July 2024 – Toronto, ON – Following the Children’s Aid Society of Toronto’s (CAST) 2024 Annual General Meeting (AGM), we are pleased to announce the appointment of Salim Somani as our new Board Chair. Salim follows Yeugenia Kazantseva, who has concluded her two-year term and over nine years of dedicated volunteer service with CAST.
“We recognize and thank Yeugenia for her commendable leadership and dedication to the work our organization does to support children, youth and families in the GTA,” said Lisa Tomlinson, CEO, CAST. “During her time as Chair, Yeugenia led the Board of Director’s work around improved governance, enhanced Board health, updating the strategic plan and more. She accomplished many things during her term and left the Board in a strong and focused place for continued progress and success.”
Salim, a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) has served on the CAST Board of Directors for the last seven years, most recently as Vice Chair of the Executive Committee. He has also been a contributing member of the Missing and Missed Implementation Team with the Toronto Police Services Board and has been recognized for his community service, including the Queen’s Jubilee Award.
“The Agency congratulates Salim on his new role as Board Chair,” said Lisa Tomlinson. “We look forward to his leadership in this position and guiding the Board’s priority areas, CAST’s upcoming strategic planning and our ongoing advocacy work.”
We are also excited to introduce the rest of the CAST Board Executive Committee (EC). Gerald Mak steps in as Vice Chair (formerly Secretary), while Karen Sihra takes on the position of 2nd Vice Chair, EDI, furthering the Board’s commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Andrew Bedeau continues his steadfast service as Treasurer, and Eugene Choi joins as Secretary, bringing essential support to the Board. We look forward to their collective leadership and dedication to advancing our mission. We also thank and recognize the preceding EC for their hard work and everything they accomplished over the last year.
As part of the AGM, CAST bid farewell to four additional Board Members: Randy Carter, Marshall Schnapp, Iqbal Ali and Derek Eng. Our Agency expresses its appreciation for each of these individuals for their contributions and commitment to the Board, CAST and its staff and wishes them well in their future endeavors.
CAST also recently welcomed five new Members to the Board, Jennifer Bell, Sanober Diaz, Sophia Ikura, Annabella Tamburro and Mackenzie Taylor. We thank and warmly welcome these individuals to our Agency and the Board.
Access the CAST Leadership page here.
