Board of Directors

Mike Welte 
President
Farm Credit Corp.
604-870-2417

Mike works here in Abbotsford where he has held various lending positions with FCC.  Most recently Mike worked as a Senior Relationship Manager prior to accepting a leadership position late last year.  A UFV Graduate with a Bachelors of Business Administration; Mike was born, raised and educated in Abbotsford.

Mike has served as Treasurer of Abbotsford-Matsqui Rotary Club and remains involved with many community events including the Abbotsford Airshow.  Currently he serves as a committee member for the Abbotsford Commuity Foundation's Agriculture Grants Enhancement Fund.

Mike has been actively involved with the Chamber for more than 6 years serving as the past-chairperson of the Chamber's Agricultural Committee.  He also represents the Chamber on the City of Abbotsford's Agriculture Advisory Committee, Economic Development Commission and the Mayor's Task force on Economic Prosperity.

Joshua Bach
Vice President
Integra Law Group
604-859-7187

Josh practiced law in Ontario for over 25 years before relocating to Abbotsford in 2006. Josh is a solicitor at Integra Law Group in Abbotsford, practicing in the ares of wills and estates, real estate and business law.

Josh has been a presenter in local seminars providing information on estate issues.  Josh is particularly interested in community development and corporate governance.  Josh has a leadership role in the local community:  Abbotsford & District Bar Association - President, Big Brothers, Big Sisters of the Fraser Valley - VP, Seniors Healthy Aging Resource Environment Society - VP. and Fraser Valley Child Development Centre Foundation, Director. 

In addition, Josh is an active member of:  Abbotsfod Hospice Soiciety, Estate Planning Council of Abbotsford, MSA Museum Society; Rotary Club of Abbotsford Sumas; UFV Research Ethics Board. 

Josh and his wife have made Abbotsford their home.

Brandon Kelley
Treasurer
KPMG
604-854-2200

Brandon is an Audit Manager with KPMG in Abbotsford.  He has been with KPMG for 6 years where he provides financial accounting and auditing services to private companies.  He serves clients in a variety of industries, such as agriculture, manufacturing, and not-for-profits.  Brandon is an active member of the KPMG agriculture committee, a group focused on serving the needs of agricultural businesses in the Fraser Valley.

Born and raised in Hope, he moved to Abbotsford in 2002.  Brandon is an alumnus of UFV where he studied Business Administration and was an active member of the Business Administration Students Association serving as treasurer.

Kenda Allen
Director
TD Canada Trust
604-870-2213

Kenda is the District Vice President of TD Bank's Commercial Banking Centre in Abbotsford.  After 24 years of Commercial Banking in various cities within Ontario, Kenda relocated to Abbotsford in the fall of 2011.  She has been an active member of the chambers in the communities where she has worked, and resigned from her second term on the Guelph Chamber's Board of Directors when she transferred to Abbotsford.

Kenda grew up on a dairy farm and her love of agriculture lead her to obtain a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture degree.  She worked in the dairy cattle industry for a few years before here career in business banking.

She believes it is important to be active and give back to the community where she lives and works.  Over the years, Kenda has held volunteer roles on boards and on committees in the areas of business, sports, not-for-profits, and agriculture.  She is currently an active member of the Leader Impact Group and the Abbotsford Chapter of the Canadian Federation of University Women.

Hilary Beard
Director
University of the Fraser Valley
604-851-6326

Hilary is the Senior Manager, Principle and Planned Gifts, at the University of the Fraser Valley.  She is passionate about the value education brings to our communities, and the importance of strengthening partnerships between businesses and UFV to build an educated workforce and entrepreneurial leadership. 

With 11 years of non-profit experience, she is a Board member for a large independent school that has adopted the Carver governance model, and is on the Strategic Planning, and Superintendent Audit committees.

Hilary also has 20 years of diverse business accounting and audit experience (KPMG) particularly in light and heavy manufacturing, as well as banking, travel and forex.  She has cultural and business understanding from working  in three countries across two continents.

Hilary holds a Master of Arts in Leadership (business) a Bachelor of Accounting Science with double majors in accounting and auditing, and a Certified Fundraising Executive designation (CFRE) recognized internationally.  She is a member of the Canadian Association of Gift Planners.

Mark Dana
Director
Re/Max Little Oak Realty

Mark works full time as a professional realtor.  Prior to real estate, he worked as an educator and school principal.  He is an active Rotarian and Past President of the Rotary Club of Abbotsford.  Mark is also a member of the Chamber's Goverment Affairs Committee.

He has lived in Abbotsford for the past 20 years.  His hobbies/interests include real estate, investments/finance and personal development

Suzanne Greening
Director
The Reach Gallery Museum Abbotsford
604-864-5770

Suzanne has worked in the not-for-profit and municipal arts communities since 1984 in Ontario, Washington and BC.  She moved to BC in 2002 to work as Arts Coordinator for the City of Richmond and in May 2008 accepted the position of Executive Director of Abbotsford's new  20,000 square foot Class A facility, The Reach Gallery Museum Abbotsford.

Suzanne has been voted two years in a row as one of Abbotsford's Top 100 Most Influential People.  She is the 2012-13 President Nominee for  the Rotary Club of Abbotsford and is a Paul Harris Member of Rotary.  Suzanne is an Adjunct Faculty Member of the Visual Arts Department, UFV and sits on the City of Abbotsford's Arts & Heritage Advisory Committee.  Suzanne believes that culture is essential to the creation of livable and sustainable cities.

Sara Lawson
Director 
Dignity Memorial Funeral Homes 
604-854-5534

Sara has been in the funeral industry since 1997 when she began her apprenticeship with a small-town funeral home in Central Alberta.  She has been serving grieving families in Abbotsford since 2000 and is the manager of Henderson's Dignity Memorial Funeral Home.

Sara also cares for the bereaved as a volunteer with Abbotsford Hospice Society.  She facilitates children and teen grief groups at AHS with particular attention to helping families who struggle with how best to support their children through grief.

Sara is also a proud member of the Abbotsford Rotary Club and the Abbotsford Executive Association.

Sara is passionate about supporting the growth and development of business in Abbotsford.  She is excited for the opportunity to work with the Chamber of Commerce to help Abbotsford continue to be a great community in which to live and work.

John McDonald
Director 
Business Fraser Valley 
250-739-1305

John is the Publisher of the Business Fraser Valley newspaper, which operates under the Business in Vancouver Media Group.  The oldest of five children, John has been in the newpaper industry since the age of 14, working in every aspect of the business, including:  accounts receivable, editorial, sales and now management.

An Abbotsford resident for a year and a half, John has decided to call the City in the Country his home, and is immersing himself in the community as much as possible, serving on the Chamber's Business Excellence Awards and Goverment Affairs committees, joining the Rotary Club of Abbotsford-Sumas, and participating in a variety of local networking groups.

Outside of work, John is involved in politics at every level, from municipal to federal and has extensive experience in advocacy and media relations.  He is also working towards completing his Bachelor of Business Administration, majoring in Finance.

Rick Rake
Director
Click Media Works
604-302-9173

Rick is a retired newspaper editor turned entrepreneur and is recognized as a passionate community builder, communicator and volunteer.  The married father of three now works with a team of award-winning writers and editors at Click Media Works.  He has served on the Chamber's Business Excellence Awards committee since 1996.

The avid sailor, guest lecturer and world traveller enjoys developing a strong network of positive people, and also volunteers with Big Brothers, Mission Institution and the Fraser Valley Cultural Diversity Awards.

Parm Sidhu
Director
Abbosford International Airport
604-855-1001

Parm Sidhu currently serves as Director of Airport Operations at the City of Abbotsford Airport (YXX).  Parm is regarded as an ambitious visionary within the aviation industry and is commonly known for thinking outside the box.  He brings with him a keen focus on guests' services, tenant relations and continual improvements.  He strives to ensure that he exceeds guest/tenant expectations by providing a seamless, warm and welcoming YXX experience.

Parm graduatied from Abbotsford Senior Secondary in 1992 and is set to achieve his bachelor's degree from Simon Fraser University this Spring.

Cameron Wilson
Director
RBC Dominion Securites
604-870-7109

Cameron is an investment advisor with RBC Dominion Securities in Abbotsford, and has been in the finance industry for over 7 years.  Prior to this, he was running his own personal training business while going to university for a degree in mathematics.  In 2012 he was nominated for Young Entrepreneur of the year with the Chamber and was recongnized for RBC Dominion Securities President's Club.

He and his wife (Lola Evans) were born and raised in Abbotsford, and after a brief stint in Victoria they have permenently moved back "home" to put down roots.

Cameron is active in local Rotary Club, volunteers as an in-school Big Brother, serves on the Fraser Valley Child Development Center Foundation Board and helps as a fundraiser for a number of local golf tournaments and charities.

Doris Woodman-McMillan
Director
Numbers Unlimited Bookkeeping
604-852-0186

Doris is originally from Alberta, and has been a resident of Abbotsford since 1988.  She started her business, Numbers Unlimited Bookkeeping, in November 1999.  The company provides bookkeeping, income tax, Simply Accounting training, and business consulting services.  Doris is married to Bill and they have four children.