At its Annual General Meeting on April 29, 2020 the membership of The Riverwood Conservancy appointed Carolyn Sherk as Chair of the Board of Directors. Carolyn takes over from Kevin Sherwin, now Past Chair, who will continue to serve as an ambassador for TRC.
Everyone at TRC is grateful for all the hard work and commitment to the organization that Kevin brought to his role as Chair. He has been a champion for our environmental work, deploying his terrific networking skills and knowledge of the community to keep everyone in Mississauga well informed about the importance of supporting TRC. He has strengthened our financial footing and set a high standard of involvement in so many aspects of our work. His time as Chair is truly a tough act to follow, and his agreement to stay on as ambassador is further proof of his dedication.
Carolyn has been a long-time volunteer at TRC beginning with the Education Naturally program and has served on the Executive Committee of the Board for the past four years. In addition to her role as Board Chair, she will continue to serve on the Volunteer Committee and chair the Human Resources Committee.
Her past volunteer governance roles include: Chair of the Board of a residential/academic college affiliated with the University of Waterloo; Chair of the Board of a charitable, multi-service residential home for seniors in downtown Toronto; and Chair of the Environment Committee for her island cottagers association in Georgian Bay.
For 30 years, Carolyn’s management consulting team provided planning and evaluation advice, including guidance on sound governance practices, to managers of community-based health and social programs throughout Ontario. Many of their assignments were for provincial government ministries and agencies. Prior to establishing the consulting practice, Carolyn was Health Analyst for the Management Board Secretariat of Cabinet and Head of Policy Co-Ordination for the Ontario Ministry of Health. She has undergraduate and graduate degrees in history and political science.
Carolyn grew up in Burlington and has lived in Alberta and overseas. Since 1972, she and her family have lived in the Applewood Hills neighbourhood in Mississauga, where she is an avid gardener. She has two children and four grandchildren, all of whom are now living abroad. Until recently she and her husband travelled extensively. Her travels are now limited to family visits while she spends more time caring for her husband who lives with Parkinson’s disease.
For more information on volunteer opportunities with The Riverwood Conservancy, and how you can get involved in our environmental work in the heart of Mississauga, visit our volunteer page.
