Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto, Chief Diversity Officer, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Head of the Division of Nephrology, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and Senior Scientist in the Program in Cell Biology at the SickKids Research Institute.
Lisa attended medical school at the University of Toronto, trained in Internal Medicine at Toronto General Hospital, and completed her residency in Paediatrics at the University of Western Ontario. She received her Paediatric Nephrology training at Duke University and during this time she pursued basic research training in the Departments of Immunology and Medicine, focused on exploring the mechanisms by which the immune system contributes to progressive kidney disease and to cardiovascular disease. Her research program integrates molecular biology, cell biology, advanced microscopic, and biochemical approaches with experimental models of inflammation, cardiovascular disease, and kidney injury.
Lisa is the founder and director of Kids Science, a SickKids Research Institute program which provides opportunities for middle- and high-school students to improve their understanding of science and technology, and to make positive educational and career choices. Kids Science targets “at-risk” youth who do not have equal exposure to science and technology awareness experiences, including patients with chronic illnesses at SickKids, students from Northeastern Ontario, and students from Toronto inner-city schools. In 2014, she launched the Student Advancement Research (StAR) Program, a SickKids summer research program for under-represented minority high school students, particularly Black and Indigenous students.
Dr Lynn Jones – A native of Truro, Nova Scotia, is one of ten children in a family of community leaders. She has been a life-long civil and human rights activist, an educator, community and labour organizer, and a truly inspiring speaker.
Lynn’s activism started in school days. Her parents, Willena and Elmer Jones whose life-long dedication to social justice inspired all their children. She agitated against the Vietnam War, as well as, the pernicious racial discrimination she and other African-Nova Scotian students experienced on a daily basis. Truro’s residential areas and public spaces were segregated. Even the washrooms were segregated in the elementary schools, a factor that changed during Lynn’s childhood, largely because of her “strong and mighty” mother’s active protest.
She was a student in Dalhousie University’s landmark Transition Year program that continues to provide access to higher education and engagement in leadership initiatives for Native and African-Canadian youth. Lynn’s areas of concern have been environmental racism. This is sparked by her awareness that dumps and toxic waste sites are disproportionately located next to African-Canadian and First Nations communities, close to the homes of the economically disadvantaged, socially excluded and the powerless. In 1995, as Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLA), she pushed for a chapter on this crucial topic in the first – and only – National anti-racism report of unions and their communities in Canada which she co-chaired. Lynn’s ongoing dedication to this cause provides inspiration for the successful community-based ENRICH project—Environmental Noxiousness, Racial Inequalities & Community Health —as well, Time to Clear the Air: Art on Environmental Racism, a remarkable project by young artists in the African-Nova Scotian and Mi’kmaq communities.
Mante Molepo is a lawyer with the Federal Government of Canada. For several years she was Legal Counsel at the Trade Law Bureau of Global Affairs Canada, practicing international trade law. During that time, Mante served as one of the only Black lawyers for the department providing legal advice during the negotiations of a number of free trade agreements.
Mante worked extensively on the key free trade agreements including the negotiations of Canada’s most ambitious free trade agreement, the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA). Under CETA Canadian oil and gas products enjoy duty-free, quota-free market access to the European Union (EU). She also worked on a number of other negotiations, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), from which the United States subsequently withdrew. The other ten countries decided to renegotiate and continue under a new name entitled Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Once this agreement is enforced, it will be one of the largest free agreements in the world and will provide enhanced market access to key Asian markets. In addition to trade negotiations, Mante advised federal government departments on issues affecting the Government of Canada’s international trade and investment obligations.
At one time, Mante worked for a women’s rights organization in Kuala Lumpur as well as for the Special Court in Sierra Leone. She also worked as a Senior Policy Advisor at Employment and Social Development Canada and at Global Affairs Canada on international trade policy involving labour, food and product labeling.
She currently sits on the York University Senate….the body responsible for the academic governance of the University and has been a Senator since 2012, where she represents the Schulich School of Business. Although Dr. Annisette has successfully climbed the ladder of academic administration at Schulich, she has done so while continuing to maintain a productive scholarly life and is highly recognized internationally.
She has served as a Board member on a myriad of organizations, including the Canadian Peace Alliance, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Adventure Place, the Scarborough National Malvern Soccer Club and Scarborough Basketball Association, Julliette’s Place, a shelter for abused women and children, Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, Canadian Peace Alliance, Governor General’s Leadership tour, Malvern Coalition. She is also the Vice-President of the Scarborough Rouge River Federal NDP Riding Association and the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.
Mavis Ashbourne-Palmer migrated from Jamaica in 1971 and has lived and worked in health care in the Province of Saskatchewan, since she arrived. An owner of a Nursing Home that provided care and comfort to senior citizens, she has settled in comfortably in a climate that is totally different from the land of her birth. In Saskatchewan, historically, immigration has come from European countries but the immigration of Black people’s dates back to the late nineteenth century and continues today. Mavis says,” our presence is being shown and we are here, we are here to stay”. She continues, “they don’t know anything about Black History, so we have to teach them.”
To ensure that the African Canadian communities in Saskatchewan have a voice, she invited people from the Caribbean and continental Africa to join together to organize, share ideas and lobby the various levels of government in order to take their rightful place in the Province of Saskatchewan. This was done through The Congress of Black Women, Saskatchewan Caribbean Association, Saskatchewan Jamaican Association, Immigrant Women of Saskatchewan, Afro-Caribbean Association of Saskatchewan, Moose Jaw Jamaican Association, Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan, Open Door Society and SaskCulture, to name a few. She served as Director, President, Vice-President, Secretary and Founder of all of these organizations in the Province of Saskatchewan.
She has opened her home to many students who attended University in Regina, Saskatchewan, who were home sick and depressed in a foreign land.
Michelle McCullock – better known by her stage name, Michie Mee is popular within the music industry for her unique rap style of combining reggae and dancehall with hip-hop. She is a Canadian rapper and actress and the first notable female M.C. She is considered a national hip-hop pioneer. Many successful artists have followed in Michie’s footsteps using her gifted technique. With over two decades in the entertainment industry, the Juno nominated rapper and actress is not only an inspiration for female musicians, but also all artists nationwide.
Michie was born in Jamaica, later moving to Toronto, Ontario at a young age. She was raised in the city’s Jane and Finch neighborhood and began performing at the age of 14. In 1985, during a concert in Toronto, Boogie Down Productions introduced her to the audience and she performed on stage. She later teamed up with DJ L.A. Luv (Phillip Gayle) and formed the duo Michie Mee and L.A. Luv. The duo was featured on the 1987 Canadian Hip Hop Compilation Break’n Out, which was produced by KRS-One and Scott La Rock of Boogie Down Productions. The duo’s first single, “Elements of Style” made an impact on the United States and it signed with First Priority/Atlantic Records in 1988. Then in 1991, the debut album, Jamaican Funk-Canadian Style which incorporated dancehall reggae music was released. Over 60,000 copies of the album were sold in the U.S. and it was nominated for a Juno Award in 1992. The duo subsequently broke up and Michie went solo, opening shows for other artists. She became a founding member of the alternative rock band Raggadeath, which had a Canadian chart hit in 1995 with “One Life”. In the late 1990’s Michie began an acting career and “In Too Deep”, was her first film appearance in the 1999’s. In 2000, she starred in the CBC Television series Drop the Beat, playing a rapper named Divine. Later that year, she released a comeback album, The First Cut is the Deepest, which spawned the single “Don’t Wanna Be Your Slave”.
Millicent Olayinka Olu-Cole is President of Annie Walsh Memorial School Old Girls Association (AWOGA) of Ontario. The school, established 1849, is a prestigious all-girls secondary school located in the eastern area of Freetown, Republic of Sierra Leone. Millicent leads, organizes and raises funds for the girls to help fulfill their educational goals which are of high importance to her. She is proud to lead this organization because her Alma Mater has made her the strong educated woman she is today. She wants the girls in Sierra-Leone to have the same opportunities she got through empowerment and education. She will continue to advocate for girls to be educated just like boys to get equal opportunities in life. Her goal is to pay it forward by educating one girl at a time.
Millicent is a small business owner of Yinkus Sizzling Hot Sauce, which she launched in the summer of 2017 with lots of encouragement from her daughter and her sister.
Her Master’s Major Research Project (MRP), Lend Me Your Ear: The Voice of Early African Canadian Communities in Ontario Through Petitions, investigated the current state of the teaching of African Canadian history in elementary and secondary public schools to understand why it has remained virtually unchanged for decades, despite gains in policy revision. It includes a curriculum unit developed around six petitions penned by individuals and groups of African-Canadians. This was done with the intent of bringing the voices, opinions and experiences of African-Canadians into classrooms as a way to model how their counter-narrative can be incorporated within the existing curricular framework and also advocating for compulsory learning expectations on Black history and experiences in the Ontario curriculum.
Nicole Waldron’s multifaceted career, commands over 25 years of experience in project management, marketing, arts and administration, sponsorship, public relations, social advocacy and production management. This expansive career has enabled her to work throughout Canada, the United States and the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago. Nicole has developed a keen understanding of the needs and goals of her clients, which complements her professional and personal one on one style. Always passionate, she believes in working on projects that edify individuals to be the best they can be and organizations that have a positive impact on society. She works to raise awareness on Affordable Housing issues, Violence Against Women, Mental Health and Health Issues affecting the African-Canadian/Caribbean Communities such as Sickle Cell.
Nicole served as a consultant to several organizations. These include, but are not limited to, Exclusive Entertainment, Joan Pierre & Associates, Amoi Magazine, Darren Sheppard (Pannist), YMCA Greater Toronto – Self Employment Program, Sunrise Caribbean Restaurant Franchise Corporation, Dance Caribe, GTFA Learning Centre and Let’s Celebrate Liberia Organization.
Nicole has been actively involved in the design and implementation of various Festivals and Special Events such as: The Truth Conference, the Pinball Clemons Foundation, Panamania (TO2015 Pan Am Games) – Cuttin’ Style Caribbean Fashion-Toronto; Afrofest, Full Capacity Concerts in conjunction with World Vision, Trinidad & Tobago Heritage Group Projects – Toronto; The African Canadian Achievement Awards, the Aroni and Bikila Awards; The 1994 World Championship of Basketball, The Regent Park and The Reel World Film Festivals – Toronto and The Power Within Conferences in Toronto / Atlanta / Calgary to name a few.
As the coordinator of the women’s ministry, she plans ministry events, retreats and trips to build friendships and lasting relationships, and she has assisted the Black Anglicans Coordinating Committee in the planning of the Annual Black History Month service. Her biggest achievement and one that she is most proud of, is raising $50,000 for the church through Caribbean cruises which she organized, when she realized the church was cash strapped.
“Gaining a postgraduate degree; becoming the Vice Chair of the Region of Peel Police Services Board; authoring two books; giving over 1,500 hours of volunteer work in 2017 and being a vibrant community leader and advocate for mental health and marginalized youth.”
Norma Walker-Dickens was born in St. Catherine, Jamaica. She came to Canada with her baby daughter in October, 1967 to join her husband who was a Masters student at the University of Manitoba. She lived in Winnipeg with her family. Her husband passed away in 1991 and Norma remarried in 1995 to Thomas Dickens. She spends at least five months in Winnipeg where her husband lives. Since 2006, Mississauga has been her permanent residence where her three daughters and seven grandchildren live.
Her educational achievements include: graduation from Shortwood Teacher’s College in Jamaica (1963); B.A. Degree from University of Winnipeg (1980); Certificate of Administration and Management from University of Winnipeg (1988) and Certificate of Personal Function from University of Winnipeg (1982).
Norma has been a teacher for thirty years: three years in Jamaica and twenty-seven years at various schools in the Winnipeg School Division, Manitoba. She has served on many educational committees and assisted numerous community organizations. She served as various school representative on the Winnipeg Teachers Association.
OLUBUSOLA KOLADE studied at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria from where she graduated with an Honour’s degree in Food Science and Technology. She later proceeded to Reading University, England for her Master’s degree in Food Quality Control. She went back for second Master’s Degree at Brunel University London, England for Masters in Environmental Pollution Science with Project Management. Shortly after, she immigrated to Canada and took up an appointment with Ryerson Polytechnic University as an Asst. Professor in the Science department.
Olubusola has been an educator in the secondary sector in the last fifteen years with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB). Her passion for the youth and the need to “catch them young” as she says, made her to go back to Teachers College at Brock University, Hamilton, Canada and since then, has been an employee of TDSB as a teacher. Her passion for the young ones to succeed, motivates her to chair/co-chair different initiatives, such as Character Education, the Student Recognition award, the Outstanding Student of the Month Award and the Equity Committee.
Over the years, Pamela has served on numerous boards and organizations, including: Oakville Women’s Mosaic, Community Foundation of Oakville, Chair of the Allocation Committee on Violence Against Women with the United Way of Greater Toronto, The Ontario Black History Society (OBHS), Clarke Institute of Psychiatry Foundation, the Canadian Multiculturalism Council, the Black Business & Professional Association (BBPA), The Harry Jerome Awards and Scholarship Fund and Patron for the Project for the Advancement of Childhood Education (PACE) in Canada and Jamaica.
Patricia Gloudon is the mother of three, grandmother of six, great grandmother of one. She was born in the island of Trinidad and migrated to the United States in 1969, to join her mother in Baltimore. She subsequently moved to New York to study Fashion Design.
In1973 she moved to Toronto, however opportunities for fashion design were limited but she continued to fulfill her dream by designing and making clothing for friends and family.
Grooming is an essential component of making a good first impression and that seems to have contributed to an agency sending her to the Bank of Nova Scotia for an interview. She joined the Bank in 1973, working in the filing room and after six months, she moved to the Accounting Department, then the Pension Fund Department. She then moved on to become the first Black woman to be on the Money Market Trade Desk and eventually became Director, of the Commercial Retail Money Market Trading Desk.
Pauline Wisdom-Gilliam is a registered dietitian who is passionate about providing exemplary patient care and is known for often going the extra mile to meet the needs of patients and families. She has had a long career in the field of nutrition and dietetics and has been employed at the Sunnybrook Odette Cancer Centre since 1991.
She feels blessed to have the opportunity and privilege of providing nutrition education, counseling and support to patients and their caregivers at a time that is often difficult and stressful. In addition to working with individuals and groups, Pauline has been involved with community education as a presenter in Sunnybrook’s Community Cancer Education Program Speaker’s Bureau, giving presentations in a variety of corporate, educational, and community settings including those serving the Black community. Throughout her career, she has written and contributed to many articles addressing nutrition and cancer issues. She is valued as a mentor and preceptor. Pauline was recently acknowledged for her contributions to the education of patients, families, staff and students with a nomination for the Sunnybrook Education Advisory Council Patient and Family Education Award 2017.
Within the community, she has been an active volunteer over the years. She has also done many presentations at events sponsored by community groups and organizations including The Olive Branch of Hope Cancer Support Group, the Jamaica-Canadian Association and the African-Caribbean Cancer Forum.
Princess Alexander is President, Founder & Chief Transformation Strategist of ALEXANDER LEARMOND, a strategy management practice which advises organizations globally to innovate, grow and implement sustainable master plans. She characterizes her life’s values as humility, optimism, and persistence. Princess is distinguished by her ability to influence and catalyze change through dynamic engagement, strategic collaboration, and creative solutions. A versatile leader who advises boards and senior management across multiple sectors (public, private, entrepreneurial, not-for-profit, SMEs and startups), she operates effectively in concurrent roles which include lecturer in Entrepreneurship & Strategy with Ted Rogers School of Management, Ryerson University, and active Social Enterprise Leadership Coach with the J. W. McConnell Foundation’s Innoweave Program.
Princess is a former Strategic Planning Consultant in the higher education sector and Telecommunications Executive. Previous positions include Partner and Chief Operating Officer of Orion Communications Inc., and General Manager of Bell Canada. She has also held a number of progressive and pioneering leadership positions with Bell Nexxia, Stentor Resources, and Telecom Canada. In these various roles she has received multiple performance awards including the Prestigious President Club award.