Our People

Kymani

Executive Director

Kymani (any pronouns) is a Black, queer immigrant who is committed to the messy work of community building and repair. They are currently the Executive Director for the Ten Oaks Project. After working in the youth recreation and camping worlds for 15 years, Kymani now works to ensure children and youth from 2SLGBTQIA+ identities, families, and communities have the resources and support they need to thrive. Before stepping into his current position, he was the Programs Manager for Ten Oaks for three years, where he gained a deep knowledge about how to transform ideas into material benefits. With a political science and education background, Kymani uses their teachings and life experiences to change our ways of thinking and engaging with the non-profit and camping sectors. Having lived and worked in Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Switzerland, Canada, and the US, Kymani has gained expert knowledge in working with various communities. In his free time, he enjoys video games, painting, unsuccessful baking, and reading Black feminist authors.

Jordyn

Programs Manager

Jordyn is a mixed-race Black lesbian-identifying queer person raised between two lower-income households by three lesbian parents all around Toronto (notably right at Church and Wellesley). She has now called beautiful Montreal home for nearly a decade! Having grown up as a Girl Guide heavily involved in summer camps, their background includes a wide range of youth facilitation, administration, and marketing experience at various companies and non-profit organizations – often ones specifically serving 2SLGBTQ+ communities. Some other categories of theirs: Sociology and English Lit grad, Libra, opinion factory, Wikipedia fangirl, sensible footwear aficionado; jack of all trades, master of none. In her free time, Jordyn enjoys playing games of all kinds (video, board, mind, etc.), eating a delicious meal at home or in a cosy restaurant, diving into a book, soaking up the sun, and dancing (just for fun).

Jesse

Project Manager

Jesse (he / him) is a queer & trans fella, proud parent, bringer together of people, and purveyor of joyful shenanigans. He got involved with Ten Oaks in 2012 and rocked many volunteer roles over the years from workshop facilitator to programming coordinator. Jesse specializes in design, communications and project management with a strong background in queer youth and community empowerment. He’s always busy whether it be finding ways to express his chaotic creativity, losing at board games, making weird art, singing or frolicking with friends.

Ash

Community Engagement Coordinator

Ash (They/Them) is a trans, non-binary, queer person who grew up in a rural community and now resides in Ottawa on the unceded and unsurrendered land of the Anishinaabe Algonquin People. Ash recently completed the Social Service Worker program at Algonquin College, and works part time as a youth worker for BGC Ottawa. Before stepping into the Community Program Coordinator position they were a placement student with Ten Oaks Project for just under a year. Ash is passionate about 2SLGBTQ+ youth having access to programming, support, and community. In their spare time Ash enjoys reading, drawing, video games, and playing Dungeons & Dragons with friends.

Board of Directors

Christian

President (2021-2024)

Christian (they/them) is a trans non-binary and queer settler on unceded Algonquin Anishinaabeg territory. In the past, they founded and led Rainbow Ottawa Student Experience (ROSE), a 2SLGBTQIA+ youth activism non-profit, and presently work in restorative and rehabilitative justice programming supporting women and non-binary people. Christian has a passion for abolitionist justice, empowering queer and trans youth to be leaders, the intersection of faith and queerness, and queer mutual aid!

Lara

Vice President (2024-2027)

Passionate about connecting kids to the great outdoors, Lara Purvis (they/she) has worked in the field of therapeutic outdoor education for many years. They have BA in Child Development, a BEd and a MA in Global Development, and a background that includes social justice communications and public education.

Lara is a parent and educator that has worked and played alongside children in classrooms, community centres, parks, forests and canoes. She believes in the magic of camp, and believes that we all need to play outside.

As Founder and Director of Out to Play, Lara heads up the Forest and Nature School organization in Ottawa that centres connection to the land and each other, in children’s mental health and wellbeing. Lara grew up in South Africa and loves to tell stories, sometimes made-up and sometimes true, about snakes and mountains and how we get found after we get lost.

Natasha

Secretary (2023-2025)

Natasha (she/her), originally from the GTA put down roots in Ottawa in 2005. She has been involved with the 2SLGBTQIA+ community since the mid-80s and remembers when Pride marches were more protest than celebration.

She has supported Ten Oaks for several years and is committed to ensuring 2SLGBTQIA+ children, youth and their families have safe, welcoming, loving, and supportive spaces to grow, thrive and most of all have fun!
Natasha has had many careers, including several years in Broadcast Journalism, but now spends her days as a Content Strategist in the high-tech sector. She was fortunate enough to volunteer on her workplace’s Pride Network for seven years, including organizing participants in the Capital Pride Parade.
Natasha’s favourite things include, baking sweet treats, playing music, solving puzzles and jumping into a cool lake on a hot summer day.

Sara

Treasurer (2025-2027)

Sara (she/her) is originally from London, ON, and after a few long-ish stays out west, she has officially called Ottawa her home since 2018. Growing up she spent countless weekends exploring the natural world with her scout troop, and this was integral to igniting a lifelong passion working in the outdoors. Now, a leader in the not-for-profit space and part-time college professor, Sara is keen to offer mentorship and be a cheerleader to young folks looking to shape their own path. With a mixed formal education background in Social Service Work, Business, and Human Resources, Sara is able to bring a variety of experience and knowledge to the TOP Board. Also, Sara’s favourite camp song is the Toast song with extended verses.

Colin

Director (2024-2027)

Colin (he/him) grew up just outside the Toronto area and opted for a more serene environment, moving to Carleton Place in 2010. As a Certified Sustainability Practitioner as well as holding many certificates as a DEI professional, Colin brings a wealth of expertise from his current role as a DEI & Sustainability Manager in the private sector.

Passionate about the intersection of camp and queer life with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Colin is dedicated to fostering queer representation as well as opportunities for youth development and environmental stewardship. Throughout his career in Human Resources and Compliance he continuously identifies the need for building safe and equitable queer spaces through Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) and committees and advocating for representation at all levels of corporate life.

Colin’s commitment to these causes is driven by a deep belief in the power of community and the importance of nurturing both people and planet.

Paul

Director (2024-2027)

Paul Parker (He/They) is a Partner in an international service design firm and focuses on building solutions for people living with complex care needs or rare disease conditions. Past experience in the not-for-profit sector included lead fundraiser for a Greater Toronto Area youth advocacy charity and President and Chair of a daycare in the city of Toronto. Identifying as gender queer and bisexual, 2SLGBTQIA+ advocacy is close to Paul’s heart and he hopes his lived experience and knowledge can help make a better world for Ten Oaks youth and families. He loves the outdoors, is a dedicated cyclist and is proud to be a part of the Ten Oaks board and community.

Samantha

Director (2024-2027)

Sam (she/her) is a therapist and sex educator with a passion for community-building. Growing up in Newfoundland, she learned the power of a good story and the potency of a good joke. She strives to stay connected to that east coast spark now that she lives in Ottawa. As a long-time supporter of Ten Oaks and a Project Acorn alumni, she is thrilled to be a TOP board member.

In her free time, Sam is often spending time with her partner and two small kids. She also enjoys reading, travelling, and baking delicious cakes.

Alice

Director (2022-2027)

Alice (she/her) is a proud Black francophone lesbian (and so much more!), a Ten Oaks parent, and the daughter of longtime after-school programs and camp director—finding original ways to make life more fun has always been part of her DNA. She brings lived experience as a queer parent raising children with diverse identities and complex needs, alongside a deep commitment to intersectional justice.

With a background in project management, adult education, and community advocacy, Alice specializes in the intersections of race, gender, disability, and family. She has worked extensively on issues of equity, access, and systems change, especially for marginalized communities. Whether she’s strategizing for change, organizing families, or cheering from the sidelines at community events and activities, Alice brings heart, purpose, and lived wisdom to everything she does.

In her spare time, she loves playing with her kids, movie nights, writing, cooking and playing her favourite video games, including Zelda and Mario Party!

Lifetime Members

Holly & Julia Wagg

Holly and Julia Wagg co-founded the Ten Oaks Project in 2004. For the first five years of Ten Oaks’ life, they worked to build this grassroots organization from the ground up into a charity that has become known throughout Canada as a leader in meeting the needs of children and youth from 2SLGBTQ+ identities, families, and communities. Julia primarily led the Camp Ten Oaks staff team and developed the program and culture as the Camp Director, while Holly primarily steered organizational development, fundraising and governance as President of the Board of Directors.
Holly has dedicated her career to the charitable sector and is Managing Partner and Head Counsel with Good Works where her expertise is in digital and social fundraising to help causes connect with donors. Her community involvement includes Centretown Community Health Centre, the LGBT Giving Network Advisory Board, the Association of Fundraising Professional’s Diversity to Inclusion Project, and fundraising for the Ten Oaks Project.
After fourteen months with leukaemia, we said goodbye to Julia on April 14, 2017. Before her death, Julia lived big in every area of her life and was the Director of Organizational Development at Hydro Ottawa where her portfolio included diversity and inclusion.
Together, Holly and Julia have three kids, which has probably been the most amazing project of all.

Chris Cowperthwaite

A volunteer with the Ten Oaks Project since 2005, Chris served as both a Camp Ten Oaks counselor and member of the camp leadership team. Since his first year of involvement, Chris been a proud ambassador of the Ten Oaks Project in Toronto, taking a lead role in building the community and donor base in the city. He served on the Ten Oaks Project Board of Directors from 2008 to 2010. In 2009, he convened a team that conceived and launched CampCurl, a Ten Oaks Project Toronto FUNdraiser, raising $25,000 for the project in its first year. Chris holds a BSc and diploma in peace and conflict studies from the University of Waterloo. He is currently completing an MBA at York University’s Schulich School of Business. In his professional life, Chris has worked as a fundraiser and project manager, most recently as manager of Development and Alumni Relations at The Canadian Merit Scholarship Foundation

Marcus Logan

Marcus Logan was the Director of Camp Ten Oaks from 2012-2017, and now sits on our Board of Directors. He has over 20 years experience working with 2SLGBTQ+ youth and communities and has a passion for providing supportive environments and programs for QueerSpawn, 2SLGBTQ+ children and youth, and their families. Marcus grew up on Lake Temagami and his family often found him sleeping in his canoe, late for meals because he had paddled to far to get back on time, and fishing with his dad. As a gay dad, Marcus and his husband have two children who attend Camp Ten Oaks and have come to love camp and see it as an important part of their year.

Jen Keystone

Jen was one of the five members on the very first Board of Directors of the Ten Oaks Project. It’s because of her that Ten Oaks stretched to meet the needs of kids living in Toronto/GTA, and that the 2SLGBTQ+ community in Toronto significantly supported Ten Oaks in its early years.
Jen is currently working as a Paramedic for Toronto Emergency Medical Services, and is a proud mom of three super kids. Previously, Jen worked for social service organizations such as Rainbow Health Ontario, a program of Sherbourne Health Center and the AIDS Committee of Toronto, working with 2SLGBTQ+ communities to improve the health of individuals and communities alike. Prior to her undergrad in Outdoor Recreation, Parks & Tourism from Lakehead University, Jen spent her entire pre-adult years exploring Ontario’s wilderness as both a camper and counsellor at Camp Timberlane.

Sonja Prakash

Sonja has more than 10 years experience in community work that focuses on youth, social justice, and anti-oppression. Sonja is a founding board member of the Ten Oaks Project, and has been volunteering with the organization since 2004. In addition to her role on the board, she was also a Camp Ten Oaks staff member and has led the development and and execution of Project Acorn, a leadership camp for youth from queer communities. Leaving her hometown of Montreal to pursue a Bachelor of Social Work at Carleton University, Sonja has come to embrace Ottawa and its communities of activists who live and agitate in the Capital.

Mark Schaan

Mark has been involved with the Ten Oaks Project almost since his arrival in Ottawa in 2006. Mark spent a number of years on the Board of Directors of the organization, including roles as Treasurer, and Vice-President, before becoming the first non-Founder President in 2009. In his time as President, Mark helped to initiate a new strategic plan and bring on the first paid staff for the organization. Mark continued on the Board as Past President until 2011. Mark was also involved in the very beginnings of Project Acorn, working with Sonja Prakash and the Youth Advisory Committee to build a strong foundation for this incredible program. Mark continued through the first five years of Project Acorn, and still keeps in touch as a Friend of Acorn.
In his day job, Mark is a policy wonk, having held progressively senior posts within the public service of the Government of Canada. Mark remains engaged in the community, and has volunteered and provided leadership to a number of other organizations including the Canadian Merit Scholarship Foundation, the National Gallery of Canada, and Rainbow Health Ontario.

Thank you to our dedicated Sponsors & Partners!

Without supporters like you, none of the safer spaces we create for our kids would be possible. Our supporters give more than financial contributions. Our supporters are champions and allies of 2SLGBTQ+ communities. Thank you to the foundations, community groups, companies and organizations who give such outstanding financial and in-kind support of the Ten Oaks Project.