Meet the new IYAC/ACYI Board of Directors

At the recent IYAC/ACYI AGM, a new slate of Directors was elected to the Board overseeing the organisation. The Board provides governance and leadership and does a vast amount of hard work on behalf of the members… all on a volunteer basis. 

Linda Shevloff, of Vancouver BC, has taken on the role of President of the Board of Directors.

Below is a message from Linda, introducing all the Directors and their roles.  You will also find a screenshot of the Directors, at their first meeting, held via Zoom.

Dear Members,

Your new IYAC/ACYI Board has met and had our first meeting after the AGM. Some of us are old hands at this work and some of us are novices. I have taken on the role of President with great humility because I am following in the steady footsteps of Patricia Fernandes. Some might say I have ‘big shoes to fill’, but as Patricia seems to have quite small feet, this expression doesn’t really provide an adequate description of what she has contributed to the organization!  Patricia is a steady guide, a clear thinker and a straight walker. She has given our organization the gift of time and leadership and I would sincerely like to thank her for her work and all that she does. As we did not have an in-person gathering for the AGM due to Covid protocols, perhaps some of the celebration of Patricia’s large contribution to our organization has been too quiet. When you see Patricia, please be sure to be vocal in your thanks because we all appreciate her.

Melissa Hadley has also left the Board after serving as Secretary extraordinaire for three years. We offer our thanks to Melissa especially as she is willing to help with documentation and editing in the future when we need it. Shannon Cameron of Toronto has become our new Secretary. Pamela Nelson, an Iyengar yoga teacher from Saskatchewan joins the Executive as our new Vice President. For the past two years there has not been a VP, so we are fortunate that Pamela has accepted this position. Beverley Kallstrom from Vancouver Island continues in her third year as Treasurer and she is now being assisted by new Board member Susie Chan from Toronto. 

Inga Norkute of Calgary continues in her role as our Website Chair and on-line technical wizard and she is being assisted by Deepak Karivelil, a new member-at -large from Nova Scotia who is also our current Insurance representative. Skjei Sharma of Calgary continues in her role as the Professional Development liaison to the Board. Gary Wong of Victoria is the Board’s Ethics Chair. Martine Letarte from Montreal leaves the post of Membership Chair and in her place Martina Walsh of Calgary begins that position. Thank you to Martine for her past work on the Board.  

Niren Pandya, a member-at-large from Toronto, has the role of Communications Chair, while member-at-large Barb Deneka is the Mail Chimp Coordinator who ensures that email messages get to our members efficiently.

We are the current Board. I should mention that I live in Vancouver and hope to meet members in person or on Zoom calls as the year progresses. Let us all as an organization of yogis and friends, come together to have a very good year. 

Namaste,

Linda

Linda Shevloff
President, IYAC/ACYI
Certified Iyengar Yoga Teacher