Our Board

Jane Hamilton

Co-Chair
As the owner and principal of See Jane Run Communications since 2001, Jane Hamilton has worked with clients in a variety of profit and not-for-profit sectors, including the healthcare, education, government and industry sectors. A passionate advocate and volunteer, she completed the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD-Rotman) Not-For-Profit Governance Essentials program in November 2018.

Jane is co-chair of the Arctic Rose Foundation, a Special Olympics NCCP qualified curling coach and an active board member with Project Autism. Jane has also served on the boards of MacLachlan College, the Centre of ADHD Advocacy Canada (CADDAC) and the Oakville Parent-Child Centre, and represented the Arctic Rose Foundation on the Oakville Truth and Reconciliation Partnership.

She holds a Bachelor of Applied Arts in Journalism from Ryerson University, a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in English from the University of Western Ontario, and a Master of Arts (MA) in International Journalism from City University in London, UK. In 2021, she completed the University of Alberta online Indigenous Canada course.

Sherry Saevil

Co-Chair
Sherry Saevil is a Cree woman from Treaty 6 with a degree in Native Studies and Criminology from the University of Saskatchewan.

Sherry developed her passion for Indigenous issues through personal experience and professional life. Sherry’s mother and all of her Aunts and Uncles were survivors of the residential school system. She comes from a family of ten children who were all part of the “Sixties Scoop”. She is the first generation to raise her children without government interference.

Sherry has always worked for Indigenous organizations, starting with the Treaty and Aboriginal Rights Researcher Centre in Manitoba, where she was the lead researcher in archival research. She spent five years at Six Nations of the Grand River Territory as the Assistant Director focusing on land claims research in preparation for submissions to the Federal Government. Sherry now works with the Halton Catholic District School Board (HCDSB) as the Indigenous Education Advisor.

Sherry is a passionate advocate for Indigenous issues and regularly speaks about several key subjects including residential schools, treaties and social issues facing Indigenous people. Sherry continues to support a variety of educational initiatives at the HCDSB by providing professional development to all staff, introducing Indigenous Elders, artists, performers, Traditional Knowledge Keepers to the schools, and encouraging teachers to embed Indigenous ways of knowing into the curriculum.

Sherry is regularly invited to participate on key National events such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, the Educational Roundtable with the National Centre of Truth and Reconciliation, the International Indigenous Education Conference, treaty discussions with the Treaty Commission of Saskatchewan. Most recently, Sherry was a recipient of the Sesquicentennial Award for her contribution in supporting reconciliation of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians.

Victor Tootoo

Secretary Treasurer
Victor Tootoo is the vice president of NVision Insight Group, which specializes in strategy, budgeting and reporting for local development projects with all levels of government and Inuit organizations in Northern Canada. He is also the president of Northern Allied Nunavut Travel, a travel management company which caters to corporations in Northern Canada; the president of Kivallingmiut Aviation, which provides helicopter and charter services in Northern Canada; and president of Nahanni Nunavut Construction, which provides civil project management and general contractor services.

Victor has held numerous positions with various governments in the North, holds a Certified General Accounting designation, and also attended Assiniboine Community College where he obtained a Diploma in Business Administration, Management and Operations.

Darrell Ohokannoak

Board Member
Darrell Ohokannoak and his family recently made a life changing decision to move from their home community of Cambridge Bay to Yellowknife. Prior to moving, he spent over 20 years with the Kitikmeot Corporation as the manager of Polarnet, and later on as the property manager.  He was also chair/president of Nunavut Broadband Development Corporation, first selected as chairman of NBDC in 2005 by the NBDC directors.

Darrell was one of the principal individuals who started Polarnet in 1997 – providing local internet access to the five Kitikmeot communities. Today, Darrell has shifted his gears after more than 20 years in the IT sector to programs facilitations with the Federal Government of Canada.

Johnny N. Adams

Board Member
For over 30 years, Johnny N. Adams has demonstrated exemplary commitment to the development of the Inuit communities of Nunavik.  His political and businesses accomplishments are numerous.  He started his career in aviation in 1979 and holds both commercial endorsements for fixed wing and rotary aircraft.  Most notably, Johnny has held the positions of mayor of the Northern Village of Kuujjuaq, chairman of the Kativik Regional Government and president of the Kativik Regional Development Council. He is a signatory to the 2002 Sanarrutik Agreement, which consolidated relations between Québec and Inuit and has proven to be a major economic development tool for Nunavik. Johnny has extensive business experience in the region’s airline, outfitting and construction sectors. Appointed a Knight of the Ordre National du Québec in 2006, and also recipient of the Municipal Merit Award in 1990, he is recognized for the remarkable contribution he has made to the harmonious relations currently enjoyed by the Inuit of Northern Québec and the Québec Government.

Shelley Ambrose

Board Member
Shelley Ambrose started her career as a reporter for the Globe and Mail and Windsor Star before serving for more than a decade as a producer for CBC Radio’s Morningside and later for the Pamela Wallin Show. After three years in public affairs at the Canadian Consulate in New York, organizing media and events, and building the Canadian brand, she returned to Canada in 2006. Shelley has produced hundreds of events, including forums, lectures, festivals, book tours, Arctic tours, royal visits, and Bill Clinton’s 60th birthday celebrations in Toronto and New York.

Shelley joined the Walrus Foundation in 2006 as its executive director and publisher of The Walrus magazine. Today, the Walrus Foundation is an industry leader in creating “content-fueled conversations.”

For Shelley, her work today is a continuation of the Canadian conversation she has engaged in her whole life. She sits on the Advisory Council for the School for Advanced Studies in the Arts and Humanities (SASAH) at Western’s Faculty of Arts and Humanities. Both her mother and father attended Western prior to moving the family west to Calgary when she was five. She earned an English degree from Western in 1983.

Suzanne Leclair

Board Member
Suzanne Leclair is the Lead of Indigenous and Stakeholder Relations with Agnico Eagle Mines in Nunavut. In her role, she heads and manages stakeholder relationships and engagement activities for consultations and community sustainable development. Additionally, she oversees the enhanced integration of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and traditional knowledge to guide exploration and operations teams in Nunavut. She also sits on various internal committees to support community donations, Inuit Impact Benefits Agreements and community infrastructure investments.

Suzanne leads and implements plain language initiatives to enhance technical understanding of various regulatory activities. She oversees the implementation of various community-based monitoring activities with local wildlife and hunting organizations in Kivalliq. She also leads the Path to Net Zero Arctic Housing Study and the open source supply chain strategy.

Suzanne is a lawyer with the Ontario Law Society and spends much of her time in Nunavut and Montreal. She is actively engaged in golf, running and skiing.

Contact Us

P.O. Box 11336, Nepean PO H, Ontario K2H 7V1

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The Arctic Rose Foundation is a charitable organization that grew out of the Arctic Rose Project, started by Inuk singer-songwriter Susan Aglukark in 2012. Officially designated as a registered charity in 2016, and incorporated in 2020, the Arctic Rose Foundation works to support Northern Inuit, First Nations and Métis youth through the creation of Indigenous-led, arts-based after school programs, and other engaging cultural and creative projects.