The Board of Directors
Our Board of Directors is to be commended for maintaining our mission and services throughout the past two decades, and for continuing to participate in developing new programs to meet the needs of our constituency, as defined by them directly.
LIFE*SPIN truly is an organization owned and operated by those we serve. It is important to us that our Board of Directors maintains a minimum of 60% low-income representation from our membership.
Board of Directors
David Murphy - President
Over 20 years ago, I joined as a volunteer at LIFE*SPIN. I was involved with the Green Market Basket campaign as part of LIFE*SPIN’s Food Security Program. While this effort was rewarding for many recipients, myself included, there were too few subscribers to sustain the program. This program was ground-breaking at the time. Rose White, encouraged me to join the Board of Directors of LIFE*SPIN. I have been a director on the Board ever since, with the exception of a year’s leave of absence. It has been my great privilege and pleasure to serve over the years as President, Co-Chair, Treasurer (currently) and Chair of the Personnel Committee of LIFE*SPIN. I am constantly amazed and moved by the never-flagging efforts of the people of our Agency to offer affordable accommodation for the disadvantaged, and sustain our many programs serving the needy families and individuals of our community. Upon my retirement from working at Western University for forty years, I have been afforded more time to volunteer at LIFE*SPIN. In particular, this has given me the opportunity to participate hands-on in the Christmas Program, which helps thousands of families to have a wonderful holiday. I look forward to many more years of volunteering at LIFE*SPIN.
Cathy Kish - Treasurer
Cathy graduated Fanshawe College with Business Accounting and has experience using LIFE*SPIN's accounting program. She joined our Finance Committee in February and has been a great asset to our team.
Cathy has been helping others her whole life, beginning in grade school where she acted as a helper in two special needs classes. In Junior High she served on the Student Council and was instrumental in initiating positive changes. In Senior High, Cathy volunteered with the United Way and with London's Children's Psychiatric Research Institute. Her deep commitment to volunteerism continued throughout college and this benefited Hutton House, the Crisis Line, as well as the leadership of the Byron Teen Council. Cathy is proud that her career enabled her to create inclusive programs for physically challenged children in London.
Cathy has been a Member of LIFE*SPIN since 2011 and we are grateful that she has offered to share her bookkeeping expertise with our organization.
MK Mondano - Secretary
Since moving from the Philippines in 2020, MK is currently studying at King's University College in the Social Justice and Peace program, as well as a work-study student in the same university in the Communications and Media Relations department. From the summer of 2022 until 2023, MK has been involved with LIFE*SPIN, contributing as a day camp counsellor for Pocket Sized Farms. Additionally, she assumed a leadership role at Just-4-Us in 2023, a free program, which focuses on empowering female-identifying youths. Beyond her academic and community involvement, MK serves as the Associate Chief Communications Officer for the King's University College Student Council, using her skills to amplify student voices. MK's commitment to social justice and empowerment drives her diverse range of activities, as she strives to make a positive impact in her school and wider community.
Katerina Barton - Vice President
Katerina is the Manager of Finance and Planning at the London Fire Department, as well as a PhD student at Western University. With a background in pharmacy, mental health, and now municipal and emergency services, she has a particular interest in applying these experiences to a non-profit organization that matches her values. When Katerina met LIFE*SPIN board members at the annual holiday toy drive, she immediately knew this was a perfect fit. As a single parent of two, Katerina knows firsthand how valuable LIFE*SPIN’s work is and how much it can change lives.
Katerina spends much of her professional life building networks and relationships within the divisions of the City of London, as well as with other community agencies. In her previous role at Parkwood Mental Health, she led the development and implementation of suicide prevention strategies that she then helped to apply in many organizations across the province. This work was entirely donor-funded and speaks to how much difference a little bit of time and money can make to a community. As part of her doctoral studies in medicine, Katerina is researching the impact of the culture and language of suicide on the efficacy of various approaches to prevention.
Now as vice-president and a member of LIFE*SPIN’s Finance Committee and Property Stewards Committee, Katerina hopes to assist in any way she can. She is also a huge fan of the office cat, George. The jury is still out on whether George feels the same way.
Directors
Orion Boverhof
Orion is a London-born lawyer who has been practicing at Lerners LLP since July of 2024. He gives back to London and the wider community through volunteering with Pro Bono Ontario as well as local services in London, which provide support to abuse victims and families. While in law school, he served the community through work with the University of Windsor's Office of Sexual Violence Prevention, Resistance, and Support, as well as his service on the University of Detroit Mercy's Honour Council. During his time as an undergraduate student, he worked as an Activities Coordinator at a summer camp, served in various positions on the executive for a student-run marching band, and worked extensively with the campus safe-walk service.
Orion grew up as one of eight children living with a single parent, and so helping families in need and dealing with systemic poverty issues is important to him. He was drawn to LIFE*SPIN because of the many ways that LIFE*SPIN provides assistance and empowers those in need, while avoiding judgment and prioritizing dignity. Orion recognizes that everyone deserves to be treated humanely and equitably, and that systemic problems often disproportionately affect certain groups. He looks forward to using his enthusiasm, education, and experience to benefit LIFE*SPIN and the community members which it serves.
Sahar El-Kotob
Sahar is a Canadian Lebanese immigrant, and a first-generation lawyer. On July 5th 2021 she commenced her first job in the legal field, as a newly licensed lawyer at Lerners LLP in their London Office. Sahar’s extracurricular activities, before and throughout law school, have involved serving the community in leadership positions dedicated to advocating for diversity, BIPOC communities, and access to justice. During law school, she volunteered at both Community Legal Aid and Pro Bono Students Canada. She is also the former Vice President of Operations for the Windsor Law Society of 2019/2020.
Sahar has been an advocate for the community outside the law school bubble. She formerly worked as the Fundraising director for a grassroots summer camp, called h.appi, that catered to refugee children. Her role helped fundraise over $30,000 to help fund the programming for a summer camp aimed to create a safe and transitory space for Syrian refugee children through play. Sahar is very proud of being Canadian-Arab and finds many ways to celebrate both of her identities. She formerly worked at the Canadian Arab Institute, developing and implementing a mentorship program for young Canadian-Arab professionals; a rare opportunity in a world that usually dismisses this minority group.
LIFE*SPIN’s mission aligns with Sahar’s own principles of community support: long-term, strategic solutions to the systemic problems of poverty. She was, therefore, drawn to apply to LIFE*SPIN’s Board of Directors as she has seen first hand that there is great need for systemic change within institutions to ensure that nuances of poverty are addressed from a macro and micro level. Her commitment to diversity and advocacy make Sahar an exceptional addition to LIFE*SPIN’s Board of Directors. She will use the knowledge developed in past roles and leadership opportunities to be an effective member of the Board.
Astrid McNeeley
Astrid is a Honduran born adoptee, who has lived in four countries. As a child, she spent summers with her parents, returning to her native country, where she volunteered as an English translator for multiple medical missions, which instilled in her a commitment to community service. Astrid was introduced to LIFE*SPIN, through the Pocket-Sized Farm summer camp, when she was visiting her grandparents in London. When she decided to settle in Ontario as a young adult, she became the co-creator of the collective cooking program with a fellow volunteer who became a close friend, Rachna Sharma. Astrid has been involved throughout different programs at LIFE*SPIN throughout the past 14 years and knows firsthand how meaningful the empowerment and connection to community can be for participants.
Frances Elizabeth Moore
(Ex-officio)
Frances Elizabeth Moore is an Anishinaabe Kwe from Timiskaming First Nations, Quebec, residing in London, Ontario. She is a storyteller, community advocate, facilitator/educator, non-profit leader, and mother who is invested in promoting awareness for and healing in First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities. Frances Elizabeth holds a Legal Administration Diploma from Georgian College; Building Abundance in Indigenous Communities (BAIC), Advancing Women’s Conflict Transformation and Peacebuilding for Community Development and Indigenous Women in Community Leadership certificates from the COADY Institute at St. Francis Xavier University; and an Indigenous Peoples Certificate in Indigegogy from Wilfred Laurier University where she currently pursuing a certificate in Wholistic Healing Practices and Colonial Trauma. Frances Elizabeth is currently a Program Manager with the Youth Opportunities Fund at Ontario Trillium Foundation and volunteers with LIFE*SPIN, Nii'kinaaganaa, Brescia University College, and Kings University College. "Frances Elizabeth has been volunteering with LIFE*SPIN for 11 years. Growing up in a low-income single-parent household, Frances Elizabeth was drawn to first volunteering with the Christmas sponsorship program as she recognized the value and impact the program has for children and families in the community. Frances Elizabeth has served on the board for the last decade, the last several years as President and co-chair. Frances Elizabeth's 18-year-old son has grown up participating in and volunteering with LIFE*SPIN's programs and events."
Jennifer Surerus
Jennifer has been connected to LIFE*SPIN through her work as a placement liaison with the Doula Studies program at Fanshawe College for the past three years. She is a full-spectrum doula and teacher at Fanshawe College. Jennifer worked as a developmental services worker for close to 20 years. She achieved her undergrad degree as a mature student in Social Justice and Peace Studies and is currently finishing her Master’s in Social Work. She feels committed to supporting the health and well-being of women and non-binary folks through the work she does. Jennifer is interested in being a Board Member, because she is invested in the work of LIFE*SPIN and wants to put that investment into action. Jennifer has a unique constellation of experiences and education that allows her to bring a critical perspective and understanding of how our systems reinforce poverty and precarity.