To: All Voting Members of the North Shore Winter Club
TAKE NOTICE THAT the Annual General Meeting of the members of the Society of the North Shore Winter Club will be held in the Jim Graham room on Thursday, 9th day of November, 2023, at 6:00 pm for the following purposes:
- Election of Directors. Those members who have been nominated by the Nominating Committee or who have put forward their name directly to stand for election to the Board of Directors are indicated in the attached summary.
- To receive and consider the minutes of the Annual General Meeting held October 20, 2022. Hard copies are available at Member Services or can be found on the Club’s website.
- To receive the President’s Report on the activities of the Society during the past twelve months.
- To receive the Audited Financial Statements of the Society during the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023. Hard copies are available at Member Services or can be found on the Club’s website.
- To appoint the auditors of the Society for the ensuing year.
- To receive the operating budget for the ensuing year.
- To consider any other business of which due notice has been given.
- To transact such ordinary business as may properly come before the meeting, or any adjournment thereof.
The meeting will take place in two parts. The first part will constitute the formal AGM and will deal with those issues that need be considered at the meeting. The second part will be informal and permit members to receive reports from the Board and from management and to ask questions on the information provided.
Dated this 26th day of October, 2023, in the District of North Vancouver, Province of British Columbia.
James Cronk, Chair of the Board
North Shore Winter Club
VOTING PROCEDURES
There is one vote per Membership by the primary member (single, couple, family) for those that are in good standing and hold Full, Senior Full or Corporate Memberships.
Voting for election of Directors will be conducted electronically. There will be no ballot voting or proxies accepted at the Annual General Meeting for election of Directors to the Board. Each voting Member will receive an invitation to vote by email and voting will be open at 9:00am Saturday November 4th and close at 6:30 pm on November 9th. Each Member entitled to vote may select up to three candidates from the slate provided. Directions on how to vote electronically are contained in the voting email which has been sent to the primary account holder’s email account.
The vote on any question properly arising at the annual general meeting, other than the election of Directors, shall take place at the November 9th meeting. Votes at the meeting may be cast personally or by proxy. No Member may vote as a proxy for more than three absent Members. Proxies are available at Member Services or on the Club website -via Member Log-in.
Any questions arising from the documents above can be sent in before the meeting to the Club President: board@nswc.ca or Natalie Raw: nraw@nswc.ca
Nominations for Board of Directors
There are three positions available for Members to be elected to the Board of Directors for the 2023 – 2026 term.
The Governance Committee asked the Nominating Committee, a committee independent of the existing Board but with a familiarity with the role of the Board, to recommend candidates for the seats available, and to do their best to match the skills and needs for a strong Board composition.
The Nominating Committee has recommended five possible candidates for the members’ consideration. No other nominations were received and the period for nominations is now closed. Below are the bios of the five nominated candidates:
Leanne Dennis BIO
I am a Chartered Accountant (CA) and completed my Chartered Accountancy with Ernst & Young in 2000. I hold a B.A in Psychology and a B. Commerce from the University of Saskatchewan. My work background includes several years in public accounting practice in Saskatoon and Calgary with both large and small firms. I moved into the Private Equity market in 2001 as a Controller with Tri-West Capital Partners in Calgary for 4 years. I then moved into public healthcare when I joined the Provincial Health Services Authority in B.C. as a Business Analyst and promoted later to Finance Director. I then worked from the home for several years bringing up two children. In 2016 I purchased Uniglobe Travel Eastern Canada and in the spring of 2023, added the Western Canada region creating a national entity. I am currently a Director for Uniglobe Travel Canada, a corporate travel agency business that does over $1 Billion in annual billings.
My family and I are active members at the North Shore Winter Club. The kids are involved in both boys and female hockey, junior tennis and various summer programs. My husband Frank plays senior men’s hockey at the club and both Frank and I are very involved in tennis and enjoy pickleball and social events at the club.
I have been a Director at the NSWC since November 2020. I have acted as the Chair of the House Committee and a member of the Finance Committee for the past three years. I am also currently a member of the Facilities Committee as we plan and prepare for many significant capital projects. I have also been engaged recently with the Search Committee as we look for a new Chief Operating Officer. I feel very fortunate to be able to contribute significantly to the Club that means so much to me and to our family.
Joel McLean BIO
My family joined the North Shore Winter Club in 2017. I have enjoyed getting to know the Winter Club and its members, and I am committed to helping the club during the upcoming period of transition.
My wife, Cindy, and I have four wonderful children. Since joining the club, my oldest boys have been learning how to play hockey. We all love the pool and I am even learning how to play Senior Men’s league hockey although I do not profess to be particularly skilled! As my youngest son has a number of special needs, I would like to focus on making the club as inclusive as possible for people of all abilities.
As my professional activities focus on real estate development and finance, I believe I am well suited to help the Winter Club as it progresses towards any potential redevelopments. I have managed several financial companies primarily engaged in real estate development. I sit on several for-profit and non-profit boards. I have experience working within both Canada and the US, financing multi-family/mixed retail developments.
I am the current Treasurer for the NSWC, a board member of the club, I also chair the Finance Committee.
In terms of my experience in a Corporate Directors role, I am a Director of Unisync Group (a TSX listed company), a Director of the McLean Family Foundation (a charitable foundation and I am the Chairperson of Kenneth Gordon Maplewood School.
Paul Brackstone BIO
My wife Susan and I have 3 boys. Two have played minor hockey at the club, from Cookie Monsters through U18, and all three have participated in the Marlins over many years.
I was a competitive swimmer throughout my childhood and into university. At university I captained the University of Victoria ultimate team to several national titles and also won several Canadian National Championships at the Open and Masters levels. I represented Canada several times internationally, including winner two gold medals and a silver medal over three world championships.
I graduated with a physical education degree from UVic and worked as a teacher for a few years before returning to UVic to complete my law degree. I was awarded the Law Society Gold Medal for highest academic standing in my graduating class. I have worked for 20 years at a law firm in Vancouver, and am now the co-managing director of that firm.
Through my sports and work experience I have developed the management and leadership skills to help guide an organization like the NSWC, and I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the success of the club.
Bryce Zurowski BIO
I joined the NSWC in 2015, and my family and I are active participants in tennis, hockey, pickleball, summer camps, and social events at the club. Our 3 children are enrolled in hockey and tennis, my wife and I are active tennis and hockey players, and our involvement in the club has become a staple of our everyday activities. I personally am also an active mountain biker, golfer, and skier, and I’ve made fitness and recreation a pillar of my life.
Professionally, I have background in marketing, financial management, general management and entrepreneurship. After a commerce degree at the University of Calgary, my career began in brand marketing and led to general management in the brewing industry, where I learned the tenants of successful long-term brand management, operational excellence and human resource stewardship in a public company setting. I then spent time in the design industry, working with clients in the food & beverage, construction and hospitality industries, among others. Much of my work in this industry was with multidisciplinary teams to understand the motivations, decision-making style and stress behaviors of disparate team members, leading to renewed corporate and brand strategies.
Currently, I own and operate a company that I acquired with a business partner in 2013, driving growth through M&A activity and the development of a strong leadership team. My focus is on our corporate vision, capital deployment, operational process improvement and future acquisitions.
I have been a long-time volunteer hockey coach, a spring hockey program manager, a member of the Entrepreneurs Association, and have been a board director for a non-for-profit organization.
Elsa Adamick BIO
My family and I are active members of the NSWC with me being an active tennis/pickleball player and frequent gym user, both my boys in the minor hockey program, and my husband having coached and volunteered on various initiation-age hockey teams. He’s even known to show up for an occasional senior men’s league game! We love the fitness facilities and can be found enjoying the pool almost daily in the summer months.
I’m a commercial lawyer by trade and have experience in litigation and commercial transactions, and in my current work, advise on a large variety of contracts and day-to-day matters involving governance, procurement, facilities/leasing, IT, and privacy. I bring thought leadership to complex problems and develop clear and executable solutions to solve them.
Outside of work and Club activities, I love running and biking the trails of the North Shore. I am also the Chair of the Parent Advisory Committee at my kids’ elementary school, which liases with the school and school district regarding parent concerns, organizes community events and school-based programs, and raises funds along the way to enrich students’ education with diverse experiences both in and outside of the classroom. I’m passionate about creating connections within communities, as those connections enable communities to thrive and function effectively.
As a Director of the NSWC Board, I will draw from both my personal and professional experience in guiding the NSWC towards fulfilling its short and long-term goals and strategic vision, all while considering the needs and concerns of all stakeholders at the NSWC. The grit and tenacity I’ve learned from the long days in the office and long hours on the trails will serve me well in helping the Club tackle its upcoming facilities improvements and any challenges that arise along the way. I look forward to collaborating with the Board and staff at the NSWC, and hope to help create meaningful opportunities, experiences, and improvements for all.