ROOTS Community Fund

Carrie graduated from the University of Guelph in 2003 with a degree in both Political Science and French. After spending 12 years working in the agriculture industry, she made the switch to steel and is currently employed at Vicwest in Stratford.  She enjoys learning, is fascinated by culture, and loves to travel. She is honoured to have had the opportunity to participate in various exchange programs through The Rural Ontario Institute, and Rotary International.  Carrie and her husband Alex reside in Wellesley, and they can both be found at the curling rink as many days per week as possible.  She loves the Olympics, animals, reading, music, and a smorgasboard of physical activities.

Jennifer and her family operate Legge Beef Farms north of Chesley. She is currently the Volunteer Services and Special Event Coordinator for the Alzheimer Society Grey-Bruce. Jennifer previously owned and operated a business doing fresh floral designs and wedding invitations and holds a diploma in agriculture from the University of Guelph. Her community involvement includes working actively with the Bruce County Beef Farmers, reading grants for Community Foundations Grey-Bruce, and previous roles with Minor Hockey, Breakfast Club, the Chesley Medical Centre Fundraising Committee, and as the Beautification Chair for the Bruce County IPM. Jennifer enjoys hiking, gardening, photography, travelling and being a soccer/hockey Mom.

Karen and her husband Steve started Legacy Holsteins near Atwood.  Over the years the herd has performed well being recognized nationally for superior genetics and top production.  Legacy Holsteins is transitioning with partners Geoff & Sally McMullen to continue the dairy heritage into the future.  Karen graduated with a DVM and MSc (Capacity and Rural development) from Guelph. International development in the dairy industry connected her with Kenyan Kids Canada of which she is founding director.  Other board involvement included Perth Care for Kids, Trillium Mutual, Four County Labour Marketing Board, and Atwood Presbyterian church. Continuous lifelong learning is a passion that she practices through traveling, hiking, gardening, quilting and reading.

Doug has enjoyed many accomplishments throughout his career, beginning in 1988, building a strong client base as a Commercial Executive with McFarlan Rowlands.  His devout passion for the farm and agriculture sector led to the role of liaison between McFarlan Rowlands and their farm insurer partners. The commitment led to a variety of duties on various councils and boards, including part of a team of editors that rebuilt part of the CAIB broker training program.  In 2020, Doug expanded his role outside of Commercial Account Executive to lead all sales positions across McFarlan Rowlands. In this role, Doug successfully and passionately acted as a mentor to coach their sales team in overcoming the ever-changing obstacles presented by the unique landscape of insurance.  Throughout his tenure in this role, he firmly focused on a team-based approach to success – “no one individual is greater than the sum”.  Beyond his insurance career, Doug’s passion for rural communities to his personal life, having resided in small communities or farms his entire life, he has whole heartedly embraced and made it a mission to support his environment. Involvement in service clubs, utility commissions, home and school councils, business associations and community events are all well entrenched parts of his on-going support of his community.  Doug has been involved in multiple initiatives and fundraisers to aid these concerns with financial support and shoulder to shoulder aid when possible.  Doug looks forward to channeling his enthusiasm and experience into his role on the ROOTS Committee.

Raisa Abrahim was born in Trinidad and Tobago and migrated to Canada in 2020. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management from the University of Sunderland, England, and a Master of Business Administration from Heriot-Watt University, Scotland.  Whilst in Canada, she has worked with the Four County Labour Market Planning Board on workforce development projects to bridge the labour shortage gaps within the region, and is currently employed at the City of Guelph on its Corporate Administrative Team.  She is the co-chair of the North Perth Public Library Board and an active member of the Friends of the North Perth Library non-profit group in Listowel, her hometown. With her vast experience in finance and business operations she is one of the Event Logistics Consultants and Co-Founder of GR8 Events Company, specializing in corporate events and community engagement projects. Raisa has a passion for continuous learning, knowledge sharing, and emotional intelligence development. She enjoys traveling, exploring and experiencing different cultures, and loves supporting the performing arts.

Blair is a Dairy and Cash crop farmer residing near Chatsworth ON. Prior to being in primary production Blair worked as a Territory sales manager for a major input supplier.  Blair graduated from the University of Guelph with a BSc in Agriculture and currently holds a Certified Crop Advisor designation.  Blair and his wife Brett have two young children.