In the news

Seniors Action Quebec (SAQ) is pleased to announce the election of Mona Beck (Montreal) as President of its Board of Directors. A graduate of McGill University's Faculties of Nursing (BScN) and Education (MEd), Ms. Beck brings over 40 years of experience in the public health care system to her new role. She has served on Seniors Action Quebec's Board of Directors since 2019.

New Board Executive

SAQ’s new Board executive team includes Linda Marion (Abitibi-Témiscamingue) as Vice-President, while François Hudon (Eastern Townships) and Diane Lemay (Longueuil, Montérégie) continue in their roles as Treasurer and Secretary, respectively.

Welcoming New Board Members

Seniors Action Quebec is thrilled to welcome three accomplished new board members:

Bruce Cameron (Montreal)
A retired social services professional with over 40 years of experience in child welfare, employment support, and community-based elder care. Bruce founded and directed CDB Services à domicile, a social economy home care enterprise in Montreal, and has led numerous volunteer initiatives including Gay and Grey Montreal and Senior Pride Network Canada. He holds degrees from York University and Concordia University and has been a longtime advocate for English-speaking seniors and the 2SLGBTQAI+ community. Bruce brings both lived and professional expertise in equitable access to health and social services, particularly in regional Quebec.

David O. Johnston (Montreal)
A retired journalist and federal public servant with over four decades of experience in communications, official languages, and public engagement. David spent 33 years at The Montreal Gazette before serving as Quebec and Nunavut representative for the Commissioner of Official Languages. He currently volunteers as a guide at the Château Ramezay Museum and brings extensive expertise in public policy, media, and advocacy for English-speaking communities.

Ann Martell (Mainland – Quebec City)
A bilingual human resources executive with over 30 years of leadership experience in healthcare, public service, and consulting. Ann has held senior roles at organizations including the CISSS des Îles, CHU de Québec – Université Laval, and Jeffery Hale – Saint Brigid's, specializing in HR strategy, labor relations, and organizational development. She holds a Master's in Industrial Relations from Université Laval and has served on numerous boards, including YWCA Canada, YWCA de Québec, Voice of English-speaking Québec, and regional health and education institutions. Her distinguished service has earned her national recognition, including the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee and Diamond Jubilee Medals.

Continuing Board Members

SAQ Board Directors continuing to serve in 2025-2026 include:

• Raquel Huggins (Montreal)
• Deirdre (Deedy) Shipton (Harrington-Lower Laurentians)
• Janet Torge (Montreal)
• Lynn Travers (Montreal)

SAQ’s new board slate was unanimously approved by the membership at the Annual General Assembly held on June 19, 2025, based on recommendations from SAQ's 2025-2026 Nominating Committee comprised of Founder Ruth Pelletier, former Vice-President Lyna Boushel, former President David Cassidy, longtime member 'Martin Murphy, and outgoing President Richard Silver.

Recognizing Outgoing Board Members

Seniors Action Quebec extends its deepest gratitude to outgoing Board President Richard Silver (Montreal) for his invaluable contributions during his six years on the board. SAQ also thanks outgoing board members Debbie Ford-Caron (Saguenay Lac-St-Jean) for her tireless dedication and Fred Jansen (Montreal) for his principled leadership.

Looking Forward

"Seniors Action Quebec has elected an exceptionally talented and well-diversified Board of Directors to guide the organization's new strategic plan," said incoming Executive Director Paulina Abarca-Cantin. "Given the current context and the growing demographics of Quebec's English-speaking seniors, their contributions will ensure that the concerns and well-being of both urban and rural seniors remain at the forefront of our mission."

About Seniors Action Quebec

Seniors Action Quebec (SAQ) is a not-for-profit provincial organization whose mission is to identify, advance, and address the needs of English-speaking seniors and to support organizations who work with and on behalf of English-speaking seniors throughout the province of Québec.

An alumna of HEC Montréal, the Schulich School of Business at York University, the University of Toronto and the National Theatre School of Canada, Paulina brings three decades of cross-sector leadership experience to Seniors Action Quebec.

Serving as Director, Policy and Research at the Canadian Media Producers Association in Ottawa, from 2023 to 2024, she shaped policy and advocacy strategies to support the evolving modernization of federal legislative and regulatory frameworks impacting online media. Prior to that, from 2017 to 2022, she was the Programming and Operations Lead at the Canada Media Fund, managing nationwide partnerships aimed at preserving and stimulating the global discoverability of Canada’s endangered audiovisual heritage. Her efforts earned public recognition, including a YouTube Silver Creator Award in 2020.

As past Executive Director of bilingual non-profit organizations Capital Heritage Connexion, Ada X and SPTC for over a decade, she led organizational growth and the implementation of impactful programs, projects and partnerships reporting to private and public stakeholders at all levels of government. As an independent consultant, she has managed strategic initiatives for a wealth of organizations including the Canadian Association of Community Health Centres (CACHC), the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN), the Trans Canada Trail, the Stratford Shakesperean Festival of Canada and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC-SRC).

Dedicated to excellence in non-profit governance, Paulina was a founding Board member of the English Language Arts Network (ELAN) and founding Chair of its Advisory Board over six years. Over a decade, she held executive positions on the Board of the Alliance des femmes des industries créatives (Allia), culminating in her presidency, where she advocated for gender parity in cultural funding policy. Representing Montreal on the Board of Women in Film and Television International, she spearheaded capacity-building initiatives spanning three continents, fostering inclusive global opportunities for women working in the audiovisual sector. Early in her career, as Vice-President of the Quebec Drama Federation (QDF), she was a strong advocate for the cultural enrichment of Quebec’s linguistic minority communities.

Seniors Action Quebec thanks Katia Toimil-Bramhall, on staff since 2019 and Executive Director since 2022, who has decided to step back from this role. Katia has made an outstanding contribution to the organization and leaves Seniors Action Quebec on foundations much more solid than on her appointment three years ago.

Seniors Action Quebec (SAQ) is a not-for-profit provincial organization whose mission is to identify, advance, and address the needs of English-speaking seniors and to support organizations who work with and on behalf of English-speaking seniors throughout the province of Québec.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Montréal - Seniors Action Quebec (SAQ) welcomes the Quebec government’s recognition of the particular needs of seniors, a continually increasing demographic, in its 2023-2024 budget. Its announcement of $2.0 billion over the next five years in support of health and social services, especially for seniors with diminishing autonomy, is a timely and necessary acknowledgement of systemic shortcomings. SAQ endorses and supports the prioritisation of the following areas of activity highlighted in the budget:

• For seniors wishing to live at home, $963.5 million that will serve to increase the supply of home-support services, professional care, services for informal and family caregivers (e.g. respite) and technical support (e.g. adjustable beds};
• For seniors needing adapted housing (e.g. seniors’ homes) $705.0 million that is allocated to ensure high quality and safe living environments;
• For those government initiatives in support of seniors and informal or family caregivers that have been allocated $202.7 million to continue.

Seniors Action Quebec also welcomes the allocation of $31.5 million to the Secrétariat aux rélations avec les Québécois d’expression anglaise (SRQEA) in support of its mission to strengthen the vitality of Quebec’s English-speaking community.

The Quebec government has committed $26.5 million over the next five years to extend and improve programs aimed at supporting the capacity for action of community groups, institutions and partnership networks that support English-speaking communities throughout Quebec.

Another $5 million over the next three years will support existing community-based Wellness Centres for English-speaking seniors and allow for an expansion of points of service.

We are especially pleased that the Quebec government recognizes the particular needs of English-speaking seniors in this budget. English-speaking seniors represent a significant proportion of Quebec’s English-speaking population. Every effort that identifies and addresses the particular needs of this population contributes positively to the vitality of all communities in Quebec.

Seniors Action Quebec will continue to work in partnership and harmony with community groups, institutions and government agencies to identify needs, gaps and shortcomings in service offerings for English-speaking seniors. SAQ will propose solutions and policy alternatives that address these needs. We will monitor the implementation of the initiatives announced in this budget as they effect English-speaking seniors.

Seniors Action Quebec is a provincial not-for-profit organization that collaborates with, supports, and brings together English-language community organizations working to maintain and enhance the vitality, well-being and health of English-speaking Quebec seniors. We work with government to identify and address challenges and strategic issues faced by English-speaking seniors and to propose policy alternatives that best respond to these.

For further information:

Katia Toimil-Bramhall
Executive Director
Seniors Action Quebec
1857, Boul. de Maisonneuve Ouest
#307
Montréal, QC
H3H 1J9
438-386-1944

Seniors Action Quebec (SAQ) held its Annual General Meeting on November 17, 2022. We are pleased to introduce the members of the 2022 - 2023 SAQ Board of Directors and Executive Committee.

The new members of the Board of Directors are:

Debbie Ford- Caron, Saguenay Lac-St-Jean
Dian Cohen, Eastern Townships
Sharon McCully, Eastern Townships
Deirdre Shipton, Lower Laurentians

Remaining on the Board of the Directors are:

Mona Beck, Montreal
Syeda Bukhari, Montérégie
Walter Duszara, Montreal
Darla Fortune, Montreal
Diane Lemay, Montérégie
Linda Marion, Abitibi-Témiscamingue
Richard Silver, Montreal,/p>

The Executive Committee members are:

Walter Duszara, President
Richard Silver, Vice-President
Dian Cohen, Treasurer
Diane Lemay, Secretary

“On behalf of all members and friends of Seniors Action Quebec, I welcome our new board members and thank them for their gift of service. I also thank and congratulate the Nominations Committee members - Ruth Pelletier, Chair, Mona Beck and Richard Silver - for a job well done under challenging circumstances.” Walter Duszara

The Board of Directors bade farewell to Debbie Horrocks, immediate past-President, whose six-year term as Board member came to an end.

“Debbie served the board and members of Seniors Action Quebec generously and effectively at a time when SAQ was experiencing many changes and new demands. In the name of SAQ, I thank her for her leadership and dedication. On a personal note, thank you Debbie for your support and counsel when I needed it. We all look forward to your continued support and contribution to the mission and goals of Seniors Action Quebec.” Walter Duszara

The 2021-2022 Annual General Meeting reviewed SAQ’s accomplishments and, how we continued to move forward with our projects in the face of the many unexpected demands and challenges related to the Covid-19 pandemic. The following achievements were highlighted:

• The Resilience Training Project - a series of workshops which teach resilience skills to seniors, and those who work with seniors, was completed.
• A new set of videos showcasing five regional English-speaking organizations were produced and launched as part of our video series Je Me Souviens: Portraits of Who We Are.
• In partnership with the English-Language Arts Network, we wrapped up the We’re All In This Together project, a series of bi-weekly web-episodes with uplifting stories to help reduce the stress and isolation of seniors during the pandemic.
• We continued to expand our new online services and to further develop our directory of organizations and professionals who provide services in English throughout Quebec, the SAQ Services Map for Seniors.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Board of Directors of Senior Action Quebec, at its October 27, 2022 meeting, unanimously resolved to appoint Katia Toimil-Bramhall its new Executive Director. Katia, who had served as SAQ’s Interim Executive Director since February, 2022, has worked in the not for profit sector in a variety of roles for many years. In addition, she has work and study experience in Europe.

She was the program coordinator for SAQ since 2019. In this capacity Katia managed and maintained the organization’s website and social media; wrote and produced quarterly newsletters and annual reports; built an online database of resources for English-speaking seniors; and managed its IT system. Prior to joining SAQ Katia served as a Communications Officer for the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN). Before joining QCGN Katia worked for the Thomas More Institute for ten years in different roles, including Information Services Officer, Website Manager and Readings Coordinator. After graduation, with MA in hand, Katia taught English to youth and adults, near Prague, in the Czech Republic.

Katia holds a DEC in Liberal Arts from Champlain College, a B.A. from McGill University and a Master of Arts: Culture and Colonialism, National University of Ireland, Galway. She is trilingual – English, French and Spanish.

Katia’s experience and knowledge of the English-speaking community, her easy manner and her organizational and communications skills will continue to serve our community well.

We welcome Katia Toimil-Bramhall as Seniors Action Quebec’s Executive Director and wish her every success in her new role.

Walter Duszara
President