Message from ICF Toronto Chapter President, Alicia Saint
(2022–2023)
July 2022
I hope everyone is enjoying this wonderful summer! It was so great to see so many of you at our Summer Social. We had a great turnout! Thanks again to Mary-Ellen Hynd, Jenny Barkan and Jane Graydon for organizing this:) Everyone enjoyed being back together again “live and in person”, with lots of requests to do another one in the fall…maybe? Stay tuned:)
A big welcome to our newest Board member, Andrea Leven-Marcon, ACC, CEC, MA. Andrea will be our Community Outreach Director, leading International Coaching Week and pro bono coaching programs. Thank you Andrea for your commitment to support and lead our ICF community.We also extend a warm welcome to our 24 newest members. We are so excited you have joined our thriving community! Our chapter continues to grow - up 13% over last year. We have over 1,000 members who have renewed their ICF Global membership and chosen ICF Toronto. If the annual ICF Global renewal date slipped past you, please go to ICF Global and renew today.
Our programming is paused for summer, however the learning never stops! Our ACMP (Association of Change Management Professionals) Ontario/Global partner is hosting a free webinar, "Leading Teams in Times of Relocation: A Perspective from Ukraine and Around the Region". The webinar will explore changes and challenges affecting employees facing relocation. How can leaders strive to make these changes as painless as possible? This webinar is free of charge, and you can register here: https://www.acmpglobal.org/events/eventdetails.aspx?id=1656554.
ICF Global has released its Chapter Diversity Guide. The Guide recognizes ideas from our very own DEI committee and has positioned ICF Toronto as an early leader in this important work - and we have a long way to go. Over the summer, the Board will engage in self-learning on DEI with the guidance of our Board leads, Lisa MacVicar and Terri Donohue.
ICF Toronto is a vibrant chapter because of YOU. We appreciate your contributions, engagement and feedback. Please reach out to alicia@icftoronto.com or feel free to contact any of our Board members.
Enjoy your summer!
June 2022
Cheerio! I am sending you this from England whilst I am visiting my grandchildren and amidst lots of celebration for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Seventy years doing the same job…now that’s dedication! Closer to home, we too have much to celebrate about our ICF Toronto Chapter and professional coaching this month.
It’s time for a fun Summer Social! We are hosting our first in-person social event in over two years at the Goodman Pub, outdoors on the patio, in downtown Toronto on June 28th. Everyone is invited to this gathering! This special event is free for all who have paid the Chapter's Activity Fee ($100 annually), and $35 for all others. Come celebrate summer, reconnect with friends and make a few new ones:). Please register, tickets are limited.
In the spirit of celebration and dedication, I am excited to introduce you to our two newest Board members, Terri Donohue and Lisa MacVicar, who are jointly leading our newly created DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) portfolio. Both bring extensive personal and professional experience in DEI to the portfolio. Lisa is a long-standing ICF Toronto member and was on the DEI Committee in 2021. Terri recently joined ICF Toronto and is moving to Ontario. See their bios for more information and please contact them if you are interested in volunteering.
Be sure to register for our June programming event: "How to get the news media to feature YOU!" with Keka DasGupta. A reminder there will be no programming in July and August.
Also, be sure to check out our Feature Article this month, A Series of Team Coaching Cases – Nuances in Fostering Purposeful Teams, by our very own member and team coaching expert Lucy Shenouda, PCC.
I’d also like to celebrate a long-standing partner of ours, Up With Women (UWW). UWW is looking for ICF accredited coaches to provide pro bono coaching for their fall cohort. Many of our members already volunteer and have given rave reviews about the experience. If you’re interested, please contact althea@upwithwomen.org.
Interested in volunteering? We are looking for members who would like to join the Board Nomination Selection Committee. This committee will help select the Board for 2023/24. Read more, and if Interested, please contact Jane Graydon at jane@icftoronto.com
We are making lots of changes to better serve and support YOU, our community. If you like what you see, let us know—or if you have any suggestions, please send me an email at alicia@icftoronto.com.
May 2022
I am so excited to share that ICF Toronto has, once again, won the ICF Global 2021 Chapter Recognition Award. ICF Toronto was recognized for Innovation, specifically:
- our successful conference in 2021 with strong sponsorship, led by Robin Mahadeva and her committee, as well as many Board members;
- our ICW program, led by Gaby Cameto and her committee, with 14 non-profits and 150 people participating;
- our innovative membership campaign led by Jenny Barkan and her committee.
A big hello and welcome to our new members of ICF Toronto! One of our goals as a Board this year is to deepen our sense of connection and belonging, so we are excited to introduce this new segment in our newsletter to help us get to know our newest members. Thank you to Jenny Barkan and her Membership Engagement Committee; Donna Needs, Lori Kiser, Kinda Adra and Kris Amaral, for making this part of our “welcome kit”.
Happy International Coaching Week, May 16-20. Our theme this year is “Reimagine the Future”. During this annual celebration, ICF Toronto joins chapters from around the world to educate the public about the value of working with a professional coach. Thank you to Gaby Cameto and her committee for organizing this event, and to all the coaches who signed up to provide pro bono coaching to non-profits in our community. Please “like,” “love,” “comment,” and “share” to help engagement for our events at https://twitter.com/ICFToronto. Share how you are celebrating the power and impact of coaching this week.
Also, please join our free webinar, in partnership with the ICF Global Foundation, "Code Red Opportunity: The Why and How of Climate and Coaching" on May 18. Coaching can change the world. This is an important place for us to participate and help make a difference!
Do you love Social Media? We are looking for a volunteer who has expertise in design and technical skills for posting to our multiple ICF social media channels to join our Marketing Committee. If you are interested in volunteering, please submit your volunteer form through the ICF website.
April 2022
Happy Spring! The birds are chirping and the daffodils are popping up - hope this is putting a bit of a “spring” in your step.
Welcome to all our new members. Our ICF Toronto community is growing - we currently have over 1200 members, and that’s 25% more than last year!
Welcome Lisa MacVicar who is joining the Board as EDI Director. Lisa was a member of ICF Toronto’s EDI Strategy Formulation Team. Lisa will be leading with a new member of our Chapter, Terri Donohue. Both bring deep professional and personal experience to this role.
Congratulations to all our ICF Toronto Award Winners. Each one of our winners are amazing! A special shout-out to Adria Trowhill who won our Lifetime Achievement Award.
Once again this month our Board and volunteers are hard at work bringing you all kinds of great events! For Programming, we have world-class speakers joining us to provide our community with leading-edge learning and a Team Coaching series! Thank you to everyone who completed the survey - you let us know the topics that are most important to you.
International Coaching Week (ICW) is May 16-22 and Gaby Cameto, our ICW lead, is lining up a great program! We invite non-profit organizations to sign-up for pro bono coaching during ICW. Jenny Barkan is leading a program to “Support the Ukraine.” If you know an organization that is supporting the Ukrainian crisis or want to provide pro bono coaching, please contact jenny@icftoronto.com.
We have a thriving community - let’s get to know one another and share! Follow us on social media, or drop me a note at alicia@icftoronto.com or feel free to contact any of the Board members.
March 2022
Hello ICF Toronto community!
I am honoured and excited to serve as your new President of this trailblazing, award-winning Chapter, as of March 1st, 2022. I am so grateful to my predecessor Jane Graydon for her impactful leadership over this last year, and thrilled that she will remain on the Board to support us in the “Past President” role. Thank you to the Board members who are stepping down, Barb Rosen Schreiber, Jalyn Anderson and Robin Mahadeva, for your dedication and outstanding contribution to the Board and our community.
A BIG welcome to our newest Board members, Ralph Cochrane, Jatin Sanghavi and Leslie Shank. We look forward to their fresh perspective and expertise. I look forward to working with our new 2022 Board to continue to grow our thriving Chapter. Each one of our Board members are committed, talented and passionate leaders.
Come join us for the ICF Toronto 2022 Awards Gala on March 31st. Celebrate the ICF Toronto coaches and local organizations that are accomplishing great things through coaching in our community. Join our guest speaker, Dr. Towanna Burrous, founder of CoachDiversity, and stay for the after-party!
Interested in Team Coaching? Register for our upcoming series on this hot topic!
International Coaching Week is fast approaching, if you’d like to help out, we’d love to have you!
Check out choice magazine article on ICF Toronto’s conference and don’t forget, as an ICF member you can get a subscription discount.
We are also very excited to announce a newly created Board position, Director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. This person will lead a team to implement EDI committee recommendations. Through action, our vision is to create a diverse and inclusive ICF Toronto Chapter that embodies a community of belonging. Please consider volunteering for this important position.
Overshadowing all else, is the Russian military invasion of Ukraine and its implications for peace and progress in the world. As this terrible invasion has unfolded, so too has a devastating humanitarian crisis. As the world watches on TVs and smartphones, if you’re like me, you might feel rather helpless. There are many reputable organizations that are helping and asking for assistance, including some mentioned here, for your consideration: https://www.charityintelligence.ca/research-and-news/ci-views/31-disaster-response/707-ukraine-how-to-help.
I look forward to supporting you this year. You are always welcome to contact me or any Board member with questions and ideas. We appreciate your input and feedback!