Meet our visionary and active Board of Directors...

Each one is a story of commitment to the ongoing shift in human consciousness and sustainability. 

 Dave Collacutt and Bonnie Collacutt

 Dave has been an engineer and a teacher. Bonnie has been an teacher in the elementary school system and outdoor science education field. Part of the earlier back to the land movement, they built their house, literally, with their own hands, ran a small farm, and raised three daughters. Reinventing their work, they left teaching and started an educational software business. Most recently they sold that business to focus more fully on ecology, social justice, and spiritual growth. Presently they also work with Ecologos in Toronto, are facilitators of Awakening The Dreamer, an environmental education presentation developed by the international Pachamama Alliance out of California. Dave is a Rotarian in Barrie and Bonnie is active with Grandmothers to Grandmothers (Canadian Grandmothers assisting African Grandmothers raising Aids orphans). Bonnie and Dave live in Innisfil.

 

Nate Smelle

 Nate became associated with the Gaia centre as a volunteer while studying in the Eco-tourism Management Program at Fleming College in Haliburton. He works as a straw bale builder for Havencraft Homes and is a teacher in the Eco-tourism program. He is currently in the process of opening an educational centre for sustainable living near Bancroft, Ontario. He is also an active volunteer with the David Suzuki Foundation.

An artist, Nate's carvings, photography, and painting reflect his awe and reverence for the natural world, One of his works, a totem pole, marks the entrance to the Cosmic Labyrinth at Gaia Centre's headquarters in Haliburton.  

Cheryl Jack  

It was her experiences at Gaia's programs  that brought Cheryl to the Board.  If you ask her what Gaia Centre is, she'll say "it's a community in which people who love the Earth gather together to learn and to celebrate in an atmosphere that fosters spiritual renewal."  And that she has personally benefited from it. "This is a place," claims Cheryl, "where hearts and minds are transformed."  

Cheryl's had a career in the business sector, primarily staff training and development as well as marketing responsibility for the start-up of two businesses. Eleven years ago, she was hired as the start-up minister for a religious community and served for ten years as  parish minister. She has served as a Director on the Ontario Multifaith Council for five years and also on the Whitby Race Relations Committee. Cheryl lives in Ashburn with husband Andy and cottages at Harcourt Park.  Not short on passion, ideas or commitment, Cheryl's famous quote is, "I won't eat anything with a face."

Alice Miller

A Haliburtonian, Alice is an Information Technology Director and part of a Green Team at Patient News Publishing. She is passionate for spiritual growth, and evolution for herself, community and planet.  She has been involved with Wellspring, and Fire and Ice, an international conference in Greenland. She has both attended and led Gaia Centre programs.

Janice Macdonald

Seeking to learn how to balance business and spiritual values, Janice found her way first to Gaia Centre's workshops, then seeking spiritual community, to the weekly Gaia Gatherings. Janice is in the process of reinventing her work, though she will remain in retail. She has recently made the big move from the GTA to Kinmount. She brings strong organizational skills and a natural passion for marketing. She is committed to creating more awareness of the Gaia Centre in the local and surrounding communities.

Past Board Members ...who have brought us to where we are today:

Marci Mandel

A writer and playwrite she sits on Haliburton's Those Other Movies committee, and with husband Alan Clark make a great maple syrup!

Val Bishop

 A resident of Haliburton, she has been a Professor of Ecotourism and Adventure Tourism Management at Fleming College.  

Lynda  Shadbolt

Owner of Haliburton Yoga she continues to promote and participate in local projects.

Grant Jahnke

An allumna of the University of Creation Spirituality, member of Toronto's Ruah Community, and exceptional leader of the Cosmic Walk.

Doug Aldworth

A  writer, builder, outdoorsman,  leader of Vision Quests, and an ongoing leader at the Seasonal Sacred Circles, Doug, Kate, and Lab, Mitch, live off the grid north of Minden.

Brenda Peddigrew

A resident of Minden Hills, she is a poet, professor of theology, and an international teacher of facilitation skills.

Allan Reeve

A U.C.C. minister at Bobcaygeon his Sunday morning blog is heard throughout the county on Canoe FM on Sunday mornings.