The affairs of MS Canada are managed by MS Canada Board of Directors. More specifically, the board is mandated to make, monitor and amend national policy decisions relating to all levels of MS Canada; provide overall strategic direction and monitor strategic progress; approve the annual consolidated budget; monitor and approve financial statements; oversee the work of the president and chief executive officer; and make investment decisions at the national level.
Many members of MS Canada board have MS or have loved ones with MS. The quality of the oversight provided by the board hinges on these important perspectives and many others. MS Canada values and protects the privacy of people with MS. In this spirit, we do not require our volunteers to disclose whether they have MS or have loved ones with MS.
MS Governors can be found here.
Officers
John Clifford (Ontario), Chair
John is a senior partner of McMillan LLP (Toronto), where he focuses his practice on M&A transactions. He has extensive experience advising a diverse group of clients on domestic and cross-border acquisitions and divestitures and the legal requirements for establishing new businesses in Canada. John also is a recognized expert on antitrust/competition matters.
John has been a dedicated volunteer of MS Canada since 2002, when he was first elected director of what was then the Ontario and Nunavut Division. While on that Division board (from 2002 – 2014), John held numerous leadership positions including chair, vice-chair and honorary legal counsel. From 2007 to 2011, he also served as a director of MS Canada. During his tenure on the MS Canada and the Ontario and Nunavut Division boards, John was very active on both division and national committees. He chaired both the national and Ontario and Nunavut Division governance committees, was chair of the government relations committee, and was a member of the endMS campaign Ontario cabinet.
John re-joined the board of directors of MS Canada in June 2016. He has chaired the Governance Committee and the National Government Relations Committee, and since 2021 has been a member of the Executive Committee. John was elected Chair of the MS Canada board in 2024.
Marilyn Emery (Ontario), Vice Chair
For over three decades Marilyn Emery has been a transformational leader within Ontario’s healthcare system, producing outstanding results in various positions in both clinical and leadership roles.
Most recently, as CEO of Women’s College Hospital (2007 - 2019) Marilyn led the innovative redesign, construction and transformation of the hospital into Canada’s only academic, ambulatory hospital with an enterprise-wide focus on the health of women.
Her passion and dedication to revolutionizing healthcare and closing health gaps and inequities through innovation in clinical services, research and education resulted in unprecedented solutions for some of the most pressing issues facing our health system.
Other leadership roles held by Marilyn include CEO of Central East Local Health Integration Network, CEO of St. Joseph’s Health Centre and CEO of Markham Stouffville Hospital.
Marilyn holds an M.Sc.N. degree from University of Western Ontario.
Retired since 2019, Marilyn continues her commitment to having a positive impact on closing gaps and inequities in health and healthcare through her active participation on the MS Canada board of directors.
Joe Healey (Manitoba), Treasurer
Joe operates a consulting practice offering executive management support focused on growing privately held companies. Previously, he spent over 30 years with a global professional services firm focused on strategy and transactions.
Joe’s professional experience includes transactions and restructuring experience advising clients across a wide range of industries, including agriculture, transportation, aviation, oilfield services, pipeline and facility construction, manufacturing and distribution, real estate, aquaculture, forestry, food processing, technology, and retail.
Joe volunteers in the MS Canada Manitoba community and is the past chair, Manitoba division board of directors. Joe has been an active supporter and participant of MS Walk and MS Bike, serving as the MS Bike event chair in 2014. Joe serves as the Treasurer of MS Canada, and chairs the finance, audit and risk management committee.
Shashi Malik (Alberta), Secretary
Shashi Malik, KC, MAcc, CPA, CA, TEP, is a senior partner practicing tax and corporate law. He helps clients with mergers, acquisitions, and corporate reorganizations. He is the former Managing Partner for the Calgary office and was a member of the firm’s Executive Committee from January 2014 to January 2019. Other leadership roles include previously serving as a member of the By-laws and Rules Committee of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Alberta from 2009 to 2017. Shashi also serves as a Director of several private companies and was a Director of the MS Society (Calgary Branch).
Shashi advises on tax matters relating to private and public equity and debt financing, transactions, resource flow through financing structures, the use of partnerships and trusts as alternative business vehicles, and the structuring of cross-border investments and tax structuring and corporate advice to private multinational companies.
Shashi regularly advises on the tax effective acquisition of Canadian entities by multinational entities, involving in the appropriate circumstances hybrid entities and exchangeable shares, and on corporate restructurings involving multinational entities to improve tax efficiency and the flow of funds.
Shashi has significant experience with dispute resolution involving taxation authorities. His legal experience also covers a broad range of commercial and corporate matters, including shareholder and partnership agreements and shareholder disputes.
Prior to becoming a lawyer, Shashi practiced as a tax manager with two different national chartered professional accounting firms and for numerous years instructed for the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Alberta. Shashi speaks frequently for the Canadian Tax Foundation and the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.
Directors
Bryan Jensen (ON)
Bryan Jensen is accomplished senior finance and operating executive with over 25 years of experience in investing, operating and consulting with companies. He has worked across a wide variety of industries in his career, including agriculture, energy, financial institutions, media and professional services.
Most recently, Bryan purchased a commercial landscaping company in Palm Desert, California. Over a period of ten years, Bryan operated and expanded the business into one of the largest companies in the region before selling it to a nationwide consolidator. Prior to his landscaping venture, Bryan was a Senior Managing Director at Evercore Partners where he worked in both its private equity and mergers and acquisitions practices. While at Evercore, Bryan focused primarily on value investing in the energy and power sector. During his time there, he operated in several board roles in companies owned by the private equity arm. Prior to his career in finance, Bryan worked at McKinsey & Company and earned a Bachelor of Commerce from Queen’s University.
Bryan has been actively involved as a volunteer for his children’s schools, including serving on the Board of Trustees for Palm Valley School in Rancho Mirage, California. While at Palm Valley, Bryan served on the executive committee and the finance committee.
Lubna Ladak (Ontario)
Lubna Ladak, CPA, CA, MBA, is an accomplished senior finance executive with over 30 years of experience in the energy industry. Lubna employs a pragmatic leadership style to successfully manage complex, multi-stakeholder environments, including governments, regulators, and unions. She has helped guide Ontario Power Generation, one of the largest electricity companies in Canada, through major transformations, including becoming a leader in clean electricity as Canada moves towards a carbon-free future. Lubna was often the only woman or racialized person at the table when key business decisions were being made. Consequently, she became an advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and established mentorship programs.
Lubna supports the broader community through Board roles and volunteer positions where she can better the lives of women, indigenous communities, and children. She has raised funds for MS Canada as a Cabinet member of Women Against MS and volunteered with MS Canada’s Peer Support Program.
Martin Legault (Quebec)
Martin Legault holds the position of Assistant Vice-President, Actuarial & Underwriting at Medavie Blue Cross. In that role, he has to juggle responsibilities related to risk management and profitability based on growth objectives.
Mr. Legault has a long track record with the multiple sclerosis (MS) community in Quebec. In 2004, one year after being diagnosed with MS, he became a volunteer and has participated in several fundraising events, including the Défi vélo de Montagne SP mountain bike event and the ascent of Kilimanjaro. Mr. Legault is a committed person who has also become involved as a guest speaker and contact person for several people with new MS diagnoses.
In 2018, he decided to join the Quebec Division’s Board of Directors, and in 2020, he became Chair of that Board. He would like to continue contributing to the growth of the organization and working to improve the quality of life for people affected by the disease.
Nancy L.Y. Love (Ontario)
Nancy is past Chair of the MS Scientific Research Foundation which amalgamated with the MS Society to become MS Canada. As chair she successfully spearheaded the “Acts of Greatness” campaign which raised $80 million for MS research.
Nancy is currently a member of the MS Governors and is their representative on the MS Canada Board of Directors.
Professionally Nancy is President of NLo Strategies Inc which invests in a variety of public and private opportunities. She sits on the board of Jona Capital. She holds an HBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business at Western University and was awarded an honourary doctorate in 2022.
Nancy has had an extensive career in the not for profit sector and has served on the boards of The Toronto Foundation, Ronald McDonald House (COCO), The Canadian Stage Company, Canada Blooms and the Garden Club of Toronto. She is a past president of the Junior League of Toronto. Nancy Is the current chair of the Jon & Nancy Love Foundation which supports MS research and education-oriented organizations.
In 2022 Nancy was made a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographic Society.
Beverley MacAdam (ON)
As VP Operational Risk and Shared Services for RBC Wealth Management, Beverley is responsible for ensuring the safety and resiliency of the Wealth Management business from emerging operational risks in a changing global regulatory landscape. Her team leads the management practices that support Operational Resiliency, Regulatory Initiatives, Cyber & IT Risk, Third-Party Risk and Fraud practices.
Beverley was diagnosed with relapsing/remitting Multiple Sclerosis in 2007. As someone who benefited enormously from the decades of research and medical advancements in this field, she wanted to give back to the MS community and started volunteering with MS Canada to help further critical research underway to End MS.
Beverley has been involved with the cause for many years whether it be organizing the Women Against MS Gala or reviewing research proposals as a community representative. She is deeply committed to supporting other Canadians diagnosed with MS and helping the research community solve the puzzle that is this disease.
Beverley grew up in Halifax, Nova Scotia graduating with a BComm from Dalhousie University and before pursuing an MBA at the Rotman School of Business in Toronto. She and her husband now live in Toronto with their two daughters.
David Randell (NS)
Based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, David is a partner at Stewart McKelvey and serves as the lead of the firm’s Energy Group. His practice is focused on corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, energy law, and advising high net worth individuals. David brings extensive experience across a wide range of industries including insurance, mining, media, energy, manufacturing, and technology. He frequently acts as lead advisor to prominent Canadian and international clients. Prior to joining Stewart McKelvey, David was a partner in the Toronto office of a leading national firm.
In addition to his legal practice, David is deeply engaged in his community. He currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of the Canada Games Centre Society (Halifax) as well as a director on the Board of Directors of the Halifax Chamber of Commerce. He has also captained the Stewart McKelvey team in the Ride for Cancer for the past five years.
Multiple sclerosis has had a personal impact on David’s life, with an immediate family member having been diagnosed more than twenty years ago. This experience has fueled his longstanding commitment to supporting the MS Society and advocating for those affected by the disease.
David holds a Bachelor of Arts from Mount Alison University and a Juris Doctor from the University of Toronto.
Rheanna Robinson (British Columbia)
Dr. Rheanna Robinson is a Métis mother, scholar, and advocate for Indigenous health, disability, and education. She was raised on Wetsuwet'en territory (Smithers, BC) and has resided on the territory of the Lheidl T'enneh Nation (Prince George, BC) for the last twenty years. Rheanna completed her PhD in Educational Studies at the University of British Columbia in BC'S lower mainland, but has a deep commitment and love for Northern BC
Diagnosed with MS in 1997 at the age of 19, Rheanna remained determined to pursue her life ambitions. Her post-secondary experiences bolstered her interest in wanting to contribute to research and knowledge transmission and translation as well as her desires to be part of important collective conversations about priorities for Indigenous people and their communities.
As an Associate Professor in the Department of First Nations Studies at UNBC, Rheanna is actively engaged in Indigenous disability-related research and looks forward to future studies about the experiences of Indigenous peoples living with MS in Northern BC and its impact on individuals and their communities.
Always committed to fostering the importance of considering Indigenous knowledges and principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility, Rheanna looks forward to engaging further with MS Canada and broadening the perspectives and voices of Canadians impacted by multiple sclerosis.
Cory Turner (Ontario)
Cory Turner has served as the President of Spicers Canada since 2011. With over 550 employees and 14 facilities, Spicers Canada is a leading national distributor of paper, packaging and facility supplies and graphic solutions including pressroom and sign and display media and equipment.
Upon graduation from the University of Calgary, Cory joined the Spicers organization in 1995 and throughout his nearly 30-year career has assumed increasing responsibility in sales, operational and leadership roles both in Canada and the United States.
Diagnosed with initially, relapsing-remitting Multiple Sclerosis in 2005, Cory has committed himself to being a visible and vocal advocate in the battle against Multiple Sclerosis. Since 2015, he served first as a Board member on Canada’s Multiple Sclerosis Scientific Research Foundation and then as a MS Canada Governor up until this year He was also a long-standing public representative on the Medical Advisory Committee.
Since 2019 he has been a member of the International Progressive MS alliance contributing within the Persons Affected by MS Engagement Team including notably, the development of their multi-year strategic plan, establishing new patient principles that underly research expectations, and providing input through multiple rounds of research grant approvals of what is meaningful to those affected by MS.
He is most proud of his role within a Cross Canada bike ride in support of MS Canada in 2019 that was undertaken by three friends and raised nearly $200,000 in support of the “Acts of Greatness” campaign, and has inspired others to undertake the same journey to support MS.
Cory also serves as a Board Member of the National Paper Trade Association, and in advisory role across multiple industry related organizations.
Sara Zborovski (ON)
Sara is a partner at Stikeman Elliott and the head of the firm’s Healthcare and Life Sciences regulatory practice. Sara provides counsel to companies providing healthcare services and to those regulated by Health Canada. She helps clients to navigate the regulatory landscape implemented by the Food and Drugs Act, and other legislation and associated regulations overseen by Health Canada and provincial regulators. Sara provides strategic counsel to healthcare, pharmaceutical, cannabis, food and beverage, natural health product, medical device, and cosmetic companies on market access, authorizations and licensing, advertising and marketing and product safety and recalls.
Sara is passionate about advocacy and advancements in the regulation and delivery of healthcare, and is very excited to be a part of the board of directors of MS Canada.