About Endow Manitoba – Endow Manitoba

What is Endow Manitoba?

Endow Manitoba is the network of our province’s community foundations. An initiative of The Winnipeg Foundation, Endow Manitoba works with the province’s 56 community foundations to increase their impact and advance the community foundation movement.

Provincial Advisory Board

The Endow Manitoba provincial advisory board, formed in 2019, is an opportunity for community foundations to provide ongoing input and feedback about Endow Manitoba’s programs and initiatives.

The advisory board is comprised of representatives from community foundations across the province. Board members serve three year terms.

If you have any questions about the advisory board please contact the Endow Manitoba team or one of the board members.

Current advisory board members

Katharine Cherewyk

The Steinbach Community Foundation

Katharine Cherewyk is a certified executive coach and member of the Padraig Coaching team. She is also the executive director of Agriculture in the Classroom – Manitoba. Katharine is a small business owner, has experience working with and in Indigenous communities in Canada and has worked as a researcher in various scientific institutions. She has spent time living and working overseas and, as a professional photographer, was rewarded for her abilities by having a photo appear twice on the cover of Time Magazine. Katharine is proud to sit on the board of the Steinbach Community Foundation. She has a Graduate Certificate in Executive Coaching from Royal Roads University and is a member of the International Coach Federation. In addition, she holds a BSc in Agroecology and an MSc in Agriculture from the University of Manitoba.

Justin Johnson

Francofonds

Bio and image coming soon.

Bob McCulloch

Morden Area Community Foundation

Bob is a retired lawyer and currently the vice chair of the Morden Area Foundation. He was previously chair of the Tiger Hills Foundation (Treherne) for many years and served briefly on the board of the Community Foundations of Canada. He has also served in many capacities both provincially and nationally with the Manitoba and Canadian Bar Associations. Bob lived with his wife, Nancy, and his two daughters, Lindsay and Madison, in Treherne until 2017, when Nancy and he moved to Morden. He enjoys cottage life at West Hawk Lake, wintering in Mesa, AZ, attending Winnipeg Jets and Winnipeg Blue Bombers games, reading, running/walking and attempting (quite unsuccessfully) to score well on the Minnewasta Golf Coursev.

Donna Morken

Rivers and Area Community Foundation

Donna was born in Manitoba and after a short career in teaching in Northern Manitoba, she joined the RCMP in 1979. After a 25-year career which was served in (F Division) Saskatchewan and also at the RCMP Training Academy in Regina, Donna retired in 2004. Donna and her husband Al built their new home in Rivers, where they retired. Since their retirement, they both enjoy volunteering in the community and supporting it in whatever way they can. Donna is the recipient of the Premier’s Volunteer Service Award and was co-chair of the Manitoba Rural Economic Development Strategy and Action Plan.

Michelle Piwniuk

Virden Area Foundation

Bio and image coming soon.

Chris Saunders

Pinawa Community Foundation

Chris Saunders was president of the Acsion Group of Companies, prior to retirement in 2021. Before starting Acsion in 1998, Chris was a research engineer with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited. He has over 40 years’ experience providing consulting services for international companies. Chris represented Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs at the International Atomic Energy Agency as an expert on technology transfers to developing countries. He has published more than 80 papers and four books on a variety of scientific and historical subjects. He is a graduate chemical engineer from the University of New Brunswick. Chris has also been involved in establishing several other successful corporations, including Prairie Isotope Production Enterprises (PIPE; www.pipecanada.ca) and Acetek Composites (www.acetek.ca).

Chris moved to Pinawa in 1982 and in no time, he got involved in various local activities. Forty years later, Chris is still an active, engaged volunteer in Pinawa. His early involvement in the community focused on his love for sports. Over the years Chris has participated on numerous boards and committees. Chris was part of the team to form the Pinawa Foundation and has served as chairman since its inception. The Foundation has experienced rapid growth under his leadership and with his infectious enthusiasm for supporting the community. Chris has great pride in his hometown, and he works hard to make Pinawa a better place. Chris can often be heard to say, “How can I help?”

Murray Slagerman

Interlake Community Foundation

Bio and image coming soon.

Tristin Tergesen

Westshore Community Foundation

Tristin joined the Westshore Community Foundation board of directors in 2011. During her term as board chair from 2016 to 2018, the foundation’s activities and funds increased, strengthening her commitment to ‘building a lasting legacy’ for the community.

Tristin has 25 years of experience in various capacities of business development including senior management, retail operations, consulting, and strategic development. Currently employed at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, as manager, Visitor Services, she is interested in increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the community.

Tristin has volunteered with many community organizations and sat on numerous boards related to arts and cultural organizations; she enjoys living in Gimli where she is often outdoors gardening, riding a bike, kayaking, cross country skiing, or walking along the shores of Lake Winnipeg.

Shamilla Thethy

Thompson Community Foundation

Shamilla Thethy is an RN MN by profession who is currently teaching nursing in the Bachelor of Nursing Joint University of Manitoba and University College of the North program in Thompson. She has lived in Thompson for close to three decades. As a Board member of the Thompson Community Foundation Shamilla has served in the role of a vice-president and Grants co-chair.

Shamilla believes that the community foundation has brought a lot of value to her community in many ways and benefited people from different spectrums of life and age. She also believes that there is a lot more that the foundation could achieve and, using examples of others throughout Canada, learn innovative ways to do this. Shamilla looks forward to serving the foundation in a different capacity now and in the future.

Thor Thorleifson

Pembina Manitou Area Foundation

Thor Thorleifson has spent all his life in southern Manitoba; he was born in Baldur, studied environmental ecology at the universities of Winnipeg and Manitoba, and for the last 25 years has operated a financial planning business, home-based in Manitou.

Thor has been married to Donna since 1989; they have an adult son and daughter who continue to make them very proud. Thor has enjoyed volunteering over the years for the Manitou Opera House, Winnipeg Folk Festival, the Pembina Manitou Area Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, and other causes. His work history includes a number of technical and management positions with governments, universities, the Manitoba Museum, and the Morden Area Foundation. On the personal side, music, sports, and reading have kept him busy and interested.

Thor has long been a supporter of local, community-driven initiatives, drawing on public and private support, and looks forward to the continuing success of Manitoba’s Community Foundations.

Darren Webster

Community Foundation of Swan Valley

Bio and image coming soon.