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Board of Directors

Ottawa Branch

Board of Directors

The Board of Directors is made up of twelve volunteers who are members of the Association in good standing. The Board consists of a President, one Vice-president, a Branch Secretary, a Treasurer and eight other Directors who take on the responsibility of running various standing and ad-hoc committees of the Ottawa Branch.

Directors are nominated and elected to office by Branch members at Annual General Meetings. Directors are elected for a term of two years or until their successors are elected. A Director may serve on the Board for a maximum of 3 consecutive terms of 2 years (six years).

The Board is responsible for the conduct of the affairs of the Ottawa Branch, its assets and properties. It conducts the business of the Ottawa Branch in accordance with the Branch By-laws and the Association’s By-Laws.

There are three committees of the Board: the Executive Committee (includes Governance and Nominations), Branch Community Liaison Committee, and Members Committee (includes recruitment, retention and services). The Board also uses task forces and working groups as needed.

Ottawa Branch is committed to building a diverse, inclusive board of volunteers who mirror our membership. We encourage all members of our community to apply, particularly those who are members of diversity and equity-deserving groups, including women, individuals who identify as Black, Indigenous or Persons of Colour (BIPOC), people with disabilities, and members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community. Spousal members may also apply.

The Current Board of Directors

Officers and Committee Chairs (2024-2025)

Steve Chapman

President

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Harry Ruthnum

Vice President

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Carol Skillen

Treasurer

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Hélène Buteau

Secretary

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Sharon Squire

Director at Large

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Committee Chairs & Directors

Blair Armitage

Branch Advocacy Program Officer

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David Bolger

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Leslie Lawry

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Krista McKee-Samson

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Christian Stumpf

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Shelagh Tuddenham

Chair, Branch Community Liaison Committee

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District Directors

Dan Butler

District Director of Ottawa & Nunavut

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Dan Napier

District Director of Ottawa & Nunavut

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Special Advisor to the Board

Robert Giroux

Special Advisor to the Board

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Nomination of Directors

Each year, one-half of the twelve members of the Ottawa Branch Board of Directors usually reach the end of their two-year term. Elections are held to fill the resultant vacancies during the Annual General Meeting (AGM).

As of 2022, the Executive Committee has taken on the responsibilities of the Nominations Committee. 

To ensure transparency in the process, the annual call for nominations prior to our AGM is provided to our members through Sage, the Federal Retirees magazine and the branch electronic newsletter. 

Every Branch member in good standing is eligible to nominate or stand as a candidate. 

The Ottawa Branch is committed to building a diverse, inclusive board of volunteers who mirror our membership. We encourage all members of our community to apply, particularly those who are members of diversity and equity-deserving groups, including women, individuals who identify as Black, Indigenous or Persons of Colour (BIPOC), people with disabilities, and members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community. Spousal members may also apply. Please inform us if you require accommodations at any stage in the recruitment process.

If you are interested in becoming a Director on our Board, click here for more information about the selection criteria for director nominations. 

Interested candidates are asked to mail or email us a brief summary (approx. 250 words) of their experience and qualifications and how they meet our selection criteria and a short CV. Candidates will also be asked to certify that they are a member in good standing. The deadline for applications is 5:00 p.m. EST March 24th 2025. 

Candidates can send an email to info@nafrottawa.com or call 613-737-2199 if they would like to discuss this opportunity further.

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Steve Chapman

Steven Chapman retired from the Public Service in February 2023 after 39 years of service with Global Affairs Canada and in the military, and has filled a variety of executive leadership roles both in Canada and abroad.

He served for 24 years as a foreign service officer with Global Affairs Canada, with 6 overseas postings. Most recently he served as Minister and Consul General in Mexico City, and he also served in Nairobi, Manila, Havana, Tokyo and Santo Domingo. In Headquarters, he filled numerous executive positions including Director for Mission Operations, and Director for Policy and Innovation.

Previously, Steve was a military officer with 15 years of Regular Force and Reserve service at various locations across Canada and retired with the rank of Captain. He holds a BA in Politics from the Royal Military College, an MA in War Studies from RMC, and a Master of Public Administration from Queen’s University. He received a Military and Strategic Studies Scholarship to write his Master’s thesis on nationality politics in Tito’s Yugoslavia.

Steve has an ongoing commitment to community engagement and served on boards for a variety of not-for-profit organizations.  He both chaired and served on the Board of Governors for the International School of Kenya. He served as Dean of the Consular Corps of the Philippines and was on the board of In Touch Community Services in Manila, Philippines He also served on the board for the International School Havana.  While in Tokyo, he was President of the Tokyo Consular and Administrative Corps and was on the board for Tokyo English Lifeline, a crisis line and advocacy organization serving the non-Japanese community in Tokyo.

Steve is an avid scuba diver, and enjoys kayaking, canoeing, swimming, hiking, and travel.

Harry Ruthnum

Harry Ruthnum started his career as a senior financial analyst in Treasury at Philips Electronics in Toronto and joined the Public Service as Senior Bank Examiner with the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, where he had responsibility for a portfolio of large domestic and foreign banks operating in Canada. Harry also has experience with the Office of the Auditor General of Canada (OAG) as a Principal with audit responsibility for government departments such as Industry Canada and Canadian Heritage, and large Crown Corporations such as Export Development Canada and CBC. As Principal, he was responsible for three audits that were reported in the OAG’s annual reports to Parliament in two consecutive years.

Harry has worked for the IMF as an expert in Banking Supervision, Internal Audit and Governance advising central banks on bank regulations, internal audit and governance, and best practices in supervising and examining banks.

After retiring from the Public Service, Harry has carried out several consulting mandates for senior management of various departments and agencies in the field of financial management, risk management and governance.

Harry is a member (CPA, CA) of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario, and holds an MBA in Managerial Economics and Finance from the University of Ottawa.

Harry was appointed to the Ottawa Board of Directors in November 2017 and he was elected for a two-year term at the 2018 AGM. He was appointed by the Board to serve until the 2021 AGM, due to the pandemic.

Carol Skillen

Carol Skillen retired from the Public Service in March 2018 after 30 years with the Canada Revenue Agency.  She spent 25 years in audit working first on small files and eventually moving into a management position. For her last five years she was a manager with GST/HST Rulings.

Prior to working with the CRA, Carol worked with private industries conducting circulation audits on newspapers and magazines across North America. Carol holds a Bachelor of Commerce, accounting major, from Saint Mary’s University and obtained her CGA designation (now CPA) in 1991.

Carol has served in a volunteer capacity with many different organizations including being a member of the Finance and Audit Committee for Field Hockey Canada, Treasurer for Special Olympics Ottawa, and Director of Finance for the Canterbury Community Association. She volunteers her time to coach with Special Olympics Ottawa for the basketball and track and field programs. She also volunteers as a presenter for the CPA Financial Literacy Program.

After retiring Carol started up a small business doing tax planning and return preparation as well as retirement and estate planning.

Hélène Buteau

Hélène Buteau retired from the federal public service in December 2011 with more than thirty years of government work experience (including 2 years in public health in Québec City). She worked mainly in the department currently known as Employment and Social Development Canada.

Hélène started her career in Affirmative Action and Employment Equity. In the Employment Branch, she also worked in Operational Monitoring and Assessment; Worker Programs and Services; Planning, Monitoring and Analysis; Employment Benefits and Support Measures (Labour Market Partnerships) Grants and Contributions; In-Person Strategies and Policies for Service Delivery. Other branches she worked in are: Public Affairs (Communications), Internal Audit, Evaluation and Data Development.

Over the years, Hélène has provided valuable advice, guidance and support to national headquarters groups, regions and local offices in program and service delivery. She has also developed strategic planning frameworks and work plans, operational support tools, carried out needs identification and assessments and developed related Intranet and Internet content.

Hélène has a BA in Sociology from Laval University where she also pursued Master’s level studies in Sociology. She is fluently bilingual. Since 1989, she has been a member of Toastmasters International where she has held numerous leadership positions and developed her communication skills. She was also Director on her condominium’s Board of Directors from 2013-2021.

Hélène’s hobbies include painting in watercolour, art appreciation and travel. As a mother of two children and four grandchildren, she enjoys passing on her love of art to them.

Since 2018, Hélène has been an active volunteer with the Ottawa Branch in the areas of recruitment, member services and advocacy. Since 2019, she has been the official recorder for Branch Board meetings. Hélène was a co-recipient of the Branch’s Stephen Troy Volunteer of the Year award for 2020.

Sharon Squire

Sharon Squire is President of Vision Consulting+Coaching. Sharon recently retired from the federal Public Service after 32+ years with expertise in service design and delivery, veterans programming and issues, leadership and development, human resources, and sport. She has held senior executive roles in the Office of the Veterans Ombud, Treasury Board Secretariat, Privy Council Office, Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer, and Canadian Heritage where she developed and implemented many government-wide strategies, policies, and programs/services. Sharon is also a certified Personal and Business Performance Coach.

Sharon is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Royal Ottawa (hospital) Healthcare Group and has served as Chair of several Boards including Kids Up Front Foundation Ottawa, Institute for Citizen-Centred Service, Canadian Club of Ottawa, Commonwealth Games Association International Development Through Sport, among others.

Recognition of her leadership skills include the Esprit de Corps Top 20 Women in Defence Award (2022), Heintzman Leadership Award for excellence in service delivery in Canada (2018), and Association of Public Service Executives Community Service Award (2017), among others.

Sharon is an avid dragon boater and national team member.

Blair Armitage

Blair Armitage served on Parliament Hill, first in the House of Commons’, and then for the vast majority of his career, in the Senate’s nonpartisan procedural services sectors, from 1987 to 2021. 

Blair covered a wide range of operations in his career, including committees, international parliamentary associations, and managing debate transcription, inaugural development and implementation of data base-driven support systems for parliamentary business, pioneering the establishment of a permanent video broadcast service for Senate committees and building the base for eventually having cameras installed in the Senate Chamber, and the development and implementation of an active social media presence for the Senate. 

He finished his career as Clerk Assistant of Committees. In the course of his career, Blair enjoyed close working relationships with parliamentarians and parliamentary staff not only through his work on Parliament Hill, but also across Canada and the Commonwealth through the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. His work with the CPA included numerous professional development presentations both with parliamentary employee peers, as well as orientation seminars for newly elected parliamentarians. He also served on the executive of the Canadian Association of Clerks at the Table (past President and currently as an honourary member) and of the Canadian Study of Parliament Group.

Active in his home community of Dunrobin, Blair spent 17 years as a coach in various local sports teams, and on related local and township organizing boards. Blair was a strong supporter of the Senate participation in the annual GCWCC campaign, chairing the Senate’s volunteers on four separate occasions, and is looking forward to serving his new community of fellow federal retirees in the Ottawa region.

David Bolger

A retired public servant and lawyer, David Bolger is an Ottawa native and the son of a career public servant. Since joining the Canadian Forces in 1975, David’s career has been focussed on public service, first with an Indigenous law firm, then the federal Department of Justice and finally as counsel to the University of Ottawa. 

As a lawyer for 35 years, David appeared in every level of court in Canada. Working across the federal government in a number of Departmental Legal Service Units, David served in a variety of roles. He was counsel for Statistics Canada for 10 years and he completed a two-year secondment with the Communications Security Establishment where he worked as counsel for a
$900 million public-private-partnership building development project.

David’s management experience includes supervising a federal litigation unit and retaining Crown agents to represent the Government of Canada across the country and abroad. David later represented the federal government before the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal, the Public Service Labour Relations Board, and the Federal Court of Canada. After moving to the University of Ottawa, David took on a labour-relations role, representing his client before the Ontario Labour Relations Board, the Superior Court of Justice, and the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario for eight years.

In addition to teaching at the University of Ottawa, Algonquin College and Carleton University, David has volunteered with the Scout movement and the Royal Canadian Air Cadets. His hobbies include travel, cycling and gardening.

Leslie Lawry

Leslie retired from the Canada Revenue Agency in 2009.  She started as a clerk in Hamilton and held progressively more responsible positions as her career progressed, both in Ottawa and Hamilton.  

During her career, she was the Chief of Public Affairs at her local district office, then subsequently went on to be responsible for all business enquiries across Canada.  In Ottawa, she first worked in Client Services, and then she became responsible for all liaison between the Office of the Auditor General and the CRA. She says that was a fun job because she got to tell the Assistant Deputy Ministers what to do!  She finished her career as the Director of Operations for the Office of the Taxpayer’s Ombudsman.

Leslie is happily retired and has been serving as the Chair of the Ottawa Branch Advocacy Committee.  She has two great kids, and three fantastic grandkids – she will tell you all about them if you let her!

Leslie was first appointed to Ottawa Board of Directors in September 2018 and she was elected for a two-year term at the 2019 AGM.

Krista McKee-Samson

A graduate of Western Law (JD, ‘93) and the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights (LLM, ‘07), Krista is a member of the Law Society of Ontario and a member of the Métis Nation of Ontario.

With more than twenty years of international legal experience, Krista has provided legal services in the areas of international administrative law and policy, human rights, and international humanitarian law. Most recently with the World Health Organization (WHO), she has also worked for the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), and the International Organization of Migration (IOM). In 1999, Krista transitioned to international civil service in international law with the Commission for Real Property Claims (CRPC) in Bosnia and Herzegovina researching property rights of refugees and internally displaced persons.

Krista began her legal career as an Associate Lawyer practicing civil litigation with a small Ottawa law firm. Moving to the former Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, Krista held multiple positions, including as a Negotiations Analyst and Senior Policy Analyst. She contributed to the settlement of historic land claims, negotiating self-government agreements, and litigation and legal policy development.

Krista has previously served three-year terms as a Director for Bytown Brigantine Inc., a tall ship youth sail training and leadership charitable organization, and as President of a condominium syndicate in Mont-Ste-Marie, Quebec. She has also volunteered her time with the St. Mark High School Parent Council.

Krista enjoys spending time with her family traveling, boating, hiking, biking, and swimming. 

Christian Stumpf

Christian Stumpf, a CPA-CMA with an EMBA from Queen’s University, has over 31 years of federal and territorial public service experience in both regional and headquarters settings. He spent 21 years with National Defence, initially in Manitoba and later at NDHQ where he advanced through various executive leadership positions. Christian was asked to take on the role of Chief Financial Officer in the Health Canada portfolio, followed by Executive Financial Advisor to the Receiver General and the Pay and Pension programs. 

In 2015, he was head-hunted for a position with the Government of Nunavut as Chief Financial Officer. He strengthened financial processes and assumed oversight for all territorial federal infrastructure reporting and led the central procurement function for all territorial departments and agencies within the Government of Nunavut. Christian retired in 2019 and started a successful consulting business.

Throughout his career he supported community-based organizations as soccer coach, parent council (English/French) and served on numerous Boards at local, provincial, and national levels, such as the Nunavut Food Bank and the Air Cadet League of Canada and GreenBooks Canada. Christian joined MyCatalyst+ (formerly CESO) as an advisor to share his experience and help develop organizations in need. He is passionate about mentoring, coaching, finance, internal controls, and organizational optimization.

Christian enjoys spending time with his family, being at the cottage and travelling with his spouse.

Shelagh Tuddenham

Shelagh retired in 2009 from the Public Service Commission as Manager, Employment Equity Policy. She began volunteering with the National Association of Federal Retirees in 2013 as a member of the Ottawa Branch Community Liaison Committee (BCLC). 

She has represented the branch on the Health Issues Committee at the Council on Aging.

Shelagh is currently the Chair of the BCLC. She is the Coordinator and a facilitator of the Neighbours Helping Neighbours initiative, the Ottawa Branch signature program to promote and teach caregiver respite, originally developed by the Victorian Order of Nurses.

Shelagh represented the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) on the Joint Union-Management Initiative on Equal Pay in the late 1980’s. While at Labour Canada she became involved with the PSAC Local and served on its Executive Committee as Membership Chair. She also volunteered with the PSAC Regional Women’s Committee.

Shelagh obtained a certificate in management from the Canadian Institute of Management and was Membership Chair of its Vancouver Branch. She also served on the Executive Board of the Ottawa Branch of the Institute.

In 2018, Shelagh received the Council on Aging’s Celebrating Seniors Award and in 2020, she was one of two co-recipients of the Ottawa Branch Stephen Troy Volunteer of the Year Award.

Dan Butler

While a superannuate since 2011, Dan has now retired on a full-time basis for the first time and believes it’s an ideal opportunity to step forward and contribute to the important work of the National Association of Federal Retirees.

Dan enjoyed a wonderfully challenging 40-year career in labour relations, first as a senior union advocate for professionals in the Public Service and then, since 2001, as a third-party neutral. As part of his mandate as General Secretary of the National Joint Council (NJC), he supervised the co-development of service-wide terms and conditions of employment including the Public Service Health Care Plan (PSHCP) and facilitated consultations between the parties on the pension plan. These responsibilities brought Dan into continuing contact with representatives of the (then) FSNA for whom he formed a strong admiration.

After his term at NJC, Dan was appointed by the Governor-in-Council as a full-time member of the Public Service Labour Relations Board and, later, as a part-time member of its most recent successor board where he continued to pursue his passion for adjudication, mediation and other dispute resolution options.

Dan hopes that his extensive advocacy and leadership experience at the most senior levels of the Public Service, particularly on PSHCP and pension issues, may prove useful in pursuing the interests of the Association’s members. He also has a strong interest in governance issues and would welcome the opportunity to work with others strengthening the Association’s relations with its members.

Dan Napier

Dan Napier officially retired in 2021 from Public Services and Procurement Canada working as a Director General in the Parliamentary Precinct Branch responsible for the rehabilitation and renovation of Canada’s Parliament Buildings. Prior to immensely enjoying working for the Federal Government for 20 years, Dan worked in various senior capacities in both the Municipal and Private Sectors as a Director, Planner and Landscape Architect.

Graduating from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture, Dan continues to seek learning opportunities, both in his professional and personal life.

As a past Board Member and phone line volunteer at the Distress Centre of Ottawa and Region, Dan brings his skills as a strategic thinker, team builder and strong engagement and values and ethics to the Board.

Appointed to the Board of Directors in November 2022, Dan wants to become a part of the National Association of Federal Retirees Ottawa Branch team helping to advance their mission and work and
advancing the concerns of the Associations members.

Robert J. Giroux

Robert J. Giroux retired as President of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) in March 2004. Before joining AUCC in 1995, he was Secretary of the Treasury Board of Canada and Comptroller General of Canada. As a former senior federal official, he held the positions of President of the Public Service Commission of Canada, Deputy Minister of Public Works Canada, and Deputy Minister of National Revenue, Customs and Excise.

Mr. Giroux is a member of the Order of Canada, honorary member of the Order of Gatineau and a recipient of the Trudeau Medal from the Faculty of Administration of the University of Ottawa. He received Honorary Doctorates from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario, the Université de Montréal, in Montréal, Quebec, McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, the University of Ottawa, in Ottawa, Ontario and the University of Victoria, in Victoria, British Columbia.

He was Chair of the Board of Directors of Ocean Networks Canada, of Katimavik, and the Canadian Council on Learning. Mr. Giroux was a member of the Board of Directors of the Canada Foundation for Innovation from 2006 à 2012. He served as Chair of the Board of Governors of the University of Ottawa from 2009 to 2017.

Robert joined the Ottawa Branch of the National Association of Federal Retirees in 2012 and first served as Treasurer and then became President in 2017. When members approved new by-laws in 2016, serving Directors started fresh with no accumulated terms as of the 2017 AGM. Robert was elected for a two-year term at the 2017 AGM and re-elected for two more two-year terms at the 2019 and 2021 AGMs. After he stepped off the Board at the May 3, 2023 AGM, the Board approved his appointment as a Special Advisor until the 2024 AGM.