Kirkland’s research expertise has been bolstered by his work with Lakehead Orillia professor Dr. Daniel Krupp’s SALT Lab, which studies the psychology of cooperation and conflict. Kirkland (HBASc’22) has been analyzing data and doing computer programming for the lab since graduating from Lakehead. Photo: Pexels

Conquering Alzheimer’s disease has become Lakehead grad Kirkland Johnston’s mission.

Alzheimer’s is a “chronic neurodegenerative disease that destroys brain cells, causing thinking ability and memory to decline over time,” according to the Alzheimer Society. 

“Certain genes are strongly correlated with the disease,” explains Kirkland, who’s just finished the first year of a Psychology and Neuroscience PhD at the University of Toronto.

“My research is investigating how certain genes influence the hippocampus—the ridges in the brain responsible for memory and emotion.”

Studying this incurable disease wasn’t part of Kirkland’s original career plans. He majored in psychology and criminology at Lakehead Orillia, graduating with an Honours Bachelor of Arts and Science in 2022. His honours thesis, however, sparked his interest in neuroscience. For his thesis, Kirkland examined the biological factors that influence psychopaths’ behaviour, as part of a larger research project run by psychology professor Dr. Beth Visser. 

Pictured left: “When I was younger, I did a lot of gymnastics and acrobatics, and I recently got into it again,” Kirkland says. “I also love mountain biking, running, and spending time with family and friends. It keeps me grounded and happy.”

“From a neuroscience perspective, psychopaths have less developed frontal cortices and less emotionality as well as lower executive function and inhibitions,” Kirkland says. “This influences their level of callousness, impulsivity, and tendency to act in ways that benefit them without regard for anyone else.”

His newfound fascination with neuroscience led Kirkland to complete a master’s degree at Trent University focused on how different behaviours can be triggered by different neural pathways. “I studied how stress can influence chronic pain. Our research team found that if fear is present along with pain, the pain lasts longer.”

Kirkland’s decision to pursue Alzheimer’s research stems not from his scholarly experiences, but from his personal life. “I became passionate about Alzheimer’s disease because some of my family members have suffered from it,” he says.

Kirkland and his supervisor, Dr. Iva Zovkic, are studying histone variant macro H2A1 (mH2A1). Histones are the fundamental building blocks of chromatin, the material that makes up our chromosomes. The Zovkic lab has zeroed in on histones H2A.Z and mH2A1, finding supportive evidence for their role in modulating memory.  “The more H2A.Z there is in the brain, the stronger the association is with impaired memory” Kirkland says. “But if you remove it genetically through surgery, it improves learning and memory in mice.”

Kirkland is looking at how declining estrogen levels in mice increase Alzheimer’s pathology and memory impairment. This is critical because women are almost twice as likely as men to get Alzheimer’s. They also experience more rapid cognitive decline and worse treatment outcomes.

“Part of this may stem from the fact that, for an extremely long time, women were underrepresented in Alzheimer's research studies, " Kirkland says. “Even now, women still aren’t equally represented in studies, which affects how they respond to treatment.”

His goal is to better understand female biology to create more effective Alzheimer’s treatments for women.

Although Kirkland is at the beginning of his career, he is convinced that he’s found his calling. “I plan to continue doing Alzheimer’s research because I want to do meaningful work that has a positive impact on people.”

Helping injured workers and making workplaces across Ontario safe for everyone were the driving forces behind Peter Augruso’s impressive career accomplishments.

Born and raised in Thunder Bay, Peter studied labour and industrial relations at Lakehead, where he benefited from the depth of the education he received. “Dr. Jerry Phillips and Dr. Ken Hartviksen, in particular, stood out because they always made time for me,” he says.

Lakehead also gave Peter the opportunity to play on its varsity soccer team, which won the Great Plains Athletic Conference during the 1981-82 season. “As an Italian-Canadian, soccer is part of my culture,” Peter says. “My wife and I coached soccer when our kids were little, and one of my sons earned a soccer scholarship to an American university.”  

Pictured right:  Peter during his time on Lakehead’s varsity soccer team in the early 1980s.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Administration in 1988, Peter worked briefly as a junior executive at Zellers in Winnipeg. His career, however, really got kick-started when he became avocational career counsellor with the Workers' Compensation Board of Manitoba. Peter returned to Thunder Bay a few years later to take the same position with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), remaining there for 19 years, assisting injured workers seeking to retrain in new careers.

Although the work was gratifying, Peter began to realize that it wasn’t enough for him.  “I wanted to prevent injuries, rather than help people get back to work after they’d already been injured. Some people thought I was crazy because, by that point, I was in my mid-forties and had a good career.”

Undeterred, he successfully applied to become the district manager – operations division, with the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development in 2007. Two years later, Peter was promoted to regional director of the northern region. By 2015, he’d climbed to the highest reaches of the ministry after being chosen as assistant deputy minister (ADM), moving to Toronto to take on this new role. 

As assistant deputy minister, Peter administered a 130-million-dollar budget and was responsible for employment standards, occupational health and safety, and radiation monitoring. 

“I’m proud to say that as ADM, employee engagement and morale were high. I wasn’t afraid to answer questions, and I knew many of my 1,100 staff members.” During his tenure, Peter also incorporated new sexual harassment legislation into the Occupational Health and Safety Act to strengthen protections for workers.

The Beautiful Game

Peter played soccer with men’s recreational leagues throughout his adult years. Then, in 2014, he became reengaged with youth soccer as a volunteer with Ontario Soccer, serving as their president from 2018 to 2024. 

With more time available after retiring from government in 2021, Peter intensified this focus and, last year, successfully ran for president of Canada Soccer—eager to promote the growth of the game from the grassroots to the Olympic level.

Pictured left:  Soccer Canada President Peter Augruso (centre) at the opening of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup 26 office in Toronto with FIFA President Gianni Infantino (right) and FIFA Vice-President Victor Montagliani (left), who is also president of the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF).

Peter envisions a future for Canada Soccer where every child is given the opportunity to play, including talented Indigenous athletes in remote communities, through the “Soccer for Life” initiative. “It’s based on the belief that soccer should be a lifelong passion—uniting communities, fostering talent, and making the game accessible to all, regardless of where they live. I want to create an inclusive, thriving soccer culture that leaves a lasting impact across the country.”

The vocal ensemble course that Laurel took as a Lakehead University student led to a lifelong love of choral music. “There’s a powerful and indescribable feeling that comes from people singing the same thing at the same moment—a synergy. The communication between the conductor and an ensemble can be very subtle,” Laurel adds. “You can lift your eyebrow, and the ensemble will know what to do.” 

As a teenager, music educator and conductor Dr. Laurel Forshaw (HBMus’98) spent many of her lunch and after-school hours hanging out in the music room of her Thunder Bay high school. Since Laurel was a member of the school band and an accomplished flutist and pianist, this wasn’t surprising—but there was another reason she spent so much time cloistered in the music room.

“It was an escape from the bullying and politics of high school,” Laurel says. “The music room was a safe space.”

Music became even more deeply enmeshed with Laurel’s identity when she began teaching piano at the age of 14. “That’s how I discovered that I loved connecting with students—it made me want to become a high school band teacher and recreate that wonderful safe space for other kids,” she explains.

This realization led Laurel to enrol in Lakehead University’s music program, which was transformational for her. “The broad focus of the program introduced me to areas I wouldn’t otherwise have experienced,” she says. In particular, the conducting and vocal ensemble courses taught by Allan Bevan were life-changing. “Allan was very demanding as a conductor, but in a quiet determined manner, and as soon as I stepped in front of an ensemble, I thought, ‘Oh, this is what I want to do.’

There’s an old-school approach to conducting that exalts the conductor as an all-knowing, detached, and domineering figure,” Laurel continues, “but I conceptualize the role of conductor as one that is highly collaborative. I want to respond to and work with the sounds created by musicians rather than reacting to ‘correct’ their sounds.”

In 1998, when Laurel graduated from Lakehead, the lure of conducting and the lack of teaching jobs prompted her to pursue a music career outside the school system.

“I’ll always advocate for music to be part of the curriculum for elementary and high school students,” Laurel says (pictured left), “because music allows you to express yourself and hold meaning in unique ways.”

Her first conducting position was with a local church choir while she was still a Lakehead student. Conducting positions with other groups followed, including Thunder Bay’s Dulcisono Women's Choir and, most recently, the Strata Vocal Ensemble in Hamilton, Ontario. Laurel also worked with young people when she served as the artistic director and conductor of Thunder Bay’s Rafiki Youth Choir (which she founded) and the Thunder Bay Children’s Chorus - Camerata Singers in addition to the private music lessons she offered.

As the years passed, a growing desire to strengthen her knowledge of music education within choral spaces and her skills as a choral conductor spurred Laurel to return to school. In 2011, she completed a Master of Arts in Music Education (Choral Conducting) at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota and, in 2021, she earned a PhD in Music Education from the University of Toronto. “I was getting tired of teaching private music lessons,” she says, “and grad school opens your mind in ways that you can’t anticipate.” Her graduate studies became a springboard to advance her interest in bringing Indigenous ways of learning and knowing into university music programs and music education more broadly. 

“Until a short time ago, Indigenous music and musical practices have been excluded from choral singing practices and music education in Canada,” Laurel says. “I felt compelled to be part of breaking down this exclusionary framework, starting with the ongoing work of decolonizing myself, recognizing my responsibilities and obligations as a white settler, and engaging with Indigenous musicians and the principles of respect, responsibility, relationship, and reciprocity.”

Laurel has now returned to Lakehead’s Department of Music to teach conducting as well as the Intro to Music Education and Reconciliation course.

“This course uses the TRC’s Calls to Action as a framework for addressing reconciliation through music and music education, weaving Indigenous ways of learning and being with music education practices. It is so rewarding to witness students considering ways in which their own pedagogical practices can serve as sites of reconciliation.”

Want to expand your musical horizons?

Check Out a Few of Laurel’s Favourite Pieces:

 “North” by Ryan O’Neal, arranged by G. Chung
Performed by the Vancouver Youth Choir (Carrie Tennant, conductor)

 “Okâwîmâw Askiy” by Sherryl Sewepegaham
Performed by Luminous Voices (Timothy Shantz, conductor)

 “Ambe” by Andrew Balfour, based on an original song by Cory Campbell
Performed by the Chronos Vocal Ensemble (Jordan Van Biert, conductor)

 “Õhtul” by Pärt Uusberg
Performed by the Vancouver Youth Choir (Carrie Tennant, conductor)

 “Both Sides Now” Joni Mitchell, arranged by M. Wright
Performed by the Barnsley Youth Choir (Matt Wright, conductor)

 “Only in Sleep” by Ēriks Ešenvalds
Performed by the Choir of Trinity College Cambridge

 “Indodana” arranged by M. Barrett & R. Schmitt
Performed by Tuks Camerata (University of Pretoria) (Michael Barrett, conductor)

“Lakehead has not only pushed me to be the best I can be academically, but also the best person I can be,” says Holly Gray, who received an Honours Bachelor of Arts and Science in Anthropology in 2024. Above, Holly and her daughter Alexandria celebrate Holly’s graduation.

“In the fall of 2016, I was bemoaning to my husband and my daughter that although I’d been exercising my body, my mind was in the parking lot,” says recent Lakehead grad Holly Gray.

“My daughter said, ‘Oh, mom! Just take a course.’ I said, ‘Great idea, but what course?’ and she replied, ‘Anthropology.’”

That was the start of a new chapter for Holly, whose curious mind and independent streak was apparent even as a child. 

She grew up in the small village of Victoria Harbour on Georgian Bay where she spent her time swimming, skiing, and tobogganing. Holly also earned pocket money by babysitting for 25 cents an hour. Her favourite early jobs, though, were more unconventional. “I worked on horse farms and in a mechanics shop repairing bicycles, lawnmowers, and chainsaws,” Holly says. “I just loved it, my poor mother, however, was mortified because I was the only girl at my high school graduation with grease under her fingernails.”

Holly then earned a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Guelph. She’d hoped to pursue her postsecondary education further, but life and its challenges got in the way—that is until several decades later when she drove to Lakehead Orillia to sign up for an anthropology course. 

As fate would have it, Professor Tim Kaiser was running a mock archaeological dig on campus that day. Holly went over to talk to him and “Dr. Kaiser, who’s a wonderful gentleman, said, ‘Why don’t you join my class?’”

“The course was called Ancient People and Places,” Holly continues, “so I thought that’s good, since I’m ancient—but I was scared because it was a second-year course.”

Her fears were eased after she spotted two other seniors in the class. One of them, Ginny Majury, became her study buddy. Soon, Holly was taking more courses, with the goal of earning a degree, and she and Ginny were forming study groups and providing tea and cookies for the students who came. Off-campus experiences were equally important to Holly. “I went on a life-altering dig led by Dr. Scott Hamilton and Dr. Frederico Oliveira at the Indigenous community of Slate Falls north of Sioux Lookout, Ontario. We were looking at the site of the original community of Slate Falls before they were forced to move from their island to the mainland.”

“Lakehead’s instructors have been outstanding—Dr. Frederico Oliveira is a gem of a man—and it’s a gift to be able to meet the kids and be accepted by them,” Holly says. “Everyone from the cafeteria and library staff to security, students, and professors have treated me with kindness and respect. It’s been an incredible joy.” Pictured left, Holly and her friend Ginny Majury on their graduation day.

As the graduation date drew nearer, Holly applied to be the Voice of the Class speaker at Lakehead’s June 2024 convocation ceremonies, not expecting to be selected.

“I felt that being a senior and a part-time student disqualified me from speaking, then I found out I’d been chosen. I was absolutely honoured and thrilled—I was also absolutely terrified.”

Holly has now embarked on a Master of Environmental Studies degree specializing in anthropology, and she’s even considering doing a PhD. “I’d like to investigate the social, political, and legal ramifications of so many things.”

As Holly said in her Voice of the Class speech, “None of us are too young, nor too old to be agents of change in the world around us. Just try to do things, live through the fear of it, and you’ll be amazed at what a different person you’ll be.”

Steve Barkhouse has always been a man with a clear vision of what he wants.

He studied business administration with a focus on organizational relations to prepare himself for a career in the construction field. He’d also put in the legwork by learning carpentry and by studying architecture and business at Ottawa’s Algonquin College before transferring to Lakehead.

Everything seemed to be coming together according to plan when an Ottawa construction firm hired Steve shortly after he received his degree. Then, the 1989 economic recession struck and Steve’s job was eliminated before he even started. 

“After pouting for two weeks” Steve says, “my dad pointed out that I wasn’t going to be living at home rent free. He said, ‘Why don’t you start a business!’ So I convinced my best friend to establish a residential building and renovation company with me in our hometown of Stittsville, Ontario.”

Steve (pictured right) recently received a Fellowship Award from Algonquin College. “I’ve been involved with the college since I attended 40 years ago, and I was very humbled and honoured to be acknowledged,” Steve says. “Algonquin had a partnership with Lakehead that allowed me complete Lakehead’s 3-year business program in 1.5 years, which was good for an impatient person like me,” he adds.

In the 35 years since then, Steve’s company, Amsted Design-Build, has grown to five locations, 60 employees, and has been recognized nationally and internationally for its outstanding work. Among its more recent accolades, Amsted was named the 2024 Ottawa Renovator of the Year⁠ by the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association, the 2024 Ontario Renovator of the Year, and was voted one of Ottawa’s Top Ten Employers in 2024.

“We were also the first Canadian company to be one of four finalists for the Fred Case Remodeling Entrepreneur of the Year Award and winner of the Remodelers Advantage Impact Award. Coming from a small Canadian town, receiving these North American awards was pretty cool,” Steve says. “In an industry, where tradespeople run most of the businesses, it’s fortunate that I’m a businessperson with a trades background. Lakehead taught me the value of reputation and integrity, customer service, financials, short- and long-term planning, and human resources.”

Pictured left: Steve (BAdmin’ 89) gives a tour of one of his building sites. Steve grew up on a hobby farm in Stittsville, Ontario. “We had horses, cows, chickens, pigs, dogs, and cats. I learned responsibility on the farm—even if I was tired after football practice, I still had to feed the animals.”

Steve says that his time at Lakehead was memorable not only because of the excellent education he received, but because of the people he met, including his future wife, and fellow business student, Tracey.

“The Lakehead community took me in when I was young and a bit homesick. The Polish ladies who worked in the residence kitchen were fantastic women who mothered all of us. I also bonded with my classmates and fellow residence students—we had great weekend trips to Duluth and Sudbury.” Other highlights included running into the famous ski jumper Eddie the Eagle at a Thunder Bay ski hill. In 1988, Eddie attracted international attention for being the first athlete to represent Great Britain in an Olympic ski-jumping competition, even though he finished last. “We drank with Eddie at the ski hill bar and then invited him back to rez for a party,” Steve recalls.

A Thriving Business Committed to Community Service

As Amsted expanded beyond Stittsville to Brockville and three Ottawa locations, Steve made it a priority to give back. “Our community supported us, so we want to support them. For our 35th anniversary this year, we pledged to carry out 35 acts of community service, although we’ve ended up doing 46.” 

These acts of service range from building gazebos for retirement homes and cleaning up parks to fundraising for local organizations and sponsoring charity events. Camp Smitty—run by the Ottawa Boys and Girls Club—is particularly close to Steve’s heart. “We’ve donated more than a million dollars to the camp over the past 20 years and built cabins, treehouses, and decks for them.”

Above: A triplex built by Amsted.

Amsted’s success has brought Steve unexpected opportunities.

“I hit it off with CTV News host Leanne Cusack over 15 years ago and began doing monthly on-air television spots sharing home renovation tips with viewers.”

Steve is retiring from Amsted at the end of 2024, but strengthening his community and challenging himself in new ways will continue to be a constant in his life. 

“Bringing people’s dreams to life has been an honour,” Steve says, “whether it’s building an award-winning environmentally friendly home or renovating a powder room that someone has spent years saving up for.”

Watch a couple of Steve’s CTV home renovation segments: 

https://amsted.ca/steve-barkhouse-talks-lighting-on-ctv-news/

 https://amsted.ca/ctv-appearance-how-much-will-24-sussex-cost-to-repair/

"I’m extremely proud to be the first Indigenous woman appointed to the Federal Court,” says Lakehead alum (BA '95) Justice Julie Blackhawk.

Justice Blackhawk is a member of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte Nation (Kenhtè:ke kanyen’kehá:ka) and her husband Carl and their daughters Kinew and Binesi belong to the Lac Seul First Nation (Obishikokaang). 

“It’s important for the Court to be accessible and reflect the diversity and perspectives of all communities that it serves,” she adds, “and I hope that my appointment will encourage other Indigenous lawyers to consider joining the bench.”

Photo Credit: Balfour

When Justice Blackhawk was appointed on February 9, 2024, it was another important milestone in a distinguished legal career. “I’ve dedicated myself as a lawyer to Indigenous issues and Aboriginal law matters,” she says, “and I’ve developed deep expertise in these areas.”

But her interest in the law was first sparked when she was a Lakehead University student—even though she was initially drawn to Lakehead because of its Concurrent Education Program for Aboriginal students. 

“My mother, who was a teacher’s assistant with our local education board, encouraged me to consider going into teaching,” Justice Blackhawk says. “However, I was not successful in my application for the Aboriginal Concurrent Education Program! Nonetheless, I attended Lakehead with the intention of taking my first year of General Arts and transitioning into the Aboriginal Con-Ed program. During my first year in General Arts, one of my electives was a property law course, and from there I was hooked. I knew I wanted to study and practice law.” 

Pictured right: Justice Blackhawk has contributed to Canada’s legal community in many different ways, including helping create the Practice Guidelines for Aboriginal Law Proceedings (2016) and serving as a member of the Federal Court’s Indigenous Bar Association - Aboriginal Law Bar Liaison Committee. Photo Credit: Balfour 

Justice Blackhawk went on to earn a law degree at the University of British Columbia and then articled with Legal Services of British Columbia (Legal Aid) in 1998 after completing her studies. “The clinic I was employed at focused on poverty law issues, such as housing, workers’ compensation benefits, employment insurance benefits, and some family law.”

In 1999, after her articling was complete, she briefly worked for a small firm, Sommers and Co, in Richmond, British Columbia, where she focused on matters on behalf of British Columbia’s Minister of Child and Family Services.

In March 2000, Justice Blackhawk began a position with the Department of Justice Canada in the Aboriginal Litigation Group. 

“At the time, I was a junior litigator dealing primarily with two mega Aboriginal law litigation files: Prophet River, a claim of breach of fiduciary duty and breach of Treaty 8; and Tsilhqot’in, a claim of Aboriginal title. I moved to Ottawa in 2004 to become part of the Department of Justice in the Aboriginal Law Management Group, where I was responsible for the litigation management and coordination in respect to Métis litigation.”

In 2006, she joined the Specific Claims Branch and focused on matters before the then Indian Claims Commission before moving to the Aboriginal Affairs Portfolio in 2010. 

“I worked on litigation matters for the Department of Justice related to section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1985, Aboriginal rights and title claims at all levels of Court across the county, and I continued in this role until my appointment to the Bench,” Justice Blackhawk explains.

Her vision and commitment have allowed her to blaze new trails in Canada’s legal and justice systems.

“I am very proud of my involvement with the Tsilhqot’in litigation, where I helped develop a framework for the admission of oral history evidence and Elder testimony in litigation, as well as the follow-up work with the Federal Court Aboriginal Law Bar Liaison Committee, where I assisted in drafting of the Federal Court Aboriginal Law Bar Practice Guidelines,” she says.

Justice Blackhawk’s time as a lawyer and her positions with the Department of Justice were equally important because “having Indigenous people working on these issues within government to balance perspectives as we collectively move forward is essential.”

“I am also extremely grateful and proud of my family: my spouse and our two wonderful daughters, my parents and my extended family,” Justice Blackhawk says. “Without them and their unwavering support, I would not have enjoyed the professional success I have had over the years.”

Although Lakehead grad Jamie Klomp spent over 15 years working in human resources (HR)—not a profession known for its lightheartedness—Jamie’s idols have always been Laurel and Hardy.

His appreciation for humour has come in handy since 2020 when Jamie left human resources behind to host and produce the talk show-style program Kinz and Klomp with Mark Kinsman. The duo promotes community events and local businesses, fundraises for charities, spotlights Northern Ontarians, and puts smiles on people’s faces.

Jamie pictured right: As one of the Kinz and Klomp hosts, Jamie works 15-16 hours a day and meets a huge variety of people. “I’ve always been passionate about people,” Jamie says, “where they came from, what they believe, what they’re rooted in. That’s what drew me to the study of sociology.” 

Kinz and Klomp, which is broadcast out of Timmins, Ontario, has grown to 13,000 followers and reaches an audience of 100,000 every week. 

“We use a software that allows us to simulcast our show across our social platforms—Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitch, X, and TikTok,” Jamie says. 

“We do a lot of slapstick comedy—Mark is the straight man. It’s always positive, lighthearted, and based on audience engagement. We’ve had everyone on the show from the cast of the Degrassi tv show, to Premier Doug Ford, to new business owners.”

After graduating from Lakehead in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, Jamie completed a Human Resources Management Certificate at Confederation College while working full time in Thunder Bay group homes assisting people with mental or physical disabilities. “I also had a new baby and had just purchased a home,” Jamie says. “It was exhausting.”

After receiving his certificate, Jamie was immediately hired as an HR manager at a TNS Canadian Facts call centre. He stayed with the centre until it closed three years later and then moved to Timmins, Ontario, where he worked in human resources at a mine followed by a pulp and paper mill, a construction firm, Bombardier, and Northern College.

Jamie’s contract with Northern College ended in October 2020—the same time that Mark Kinsman’s job as the morning deejay on KISS radio was eliminated by the station’s parent company.

“I knew Mark casually and asked him about doing a community-oriented podcast while we looked for jobs,” Jamie says. “It was supposed to be a hobby.” 

By December 2020, the show had morphed into a video podcast. It underwent its next evolution when a security company paid them $50 to mention a recruitment drive they were having, which resulted in the company hiring three security guards. This prompted Jamie and Mark to create a business plan and begin airing shows four days a week. They needed a bricks-and-mortar space, however, so they entered the Downtown Timmins BIA’s Win this Space contest in 2022 and received a free one-year lease on a studio space. 

In the last three years, either through their partners or events of their own, Jamie and Mark have given $600,000 back to the community. For example, raising money so that a seven-year-old boy with Type I diabetes could go to diabetes summer camp. 

Their efforts have earned them recognition from the United Way for being an outstanding community partner. In 2022, Kinz and Klomp also became the first web-based show to win the Canadian Mental Health Association’s media award. The CMHA began recommending the show to clients who said that everything on social media was negative. 

“It made us realize that we were on the right track and that was nice to hear,” Jamie says. “To give back and make people laugh is our core commission.” 

“Kinz and Klomp LIVE often focuses on humanizing homelessness, addictions, and mental health,” said CMHA Cochrane-Timiskaming Executive Director Paul Jalbert in a January 16, 2023, CMHA media release. “These conversations assist in addressing stigma through education and knowledge.” 

Jamie and Mark are now dreaming even bigger. “We’d like to see our platform extend across the province and across the country.”

  Click here to check out the Kinz and Klomp show on Facebook.

When Faye Johnson (née Verheggen) was a Lakehead student, she spent her summers doing fieldwork like tree planting for the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR).

“It was brutal and backbreaking work, but it was one of the few forestry-related jobs available to us in the 1970s,” Faye says. “The saplings were large, over 60 cm tall…and then there were the bugs.”

Today, she’s the chair of the Temagami Forest Management Corporation (TFMC)—a 600,000-hectare forest near North Bay, Ontario. 

“We are a Crown agency with a mandate to sustainably harvest wood and provide local economic opportunities,” she says. “Forest management corporations like Temagami arose after Northern Ontario lost half of its forest industry in the 2008 downturn. This was devastating for many small towns, so they began lobbying for the development of local forest management corporations—Crown agencies with a board of directors composed of local community members, First Nations, local forestry experts, and members at large.”

Pictured right:  TFMC board of directors, including Faye, during a recent trip to the Temagami Forest. Over time, careers in forest policy development and environmental advocacy have become more popular options within the forestry profession.

Faye’s forestry career was sparked by the combination of a high school aptitude test and her love of the wilderness.

“I grew up on the outskirts of Toronto—it was the sixties when parents would give their kids a packed lunch in the morning and tell them to come back at suppertime. I’d explore nearby parks and ravines with my siblings and my friends. Family camping trips also deepened my connection to the outdoors.”

Faye was accepted to both Lakehead and the University of Toronto to study forestry, but the idea of experiencing the north won her over. In 1982, she graduated with her Honours Bachelor of Science in Forestry and began working for the MNR’s Ontario Forest Research Institute in Thunder Bay. This led to a two-year silviculture internship in Geraldton, Ontario, followed by a job as a nursery forester growing seedlings for the MNR. 

When the MNR handed over its seedling industry to the private sector, Faye found a job with Grant Forest Products and discovered that she loved both the business of forestry and the company’s focus on local economic development. 

“It felt like we were a family,” Faye says.

Unfortunately, Grant went into bankruptcy protection, prompting Faye to find a director position with the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines. Her portfolio included overseeing northern highways, a responsibility that gave rise to one of her career highlights—the construction of a new bridge over the Nipigon River on Highway 11/17.

“We had to decide to either construct a standard bridge or to do something special, so we went with a cable-stayed bridge,” she says. “We did it for the wow factor and the uniqueness as this is the only road that connects Canada’s east and west. The bridge stands out from most of Northern Ontario’s infrastructure, which is a little bland.”

Pictured left: The LU Woodsmen Team (Faye is the fourth from the left in the front row) prepares to leave for the University of New Brunswick’s 1980 Woodsmen Competition. This national competition requires forestry students to demonstrate their skills in traditional lumberjack activities such as axe throwing, wood chopping, log sawing, and pulp tossing.

Faye’s time away from the forestry sector turned out to be a temporary interlude. She jumped at the chance to rejoin the MNRF in 2013—first as the general manager of the Nawiinginokiima Forest Management Corporation and then as a director with the Forest Tenure and Economics Branch. Having a long career in forestry has allowed Faye to witness its evolution over the decades. 

“Environmental science hadn’t been established when I started, and the work was more field oriented and unpredictable. Also, pretty much everything started with manual labour. Even Annual Allowable Cut calculations were completed manually. I remember a supervisor walking into the office in the early nineties with the district’s first computer, plopping it down, and telling us that it was all the computer we would ever need.”

Attitudes towards female foresters have changed dramatically, too. “When I came north in the early 1980s, it was very acceptable for people to tell women that they didn’t belong in the workplace. Harassment and missed job opportunities were common; they were to be expected,” Faye says. “Many of these challenges are less prevalent today.”

“I’ve really enjoyed my career,” she adds, “and my successes were linked to the small northern communities that helped raise my kids as well as the support of my family and friends who helped with my work-life balance.” 

“Growing up, I knew many First Nations people who didn’t have access to basic health care,” Michaela Parenteau says, “and these inequities inspired me to study nursing at Lakehead.” 

Michaela—who’s from Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation near Dryden, Ontario—began working as a registered nurse (RN) in northern fly-in communities not long after she earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2018. She was excited to be recruited by Indigenous Services Canada through a new mentorship program.

Pictured left:  Michaela has a much more adventurous commute to work than most people.

“Since I was an undergrad,” Michaela says, “I’ve felt a calling to go to northern nursing stations to provide primary health care services to First Nations people living on reserve.”

She worked briefly in Wabaseemoong First Nation, a drive-in community outside of Kenora as well as the fly-in community of Poplar Hill near the Manitoba border. 

“Poplar Hill holds such a big part of my heart because it’s where I learned everything that I know,” Michaela says.

She soon built on her knowledge by enrolling in Lakehead’s Master of Public Heath (MPH) program and specializing in Northern and Indigenous Health. As part of their degree requirements, MPH students complete a practicum placement, and Michaela chose to do hers with the Northern Birthwork Collective in Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories.

“The Northern Birthwork Collective is a not-for-profit organization that advocates for reproductive justice for all birthing people,” Michaela says. “Being there was an amazing experience.”

Pictured right:  When Michaela (BScN’18/MPH’22/Cert NursP’23) arrived in Yellowknife to do her Master of Public Health practicum, she had to quickly adapt to severe winter temperatures. “It was -50C while I was there, but that didn’t stop me from going out to watch the spectacular shows that the Northern Lights put on every night.” 

The organization was a strong advocate for birthing people, especially during the closing of Yellowknife’s only obstetrical unit. 

“The closure forced all pregnant people to be evacuated to a larger centre, usually Edmonton, for the duration of their third trimester and the birth of their child,” Michaela explains. “Historically, First Nations women in northern Indigenous communities have been evacuated for births, but the Yellowknife closure created a lot of media headlines because it affected non-Indigenous women including government workers, military personnel, and teachers.” 

Pictured left: In April 2022, Michaela became part of Team Foxtrot—which consisted of interpreters, registered nurses, a nurse practitioner, and two physicians—and provided care for victims of the war.

Michaela was still in Yellowknife when she responded to an email seeking volunteers to go to Ukraine with the Canadian Medical Assistance Team after Russia invaded the country in 2022.

“I didn’t want to be a bystander who just watched the war on the news,” Michaela says. “What was happening in Ukraine reminded me of the colonization process that Indigenous Peoples went through.”

She was accepted onto Team Foxtrot, which was deployed at a crossing point on the Poland-Ukraine border where Michaela saw thousands of women and children trying to escape the devastation of the war. 

“Watching families say goodbye to each other as husbands, fathers, and brothers stayed behind to fight on the frontlines was heartbreaking,” she says.

The Foxtrot team returned to Poland every night. Every day, if it was safe, they travelled to Ukraine to staff a small primary care clinic in a refurbished train car. Foxtrot also had a mobile clinic that travelled into Ukraine to provide primary care and medications and to treat infected wounds caused by explosions and armed conflicts.

“Mental health and PTSD-related needs were very common, too. People were suffering from grief, depression, anxiety, and insomnia.” 

Michaela returned from Ukraine with a new resolve.

“My work overseas has carried over into the nurse that I am today and convinced me to become a nurse practitioner, as did my desire to provide better health care at northern nursing stations. 

Pictured right: Michaela is a nurse practitioner in Pikangikum where she works in two-week rotations. “Pikangikum is only accessible by plane or winter road so you’re either flying or taking the ice road,” Michaela says. When she’s not working, she is in her hometown of Wabigoon, Ontario, where she’s a volunteer firefighter.

Since receiving her nurse practitioner certification from Lakehead in 2023, Michaela has been able to increase her scope of practice. 

“It’s allowed me to act independently and autonomously,” she says.

For the past three years, Michaela has been working in the community of Pikangikum First Nation where her compassion and skill as a health-care professional is a step towards creating greater access to care. She is also rostered with the Canadian Medical Assistance Team so that she can step up when other humanitarian crises occur.

“I’m forever bonded with the Foxtrot team,” she says, “we witnessed what most people thought we would never see in our lifetime.”

WATCH VIDEO: "Nurse Practitioner Michaela Parenteau."

Carlin Val was only 14 years old when he went on his first climb, but he knew that he’d found his calling—even though he’s afraid of heights.

“The strength and the integrity of the equipment reassures me that I’m safe and that I’m having fun,” Carlin says.

Since then he’s reached the summit of two mountains in Peru and, as part of a fundraiser for the Canadian Mental Health Association, climbed the tallest mountain in North America—Mount Denali in Alaska.

“Mount Denali is about 6.1 km high, just over 20,000 feet,” Carlin says. “It took three weeks and the temperature was  -40 C. By the time my team summitted, we’d been climbing non-stop for 18 hours and we just made it back before a bad storm hit.”

It was this love of testing his limits that prompted Carlin to study outdoor recreation at Lakehead. The program gave him the opportunity to challenge himself and to spend time with like-minded wilderness enthusiasts.

“We went on an ice climbing trip near Nipigon, a voyageur canoe trip from Fort Frances to Kenora, and in my fourth year, a dog sledding trip,” Carlin says. “It was awesome!”

In addition to his Honours Bachelor of Outdoor Recreation (2008), Carlin earned a Bachelor of Arts (2008), and a Bachelor of Education (2009) from Lakehead. These degrees have come in handy in the life he’s built as an adventurer, an educator, and an entrepreneur. 

Carlin launched his company At Last Adventures in 2014 to offer expeditions and instruction in climbing, paddling, and caving. He also recently opened the first indoor climbing facility in Owen Sound, Ontario—where he and his family live—called the Climber’s Crush.

Pictured right:  At Last Forest Schools (ALFS) instruct children between the ages of 18 months and 12 years. All three of Carlin’s children—Willow, River, and Summer—attend ALFS in Owen Sound, Ontario.

Much of Carlin’s time during the school year, though, is taken up with running At Last Forest Schools (ALFS), which he and his wife Debbie, a fellow Lakehead education grad, founded in 2016. 

They’d hoped to enrol 12 students in ALFs first year of operation but, to their delight, 54 students signed up. Since then, demand has continued to grow, and the couple now have 13 locations in Southern Ontario and are working on a franchising model that will allow them to expand across Canada and into the United States. 

They modelled ALFS on the forest schools that were first established in Denmark in the 1950s. Like the Danish schools, ALFS offers children play-based learning in nature that ranges from climbing trees, building shelters, and fire lighting to birdwatching, hiking, and making crafts. This complementary programming to traditional schools—students attend ALFS one to two days a week—fosters resilience and independence in youngsters.

“We empower students to make decisions,” Carlin says. “For example, if a child wants to climb a tree, we ask them questions like ‘Have you ever climbed a tree before and is the tree alive or dead?’”

Pictured left: An ALFS student learns how to make a spoon.

Carlin has also discovered that forest school improves children’s focus when they are back in their regular classrooms, something that’s earned them the support of educators.

“We thought we’d face opposition from school boards, but they’ve been our biggest source of referrals,” he explains. 

Carlin’s intense work schedule doesn’t give him much free time, but even when he’s on vacation, he doesn’t like to laze around. During a recent trip to Utah, he and his family went slot canyoning, canoeing, and hiking. And he has even bigger plans for the future.

“When our three kids reach their teens, we’d like to take a year off to sail around the world,” he says.