Gisele worked in social services for over 30 years within the Simcoe County and Toronto regions. She attended the University of Waterloo and completed a BA in Social Development Studies; She also completed her Masters of Education through Nipissing University.

She worked at Catulpa Community Support Services as a children’s case coordinator and manager of children services for 15 years. During her time there she had an opportunity to network and partner with Simcoe County agencies to create programs and services for children, youth and families. Presently, she is the Director of Complex Special Needs Programs at Lumenus Community Services in Toronto.

She has been a Board member of Simcoe Muskoka Family Connexions for 2.5 years and currently serve as Vice Chair.

Kenny grew up in Wasaga Beach where he lived until moving to Toronto in 2010 to study Justice Studies at the University of Guelph-Humber. Since 2012 he has worked for the Ministry of the Attorney General’s Criminal Law Division, spending the majority of his career working on Intimate Partner & Sexual Violence Prosecutions for the Downtown Toronto Crown Attorney’s Office.

Since 2021 he has worked as the Case Management Coordinator of the Toronto Downtown East Justice Centre, a hybrid justice-and-health-centre that accelerates access to justice and critical wraparound services to prevent high-needs individuals at the intersection of poverty, homelessness, mental health and addictions from cycling through the criminal justice system by addressing criminogenic risk factors with on-site psychiatric, primary care, addictions medicine and developmental disability supports.

He also sits on the Board of Directors for My Friend’s House, a non-profit agency that offers shelter and support for abused women and children living in the Georgian Triangle.

Kenny recently moved back to Wasaga Beach and joined the Board of Directors of Simcoe Muskoka Family Connexions in June of 2024.

Debbie Opoku-Mulder is a Registered Psychotherapist, Clinical Supervisor, speaker, and advocate with more than 15 years of experience supporting individuals and families in creating meaningful change. She holds a Master’s degree in Counselling Psychology and has dedicated her career to working with children, youth, and families across child welfare, healthcare, and education sectors.

Debbie’s work focuses on strengthening well-being, fostering resilience, and empowering people with the tools and resources they need to advocate for themselves. She is also a committed educator and facilitator, guiding individuals and organizations in building healthier, more inclusive environments.

Currently, Debbie serves as the Manager of the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Centre at Georgian College, where she leads initiatives that advance equity and support underrepresented communities.

Debbie has been a member of the Board of Directors for five years, serving as Secretary and contributing to both the Advocacy and Strategic Planning Committees. Her leadership is grounded in compassion, collaboration, and a deep commitment to child and family well-being

Matthew Durand brings extensive experience in governance, policy, and risk oversight through more than 15 years in senior leadership roles in federal operations and public safety. His work has focused on operational leadership, conflict resolution, ethical decision-making, and cross-sector collaboration.

Throughout his career, Matthew has partnered with Indigenous communities, youth programs, government agencies, shelters, child protection services, and families navigating complex systems. Raised in Simcoe County, he joined the Board of Directors in 2025 to make a meaningful difference in his community. Matthew currently works with the Regional Municipality of York and holds a Master of Arts in Leadership from the University of Guelph’s Lang School of Business, as well as a Certificate in Conflict Resolution from Algonquin College. Matthew currently serves on the Finance committee as well as the Advocacy & Strategy committee

Melissa has worked in health care for 19 years, first as a Registered Nurse and then as a Nurse Practitioner.  Melissa completed her BScN at Western University in 2006.  She completed her Master of Nursing and Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Certificate at Western University in 2011.

Melissa has worked for the Algonquin Family Health Team in Huntsville since 2011.  She has worked with children as their primary care provider.  She has a strong knowledge of the health care landscape and has the opportunity through her current role to partner with other services and programs in the area to improve care.  Melissa is passionate about supporting children and their families to build strong communities.

Stephanie is a Lawyer and the Head of Legal Operations at Douglas Law Firm, bringing two decades of experience in the legal sector and nearly eight years of practice as a licensed lawyer. In her current role, she leads firmwide operations, managing staff development, financial oversight, productivity, and client and employee experience while ensuring the organization operates with clarity of purpose and measurable outcomes. She brings a strong record of leadership shaped by years of guiding teams, improving organizational systems, and supporting ethical, effective decision making. Her career has included work with vulnerable families through legal aid societies and ongoing advocacy for underrepresented communities, supported by her multilingual capabilities and commitment to accessible legal services.

She recently completed a Master of Laws in Dispute Resolution, deepening her focus on helping families resolve conflict through less adversarial pathways. Now serving on the Board of Directors of Simcoe Muskoka Family Connexions, where she is a member of both the Finance and Governance Committees, she joined the Board motivated by her dedication to community well-being and her desire to support families through collaborative and equitable systems of care

Hans appreciates the service that SMFC brings to the wellbeing and success of our shared community here in Simcoe Muskoka. It is the goodness of services like these that shape strong and healthy communities. He desires to see all children prosper and find meaning in their souls, families and communities.

As a husband, father, grandfather and engineer, he brings wisdom, experience, and skills to the SMFC Board.

Hans has served dozens of Ontario municipalities and several developing countries with leadership, performance management, organizational and operational capacity building. He was corporate administrator of a multinational federation of community development organizations focused on education health and welfare.