On Board Who’s who on the board of directors of The National Broadcast Reading Service Inc. (NBRS), operators of VoicePrint and AudioVision Canada

A volunteer board of directors of up to 16 members – 15 elected plus the President – sets NBRS policy. Each elected director serves a term of up to three years, and sits on at least one Board committee. Currently NBRS has four standing committees (Executive, Finance, Nominations & Governance and Programming) and three ad hoc committees (Marketing & Communications, Technology and Strategic). To ensure continuity, terms are staggered and each year approximately five new directors join the board. Accordingly, the Nominations & Governance Committee identifies the skills that are needed for any given year, identifies potential directors, and then interviews candidates.

CURRENT NBRS DIRECTORS

NBRS CHAIR AND CHAIR, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Katita Stark (Toronto, ON)

President, Stark Communications Inc., a Toronto-based marketing public relations firm specializing in developing communications strategies for corporate, business and financial clients and conducting communications audits. Formerly, Katita worked with international PR agencies, five federal government communications departments and as a feature writer for an international magazine.

NBRS VICE CHAIR AND CHAIR, STRATEGIC COMMITTEE
Gerald Weseen (Stellarton, NS)

Senior Director, Communications for the Atlantic region, Sobeys Inc. Gerald has an extensive background in public relations, communications and journalism. Six years as a consultant with one of Atlantic Canada’s leading public relations/advertising firms; five years as a senior communications and policy adviser with the New Brunswick government, and 15 years in the media – mostly with Broadcast News Ltd./Canadian Press. A director of the deCoste Entertainment Centre in Pictou, N.S., Gerald volunteers with Oxfam Canada as an adviser on fundraising and sponsorships. He has served as a director for local United Way boards.

NBRS SECRETARY AND CHAIR, PROGRAMMING COMMITTEE
Betty Nobel (Vancouver, BC)

Betty is department head and teacher of the Program for the Vision Impaired at Vancouver Community College. She has a Master’s Degree in Higher Education. Betty is President of the Canadian Braille Authority and a former member of the CNIB national board of directors. She received the 2000 YWCA Woman of Distinction award in the category of education, training and development.

NBRS TREASURER AND CHAIR, FINANCE COMMITTEE
Orville Parkes (Toronto, ON)

Orv is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario. Vice President, Toronto Sufferance Truck Terminal (Kennedy) Inc. Former partner of Clarkson Gordon & Co. and Vice President of the Clarkson Company. Former Executive Vice President Ellis Don Construction, then President of PRA Limited, a scientific instrumentation company specializing in low-powered lasers. Former Vice Chair and Chief Executive Officer, Matthews Construction Inc. Extensive business experience in Canada and abroad, as well as with charitable organizations and community services. Has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Honours Business Administration.

NBRS PRESIDENT
Bob Trimbee (Toronto, ON)

Broadcast journalist and telecommunications executive and principal of BxT Communications Inc. and Combined Intelligence Corporation. For Broadcast News Limited, conceived and launched the first national French- and English-language alphanumeric cable news channel and an around-the-clock audio news service for radio broadcasters. Persuaded the CRTC to allow commercial users direct access to and the right to sublease excess satellite telecommunications capacity leased from Telesat Canada. Member of NBRS pro-tem Board of Directors and Chair of the original NBRS management committee. Appointed Executive Director in November 1993; assumed current role in December 2000.

CHAIR, NOMINATIONS & GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE
Ruth Derrick (Victoria, BC)

A corporate communications and strategic planning consultant, Ruth has most recently been involved in the development of literacy policy and delivery issues both nationally and provincially. She is also an experienced senior manager whose diverse career includes serving at the executive level in the Prime Minister’s Office, the Canadian diplomatic service, and at one of the country’s leading pediatric hospitals.

R-J Gilbert (Toronto, ON)

A long-time volunteer VoicePrint reader; member of the national office's Volunteer Liaison Committee; wide and varied experience as a volunteer leader and worker, including almost four decades with Toronto Western Hospital; former hospital and church Board of Trustees member; continuing volunteer commitments at church, hospital, Art Gallery of Ontario and Massey Centre for Women; fundraising experience for various not-for-profit and charitable organizations; extensive broadcast (radio & TV) experience.

Bruce Hogle (Edmonton, AB)

Career electronic/print journalist spanning five provinces, including 30 years as executive of CFRN TV/Radio, presenting the station editorials, serving as host of weekly Face The Newsmen and initiating the Good Neighbour Fund, of which he still is a director. Built Radio Station CFMC Saskatoon. Former RTNDA President and 2005 recipient of the RTNDA Lifetime Achievement Award. 2005 inductee into Edmonton Community Service Hall of Fame and in 2004 named one of the “100 Edmontonians of the Century.” Honorary Life Member of Western Association of Broadcasters. First chair Grand MacEwan College Journalism Advisory Board. Founder and first President of Canadian Association of Shriners, former Chair, Alberta Press Council, recipient of the Order of Canada, Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal, Paul Mulvihill Heart Award, CAB Gold Medal, Lions Melvin Jones Fellow, Rotary Paul Harris Fellow, Grant MacEwan Community Service and Distinguished Citizen Award.

Bob Lockhart (Fredericton, NB)

Currently completing his doctoral thesis at the University of New Brunswick, Bob is a former managing director of CFBC Saint John and a founding member of the Fundy Cable Group. A former Mayor of Saint John, he is a Director of CNIB (New Brunswick Division) and a Director of the Canadian Corps of Commissionaires (NB Division). As a photojournalist he has covered events in Vietnam, Cyprus, Bosnia, Kosovo and, most recently, in Afghanistan. He retired honourably from the Canadian Armed Forces with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.

Douglas Osborne, C.A. (Regina, SK)

Director of Administration for the Anglican Diocese of Qu’Appelle since 1997. He has an extensive financial background at such companies as the predecessor firm to KPMG (at which he was a Managing Partner) and McCabe Grain of Winnipeg, Man. (as Deputy Comptroller). In addition, Mr. Osborne is active in the community, having served in a variety of capacities at such nonprofit organizations as the Red Cross, the Boy Scouts and the Shriners.

CHAIR, MARKETING & FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE

Bill Peterson (Saskatoon, SK)

Bill is a partner in Creative Fire, a Saskatoon-based strategic communications firm. He began life as a newspaper reporter and during his journalism career was owner and publisher of Saskatchewan Free Press newspapers, editor and publisher of The Star Phoenix in Saskatoon and president and publisher of the Prince George Citizen and Kingston Whig-Standard for Southam Newspaper Group. He attended the University of Toronto as a Southam Journalism Fellow and City University in London, England as a Commonwealth Journalism Fellow.

Maureen Shaughnessy-Kitts (Toronto, ON)

At her retirement in the fall of 2003, Maureen had served several years as Director, Corporate Communications at McDonald’s Restaurants of Canada and as Executive Director of Ronald McDonald’s Children’s Charities in Canada. In 2002, she received the McDonald’s President’s Award, the highest employee recognition in the McDonald’s Global system. In 2003, Maureen was inducted as a Fellow of the Canadian Public Relations Society, one of only 15 in Canada recognized for their contributions to corporate communications.

CHAIR, TECHNICAL COMMITTEE
George Sumyie (Vancouver, BC)

Now retired, but from 1961 Mr. Sumyie was involved in a variety of broadcast-industry activities that included employment at S.W. Davis Broadcast Technical Services Ltd, a company involved with the design, construction and servicing of broadcast stations. This activity included maintenance, upgrade and construction of AM, FM and television studios and transmitter sites from BC through to Ontario. Mr. Sumyie, who eventually became a S.W. Davis Partner and Director, has served as a Director to the VoicePrint Society of BC and the Cariboo Central Interior Radio group of stations.

Chris Wright (Toronto, ON)

Vice President, Institutional Retirement Services, Fidelity Investments Canada Limited, where he is responsible for Fidelity's pension-fund client business development in Canada. With 20 years' pension industry experience, including security analysis, operations, client relations, sales, and marketing, Mr. Wright has extensive volunteer experience: Volunteer fund-raiser, St Michael's Hospital, since 1992; Board member, St. Michael's Hospital Foundation, since 2000; Co-Chair, Heart Health Centre' s $2.5 million mini-campaign (2004); former Chair, Urban Angel Golf Classic, raising net proceeds from $130,000 to $500,000 (1995 - 2002); Member, Order of St. Lazarus (Palliative Care fundraising), since 1991; and former Board Secretary and former Chair, Polo for Palliative Care Polo Tournament (2000-2001). He has a BA in Honors Business Administration, University of Western Ontario (1984).