Eat Your Words 2015

Apryll Aileen is a unique singer, songwriter, actress and performer. She has blessed the ears of thousands of listeners and awed audiences as her fingers graced the grand piano ivory keys.

With a soulful and groovy style, her first single "Hey Sugar" made it a full week on 97.3 The Wave Radio's Battle of the New Sounds! Her second recorded song, “Butterflies” is the soundtrack song for LA based Actor/Writer/Director Cayman Grant’s short film, “Butterflies”.

She has also worked on set for the feature film "Dominion" with LA Director Steven Bernstein. The film features prominent actors John Malkovich, Rhys Ifans and Zosia Mamet to name a few. 

Apryll is currently working on her first album (EP) due out in September 2015, with Toronto based producer/writer Kenny Munshaw. Munshaw has written with and produced many artists from Justin Bieber, The Tenors, Beverley Mahood to 2012 Miss America, Laura Kaeppeler. 

The album will be mastered by Scott Hull who has mastered albums for Sting, Steely Dan, John Mayer, Bob Dylan and more!

www.apryllaileen.com

www.facebook.com/ApryllAileenMusic

@ApryllAileen

Sports Tourism Coordinator - City of Fredericton

With over 16 years experience in different capacities in the Sport and Recreation Field, including a 4.5 year stint in Inuvik NWT. Bobby Despres has been employed with the City of Fredericton since 2007. He worked as a Recreation Officer until taking on his new role as Sport Tourism Coordinator in July 2013. Bobby has been involved in the planning and organization of many National Championships prior to taking on the role of Sport Tourism Coordinator and has been involved, in some capacity with numerous National Championships since. In his role as Sport Tourism Coordinator, Bobby works with sporting groups at the local, provincial, national and international level to leverage sport as an economic driver in Fredericton.

Bobby has taken on key roles in the following events:

2003 -  Arctic Winter Games Trials

2011 - U19 Boy's Canadian Fastpitch Championships

2012 - U18 Boy's Canadian Fastpitch Championships

2012 - Senior Men's Canadian Fastpitch Championships

2014 - U16 Boy's Canadian Fastpitch Championships

2015 - U18 Boy's Canadian Fastpitch Championships

Although the foundation of organization of events comes mostly from Softball, Bobby has learned through experience that the basic foundation of hosting a quality National Championship is the same throughout every sport.

Kilburn is a native of Fredericton and, since the age of 16, has been involved in the performing arts. As a young step and tap dancer in the mid 1960s, Kilburn would take the city bus from Fredericton to Oromocto and Silverwood to teach her first handful of students. By 1970, her class sizes really began to increase, and she traveled to the United States to further train and build upon her dance repertoire, where she was first introduced to the style of jazz.

By the 1980s Kilburn was in demand for lessons all over the region. She began sending some of her top students to teach classes at satellite studios to fill demand. Over the years, Kilburn has held classes in Nackawic, Burtts Corner, Keswick, Oromocto, Chipman, Minto, Doaktown, Fredericton Junction, New Maryland, MacAdam and Harvey – each location with its own year-end recital to celebrate with families, the progress of the students.

Kilburn has been teaching for 48 years, and this year marks the 40^th anniversary of her Dance Spectacular at The Fredericton Playhouse.  What began as a hobby for Kilburn so many years ago has grown into a community mainstay, which now operates out of a 9000 square foot facility on the Hanwell Road with five dance studios, lots of common space for parents to observe, a nice reception area, and two administrative offices.

Very proud of what she has built from the ground up, Kilburn explains that “the children and adults that join our school develop a lot more than just dance; they also develop self confidence, leadership skills, basic social skills, and long list of those they can call a friend.”

Brandon Brewer grew up in Nackawic NB and attended UNB where he studied Mechanical Engineering for 3 years, and also served in the Canadian Forces for 3 years. After realizing his passion for boxing at the age of 23, he decided to put school on hold and left the forces to pursue his dreams. Since starting boxing 6 and a half years ago Brandon has turned professional and acquired an undefeated record of 13-0-1 6 kos. He has won the 2012 n 2013 Atlantic Canadian Fighter of the Year, along with 2012 Fight of the Year, and won the a Canadian Light Middleweight Title in 2014. He has recently traveled to the states for his last 4 fights and won them all, with 3 of them by KO. He has also recently signed with Lee Baxter Management out of Toronto and has an upcoming fight May 23rd here in Moncton NB. You can usually find Brandon at any of the local gyms or running at the UNB Wood lot with his rottweiler Samson.

Brent has been doing the KHJ Morning Show for the last 17 years.  Brent is a member of the Minto Country Music Wall of Fame as well as the New Brunswick Country Music Hall of Fame.  Brent has interviewed George Jones, Mel Tillis, Ray Price, Whisperin’ Bill Anderson, Terri Clark, Paul Brandt, The Road Hammers, Doc Walker, Brett Kissel, Michelle Wright, Tommy Hunter, Stompin Tom Conners and even Mr. Dress-Up. 

Brent is married to Rosie and has two children..Emma (13) and James (4). 

When Brent isn’t talking, listening or thinking about Country Music he likes to golf and cook.  Brent is also a 30 year member of the Nashwaaksis Lions Club.  Brent also helps organize The Fred Fulton Musical Tribute in Minto, with money raised going to the music programs in the Minto/Chipman schools.  Please bid on me, I hate eating alone!! 

Diane Henry has been a permanent fixture with Brent Buchanan on the KHJ Morning Show as co-host and news anchor for more than a year.  (Since Sept 3, 2013).

Before that, she was working as a part-time News Anchor and fill-in Morning Show Co-Host with Astral, now Bell Media, for two years. 

Simultaneously, Diane was the Manager of the Western District with the Canadian Cancer Society of New Brunswick. She managed several large fundraising events, including Relay for Life and Curl for Cancer, among others.

Before that Diane was the Content Producer and Host of Rogers TV's signature news show First Local, launching the very first live daily-news show for the cable network. Leading a team of nine reporters, Diane was responsible for development of program content, style, pacing, line-up, and leading host.

Diane has worked overseas in China, teaching journalism; and, graduated from the University of Kings College with a degree in Journalism.

In her spare time, Diane is interested in concerts, art, live theatre, film, photography, reading, and wine; and has a newfound passion for golf, curling, and the Montreal Canadiens. 

Brian Macdonald MLA, Fredericton West-Hanwell

Brian Macdonald, MLA for Fredericton West-Hanwell, has an extensive background in the military and in politics.After high school, Mr. Macdonald enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces, and studied politics and history at the Royal Military College of Canada. He continued on to graduate studies in England at the London School of Economics where, as a Mackenzie King Travelling Scholar, he earned his Masters Degree in politics.A member of the Royal Canadian Regiment and the Branch 4 Legion, Mr. Macdonald served in Petawawa, Gagetown, and overseas; he twice commanded troops in Bosnia. He worked on the currency exchange project in support of the Iraqi Ministry of Finance, and he helped coordinate international support to the drug control strategy with the Afghan Government.As Senior Policy Advisor for Defence Minister Peter MacKay, he was part of a small team that developed the Canada First Defence Strategy and worked on the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy. For his work to replace Canada’s armoured vehicle fleet, Mr. Macdonald was awarded a Commendation by the Commander of the Canadian Army. He was named in the newspaper Embassy as one of the Top 60 Influencing Canadian Foreign Policy.He has been active in various community organizations and charities, including the Duke of Edinburgh’s youth citizenship award program.Mr. Macdonald was elected to represent Fredericton-Silverwood in the September 27, 2010, provincial election. He served as the Government Whip, and was named Legislative Secretary to the Premier, responsible for Intergovernmental Affairs and Military Affairs. He introduced the motion to dedicate the Highway of Heroes in New Brunswick, worked on job protection legislation for reservists, extended veterans plates to motorcycles, and introduced a Private Members Bill to give modern veterans priority hiring in the civil service, which was passed.He was re elected in the September 22, 2014, provincial election as the MLA for Fredericton West-Hanwell. He is a member of the Legislative Administration Committee and the Standing Committee on Procedure, Privileges and Legislative Officers.

Marketing/Special Events Manager, UNB Varsity Reds Athletics.

Dave has been part of the Fredericton Community since childhood. A graduate of FHS and UNB, he spent almost 30 years in the local radio business as a sports broadcaster, morning show host, program director and marketing director. This included 9 seasons as an award winning broadcaster in the American Hockey league with the Fredericton Express and Fredericton Canadiens. For the past 15 years Dave has been the “Voice” of UNB Varsity Reds athletics, handling the operation of game events and marketing with corporate partners. Supporting local charities, whenever possible,  is one of Dave’s passions!

David Bowen is a District Education Councilor with the Anglophone West school district.  He also owns and operates Bowen’s Restoration, a local masonry and general contracting business.  David is actively involved with his children’s schools and is fast becoming the go-to guy for baking his delicious pies and cookies for various school events.  David has long had a passion for sports, playing high school football with the FHS Blackcats in his youth and now playing hockey in the old timer’s league.  He is ready to jump in the nets at a moment’s notice.  He has been a volunteer coach for the FDSA, Fredericton Boys Fastpitch association, and CAMFA and is currently studying for level two of his Football refereeing certificate.  Rest assured that if you have lunch with Dave there will never be a dull moment.  Some might say he can carry on a conversation with ease.

MLA, Fredericton South

David Coon, leader of the Green Party of New Brunswick, was elected to the Legislative Assembly by the people of Fredericton South on September 22, 2014. Mr. Coon, his wife, Janice Harvey, and daughters, Laura and Caroline, live in Skyline Acres, in Fredericton.After earning a science degree at McGill University, Mr. Coon worked as an environmental educator, organizer, activist and organization manager for 33 years, 28 of those years with the Conservation Council of New Brunswick (CCNB). He began his career providing education and training in energy efficient home renovations and home-based renewable energy systems. While at the Conservation Council, Mr. Coon’s campaign for the legal protection of municipal drinking water supplies led to the enactment of New Brunswick's Clean Water Act. His work to protect private wells from gasoline contamination resulted in the creation of the Petroleum Product Handling and Storage Regulation. This safe drinking water advocacy earned CCNB the United Nations Environmental Programme's Global 500 Award. Mr. Coon’s expertise in sustainable energy systems was brought to bear in the establishment of Efficiency New Brunswick, the regulation requiring NB Power to source electricity from renewable sources, and in the development of New Brunswick's first climate action plan. He received the silver medallion from the Canadian Environmental Achievement Awards for his work to advance public policy on climate change, both provincially and nationally.Mr. Coon has been a relentless advocate for community-based ecological resource management and land use. In collaboration with fishermen's organizations, he spearheaded an effort to create the Bay of Fundy Fisheries Council to advance community-based approaches to fisheries management. He also collaborated with the National Farmers Union to create the first agricultural conservation club in New Brunswick, and he has worked with communities and woodworkers to advocate for the establishment of community-based forests on Crown lands.He was a founding director of Harvest Share Co-operative in Keswick Ridge, Canada's first community supported agricultural initiative. He is a founder of the New Brunswick Community Land Trust and is past director of the Ganong Nature Park. He is active in the United Church of Canada and studied to be a licensed lay worship leader. Mr. Coon was born in Toronto, and raised in Dollard-Des Ormeaux, Québec.

David McTimoney is the Superintendent of Schools for the Anglophone West School District.  He has been a school superintendent for the past 5 years.  David has also served as a classroom teacher, vice-principal, principal and learning specialist.  He graduated from UNB-Fredericton with an MEd in Educational Administration and a BSc in Biology-Mathematics-Statistics as well as STU with a BEd in Secondary Sciences.  David went to high school at Oromocto High.

David enjoys most sports and physical activity as well as traveling with his family.  He currently coaches his son's Pee Wee hockey team.  David's wife is a teacher and they have two school aged children.

Naz was most recently Sean Kingston’s OFFICIAL DJ, he is a well-known and trusted person in the music business, Nasty’s career was set in motion while living in the Caribbean working with established artists within the industry. He has performed in Paris, New Zealand, Australia, UK, Saudi Arabia ( 2010 Formula 1, Gulf Air Grand Prix) , Virgin Islands and recently, he came back from doing a show in Jamaica with Shaggy, Beenie Man, and an entire slew of artists, with the proceeds going toward the Haiti relief fund.

He has been chosen as one of the capital region’s most talented musicians and has represented the province of New Brunswick on an international stage in Vancouver for various performances at the 2010 Winter Olympics. He performed alongside acts like The Olympic Symphonium, Singer-songwriter David Myles, and acclaimed Soprano Opera Singer Measha Brueggergosman . He has completed Atlantic Tours with acts like Multi Platinum Pop sensation Sean Kingston, and supporting acts like Danny Ferenandes, Karl Wolf, and Girlicious. He was invited personally to attend and DJ a B.Day Bash for Russell Simmons in Miami, and serve his famous Coconut bread from his award winning restaurant – Caribbean Flavas.

He has also completed cross-Canada Tours with acts like Mr Konvict himself Akon & Kardinal, Super Performer and Producer Wyclef & Dancehall Legend Sean Paul, as their tour DJ, hypeman & Chef.

He has rubbed shoulders at the prestigious Mansion club, in Miami with acts like Lil Jon, Lil Scrappy, Dj Khaled and Twista. Nasty hosted the Snoop/Ice Cube concert and was also the official DJ and Chef. He was also hand chosen by the Black Eyed Peas to DJ Portion of the concert for the BEP and Pussy Cat Dolls Canadian Tour.

He was nominated by Flow 93 Toronto, MuchMusic, Stylus & Rogers Wireless as the Best DJ in the East Coast, six years in a row (2006 – 2011)). He has also hosted / stage managed the Canada Day celebrations for his city of Fredericton and helped to judge Dj competitions like the DMC’s. He has also been on tour and hosted many different concerts and events, from artists like the Game and Snoop to DMX, and the Fugees. He has also hosted many different charity events for organisations like Cystic Fibrosis, Breast Cancer and raised money for the prevention of abuse towards women.

In addition to this he spent 4 weeks as the DJ and host for the Coors light Maxim Magazine Club Tour. DJ Nasty Naz has also been involved in the public relations, tour promotions, as the personal tour Chef and interviewing sessions and has even performed with numerous artists including, but not restricted to, Flo- Rida, Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, Timbaland, Pitbull, Alexisonfire, Classified, Akon, Rhianna, Rise Against, K-OS, Leonard Cohen, The Trews, Eva Avila, Hedley, DMX, Sean Paul, Dr Jay.- Kingdom of Soca, Lauryn Hill, Swollen Members, Method Man, Theory of a Deadman, Sizzla, Default, Super Cat and Capleton.

Dominic Cardy has been leader of the New Brunswick New Democratic Party since March 2011, focusing on making the party an organized, effective and responsible alternative to the province's traditional governments.

Mr. Cardy has worked to strengthen and promote democracy around the world. He was based for many years in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Cambodia and Nepal, where he served as senior staff for the National Democratic Institute, an American democracy promotion agency, managing multimillion dollar programs and a large staff.

Mr. Cardy, an expert on political party reform and elections and electoral systems, has worked with dozens of political parties and governments from Afghanistan to Southern Sudan to Australia, and with international figures such as former US President Jimmy Carter.

Mr. Cardy worked for the Canadian government on the campaign to ban land mines and for the New Democratic Party at the provincial and federal levels, in Nova Scotia and in Ontario. He served as the elected rep for constituency office employees across Canada in the federal NDP's staff union, now a local of the CEP.

Mr. Cardy grew up in Fredericton where he attended George Street Jr. High and Fredericton High School. He has a BA in Political Science from Dalhousie University in Halifax and lives in Fredericton with his wife, Margot.

Fred McCausland is the host of the Freddy Mac Show on 105.3 The Fox. He’s been doing that for 20 plus years now. He loves what he does! Keeping a former “career, ” alive , Fred has also appeared on stage with Theatre New Brunswick, most recently starring in The Musical Of Musicals in 2013. Fred also enjoys speaking and sharing his personal story, throughout the year, to groups, organizations, and individuals as part of his addiction recovery journey.  His favourite things include his son Jack, his fiancé Natalie, his dog Mojo, the gym and the odd round of golf.

Mark has been a radio fixture in Fredericton for nearly 30 years.  He currently shares the airwaves with Fred McCausland weekday mornings on 105.3 the FOX!

Mark is a native of Baddeck in Cape Breton and is a singer-songwriter with one album to his credit. He’s also a big  sports fan, and is active in many sports himself. He freely admits he sucks at golf.

Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) award winning writer / director / producer Gia Milani’s debut feature film, All the Wrong Reasons, starring the late Cory Monteith (Glee), Karine Vanasse (Revenge), Kevin Zegers (Transamerica) and Emily Hampshire (Cosmopolis) had its world premiere at TIFF in 2013. 

The film won several awards including the Grolsch Film Works Discovery Prize at TIFF, the Script Accessible Award at Slamdance, and the Viewer’s Choice Award at the Silver Wave Film Festival.  She was also named as one of TIFF’s Top Canadian film talents to watch by CBC and Telefilm Canada.

Gia is a founding board member of Women in Film and Television Atlantic and she is about to begin her term as an elected delegate representing New Brunswick for 2015/2016 at the WGC National Writer’s Forum.

Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development Attorney General

Serge Rousselle, was first elected to the Legislative Assembly on September 22, 2014, as a Liberal MLA for the riding of Tracadie-Sheila and was sworn in on October 7, 2014, as Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development and as Attorney General. He is a member of the Policy Board, the Jobs Board and the Legislative Instruments and Regulations Board.He holds undergraduate degrees in political science and law from the University of Ottawa as well as a Master of Law from the University of Cambridge and a Doctor of Law from McGill University. After being abroad for his studies, he returned to Tracadie-Sheila and was a professor at the Université de Moncton law faculty from 1992 to 2014. He served as dean from 2000 to 2004.Mr. Rousselle has also held various positions in organizations at the provincial, federal, and international level. Among other positions, he was head of the Bureau des Amériques of the Agence universitaire de la Francophonie, was President of the Council of Canadian Law Deans as well as President of the Association des juristes d’expression française du Nouveau-Brunswick.

Jake Allen is the goalie for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League. Allen took over main goaltending duties down the stretch this season for the Blues, helping lead the squad to the Central Division title. Born in Fredericton in 1990, he was the 34^th pick overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

Allen played for the Midget "AAA" Canadians and was drafted in the third round of the QMJHL draft to the St. John's Fog Devils. After one season with the Fog Devils Allen was picked to play for the Under-18 World Hockey Championship in Kazan, Russia where he won gold. Allen was named tournament MVP.  The following season, Allen was picked to play in the World Juniors in Saskatoon, winning silver and posting 4 wins and 1 loss (in the final). That same year, Allen posted a save percentage of .933% and 1.75 GAA, winning the Jacques Plante trophy as goalie of the year in the QMJHL in 2009–10.

This season with the Blues, Allen played 31 games with a 22-7-4 record. He recorded 4 shutouts, posted a 2.28 GAA and a save percentage of .913.

Jake Thomas is a defensive tackle for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL.  

He was drafted 29th overall in the fourth round of the 2012 CFL Draft by the Blue Bombers and signed with the team on May 11, 2012.

He spent his CIS football career with the Acadia Axemen where he  played in all eight games in his final season and finished second in the AUS conference with nine sacks, on his was to being named a second-team All-Canadian for his efforts. 

The two-time AUS All-Star also played for Team Canada at the 2011 IFAF World Championship in Austria and won a silver medal.

Jason Lutes is the owner of Power Plus Technology Inc, Magnetic Hill Irving and Crossroads@Hanwell Irving.  Jason completed his education at UNB Fredericton.  He completed a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and quickly realized that his true passion was being a small business owner.  Jason purchased Magnetic Hill Irving and quickly grew the business into one of the busiest service stations in the Moncton Area.  Jason knew this one store wasn't challenging enough for him so he purchased a lot in Hanwell New Brunswick in 2012 and started planning his new project to build a high tech, never seen before one stop shop.  His dream came true on June 23, 2014 when the Crossroads finally opened. Crossroads@Hanwell features Irving gas, a convenience store, Quiznos and Burger King.  In October 2015 Jason won the ANBL agency store for Hanwell NB.  Crossroads has quickly become the local one stop shop. 

Jason is married to Krista and has two small boys, Caleb and Ethan. Jason enjoys camping, sledding, dirt biking and travel.  Jason is involved in many different community organizations in both Moncton and Hanwell New Brunswick.   

Jim Gilbert, Canada’s Huggable Car Dealer! In 1979 at the young age of 21 Jim married his sweetheart Dawna (Seeley) and together they started their life long journey of raising a family and building a business. With a hope and a prayer they set out with 1 car for resale and never looked back. Taking that 1 car and growing it to an offering of 160 vehicles for resale, on a six-acre customer experience that has no equal. Now they employ over 26 team members. Their business model is based on Success is the Hug: Give first and pay it forward would be the foundation of Wheels and Deals long-term success. Do not wait for someone else to do it, show leadership, step up and stand out. Do not follow the crowd. Growth and success comes to the risk takers.

Operating Wheels and Deals Jim knows it is the journey, not the destination. Their marketing style has set, raised and is the bar that not only the vehicle sales industry aspires to but so do many other numerous industries in North America. Canada’s Huggable Car Dealer has been the “go to” model at many conferences and conventions across Canada and United States. Recently, Wheels and Deals was featured in Minneapolis by Apple, Victoria BC and Quebec by The Seamless Brand Group, and Calgary by TEC Canada. Wheels and Deals is featured in many business books to date including #1 selling business book “Stick Branding” (Jeremy Miller),“Currencies that Buy Credibility” (Tom Wanek), “Nuts, Bolts and a Few Loose Screws” (Gair Maxwell), “It’s Never too Late to Become a Millionaire” (Michael Hrankowski), and Bill Bishop’s “The Problem with Penguins.

In 2014 Jim & Dawna truly made Wheels and Deals a family business. Son Alex and Daughter Chelsea are now part of the ownership team and run all day to day affairs of the family business. Jim and Dawna have three grand children (Reese, Charlie Gilbert and Gilbert Davis).

Keith Hallett is a musician from Hanwell, New Brunswick. Keith has been touring nationally with his band for the last 8 years.  Playing for the good folks in Newfoundland all the way to the beautiful British Columbia.  As well as touring, Keith has been a large part of the Fredericton music community.

He has played the Harvest Jazz And Blues Festival every year since 2006 and has done numerous charity events over the years.

Keith has had the opportunity to share the stage and open for many of the blues greats such as, Junior Watson, Lazy Lester, Buddy Guy, Sonny Landreth just to name a few.

Being a proud New Brunswicker, Keith is always happy to be home and spreading the joy of music to the wonderful Maritimes Provinces.

Krista Ross is CEO of the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, a position she has held since September of 2011.  A business executive with over 25 years of results driven experience in industries ranging from association management, to printing and communications, to real estate management.  She has been a successful entrepreneur, business owner and mentor  in Fredericton, co-owning an award winning printing franchise for 14 years. Krista is a skilled negotiator, community builder, team leader, collaborator, & economic development driver.  Prior to owning her own business, she held the position of General Manager of the Fredericton Chamber from 1989 to 1997.  Krista lives in Fredericton with her 9 year old daughter Rachel.

Levi Lawrence, founder of Real Food Connections, is a cook at heart, a passionate entrepreneur with and a total self confessed food geek.

With 8 years in the food and beverage industry as well as an undergraduate business degree from the University of New Brunswick he has been working to transform our local food industry in NB since 2010. 

Real Food Connections is currently a local food grocery business representing over 130 small and medium scale food producers in Southern NB. They have a grocery store, a web store and offer wholesale distribution to other retailers, restaurants and institutions. Their main priorities are Traceability, Accountability and improving the food culture and agriculture in NB. 

While Levi is the lead entrepreneur for Real Food Connections, his wife Kim and parents Catherine and Bev are full partners and lend structure and practicality to his big ideas.

Marianne Limpert

Marianne grew up in Fredericton, graduated from FHS and even though she spent several years training and competing around the country and all over the world, she always considered this her home.

She was a proud member of the Canadian National Swimming Team for 15 years and participated in three consecutive Summer Olympic Games (1992, 1996 and 2000), winning a silver medal at the 1996 Olympic Summer Games in Atlanta, Georgia in the 200-metre individual medley. During her career she represented Canada in more than 100 international competitions, winning over 80 international medals, and was inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame in 2007. She was also a member of the CBC broadcast team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Marianne retired from competitive sport in 2005 and now works in Customer Service at NB Power. Giving back and volunteering whenever she can, she currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Sport NB, Swim NB and the Fredericton SPCA.

She enjoys spending time with her family and is mom to two adorable little dogs adopted from the Fredericton SPCA - a Shih Tzu named Coco Chanel and a Maltese named LouLou.

President & CEO - New Brunswick Community College

Marilyn Luscombe, New Brunswick Community College’s first president and CEO, was appointed to her position effective January 1, 2011. In her first four years at NBCC, Marilyn has been responsible for leading the College forward from being part of a government department to its current Crown Corporation status. Her leadership has also entailed moving NBCC from a six-college structure to a new One College - One Team structure through a year-long, intensive reorganization process. The College also undertook a five-year strategic planning process in 2011-2012, contributed to by 1048 individuals both internal and external to NBCC. The Board of Governors launched the new plan - Imagine the Possibilities – NBCC 2012-2017 - in November 2012. During the first three years of implementing the plan, three major accomplishments have been the acquisition of Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council funding to establish an Industrial Research Chair in Mobile First Technology; the launch of NBCC’s first-ever Alumni Association which now has over 4500 members; and the establishment of NBCC’s Community Leadership signature learning experience and the Robertson Institute for Community Leadership.

Marilyn is a native of Newfoundland and Labrador, and has extensive experience in publicly-funded community colleges, both at the College of the North Atlantic for fifteen years and at Selkirk College, BC, where she had most recently served as President and CEO for over ten years (2000-2010). Her leadership with her colleagues at Selkirk resulted in enhanced services for students including: increased investments and partnerships for the college, the establishment of a research centre in GIS and a Research Chair in Rural Economic Development, and increased support for the College's Mir Centre for Peace.

Earlier in her career, Luscombe worked in a variety of roles at colleges in NL, including: instructor, Director of Student Services, Coordinator of International Initiatives, Director of Planning, and Vice-President Academic. In June 2010, she completed three years as Board Chair of the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) within her six-year elected tenure on the Board.

Other experiences have included: Chair of the Canadian College Presidents' Network and the Presidents' Academy; guest faculty and chancellor of ACCC’s National Executive Leadership Institutes; speaker for the Canada-China Forums; ten-year term as a Board Trustee for the Western Regional Hospital Corporation (NL); and Chair of the Committee on Family Violence (NL), for which she was awarded the National Lifestyle Award for Community Voluntarism.

Pam Lynch was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick on September 27, 2010, representing the riding of Fredericton – Fort Nashwaak.  On September 22, 2014, Ms. Lynch was re-elected as the Progressive Conservative MLA for the riding of Fredericton – Grand Lake.  She is also very honoured to be the first female MLA to be elected in the City of Fredericton.  Pam has recently been appointed Caucus Chair for the Official Opposition.

Born in Kingsclear, New Brunswick, Pam is a long-time resident of the City of Fredericton.  After graduating from Fredericton High School, she went to work for the New Brunswick Civil Service and in 1991, started a legal services business which thrived through dedication and a reputation built on excellence in customer service.  As a self-employed business woman, she understands the importance of working hard to achieve success.

Ms. Lynch has a long history of helping people and giving back to her community.  She has been a volunteer on many committees, boards and charitable organizations including: Fredericton Women’s Executive, York Care Centre, past Board Member Fredericton Transition House, past Board Member Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, Wine # Food Fest – Canadian Diabetes Association, Feast In the Field – Canadian Paraplegic Association, Fredericton 150 Anniversary Gala Bal, Lobster On the Lawn – Canadian Red Cross, Dinner # Auction – Canadian Red Cross, Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival, Ambassador – NB Association for Community Living.

Pam’s hobbies include politics, world events, fitness, knitting, reading and volunteering.  She is married to Pat and they have two dogs Coco and Corey.

Rivers Corbett, MBA is an award winning serial entrepreneur, speaker, consultant and author of "13 Fears of Entrepreneurs" and "10 Insider Secrets all Business Owners Must Know."He has received numerous business honors including Entrepreneur of the Year, Canada's Hottest Start-ups List and Canada's Fastest Growing Companies list through Profit magazine and recognized as one of Canada's 10 Mentor RockStars..Rivers is presently a member of Startup Canada's National Advisory Council, host of StartUP Canda Live and founding entrepreneur of StartUP Fredericton. Most recently, he was the Entrepreneur in Residence at the University of New Brunswick.Through his company My RockStar Business...he works with startUP and emerging entrepreneurs. Rivers has a great talent designing "4 Hour Work Week" business systems for StartUPS  AND helping businesses turn their marketing into a "turnkey" revenue asset.As an Entrepreneur...... his success comes from building ideas that "zag while everyone else zigs"...like his companies The Chef Group, and the Relish Gourmet Burgers restaurant chain.In his spare time he relishes snowboarding, boating, riding his motorcycle, watching NFL games and of course, spending time with his family

Rufus Nel - Director of Tennis, Abony Tennis Center

Leaving South Africa in 1994 and settling in Vancouver with his newly wed wife Karen, Rufus quickly got involved in the tennis business in Canada. Successfully running the tennis department at Hollyburn Country Club in West Vancouver Rufus established himself as one of the leading Tennis Directors in Canada winning Tennis Canada's facility of the year award. Not only was Rufus successful off court, he trained one of Canada's top juniors reaching the finals at the Junior French Open. 

After nearly 30 years coaching and running tennis clubs Rufus decided to study a business degree at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver. As if running a club, studying part time was not enough, Rufus decided to train for the Iron Man Canada event. 

Experiencing this mid life crisis it was time to move on. Rufus applied as a Senior Director for Tennis Canada in the Prairies where in his new role would be to build tennis in the region. Uprooting his family and moving to Saskatoon which lasted close to 3 years, he was soon asked to join Tennis Canada at their head office in Toronto as Director of Community Development. One of his many roles was a member of the national facility advocacy committee, where he was involved with the Abony Family Tennis Center project. Well the rest is history, Rufus for the 3rd time uprooted his family (two teens) and is now settled in Fredericton. 

With Rufus as your lunch date you will hear many great stories about immigrating, uprooting a family as well as some true South African experiences growing up in the apartheid era. To find out more, bid now. Who knows he might even throw in a 1 hour tennis lesson.

Ryan “Crash” Barton – Local actor and host of Capital FM’s Afternoon Drive show.

Hubby to Erin, Daddy to Holly (and her unborn sister) and a personal slave to two cats.

Scott Sampson - Singer, Scotty and the Stars

Scotty and the Stars is an award winning children’s musical entertainment group that delivers positive messages, encourages active participation and promotes musical education through original music and enthusiastic live performances. Scotty and the Stars recently won the Kids’ CBC Viewer Voted Song Search and made their national television debut for their award winning song “Time to Get Up” which now airs on Kids’ CBC. They also won the 2012 Music NB award for “Children’s Recording of the Year” and are also three time ECMA nominees. The release of their highly-anticipated fourth album “Dancing Like a Dinosaur” is an exciting step for Scotty and the Stars as they expand their music across North America and solidify themselves as one of Canada’s premiere children’s musical entertainment groups.

Sean Dunbar is the owner of Northampton Brewing Co.,

the brewers of Picaroons Traditional Ales.  

He makes, drinks and talks about beer for a

living. 

Lucky guy! 

Sean also played for the Priestman Street School Hockey Team a few years back.

Nuclear Physicist-Author-Lecturer Stanton T. Friedman received his BSc. and MSc. Degrees in physics from the University of Chicago in 1955 and 1956. He was employed for 14 years as a nuclear physicist by such companies as GE, GM, Westinghouse, TRW Systems, Aerojet General Nucleonics, and McDonnell-Douglas Astronautics working in such highly advanced, classified, eventually cancelled programs as nuclear aircraft, fission and fusion rockets, and various compact nuclear power-plants for space and terrestrial applications.

He became interested in UFOs in 1958, and since 1967 has lectured about flying saucers at more than 600 colleges and 100 professional groups in all 50 U.S. states, all 10 Canadian provinces and 18 other countries.. He has published more than 90 UFO papers and has appeared on hundreds of radio and TV programs including on Larry King in 1997, 2007 and twice in 2008, and many documentaries. He is the original civilian investigator of the Roswell Incident and co-authored “Crash at Corona: The Definitive Study of the Roswell Incident”. TOP SECRET/MAJIC his controversial book about the Majestic 12 group, established in 1947 to deal with alien technology, was published in 1996 and went through 6 printings. An expanded new edition was published in 2005. Stan was presented with a Lifetime UFO Achievement Award in Leeds, England, in 2002, by UFO Magazine of the UK. He is co-author with Kathleen Marden (Betty Hill’s niece) of a book in 2007: “Captured! The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Experience”. The City of Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, declared August 27, 2007, “Stanton Friedman Day”. His book “Flying Saucers and Science” was published in June, 2008, and is in its 4th printing. His newest book “Science Was Wrong: Startling Truths about Cures, Theories, and Inventions ‘They’ Declared Impossible” with Kathleen Marden, was published in June, 2010. On July 2, 2010, he was inducted into the Roswell, New Mexico, UFO Hall of Fame for his long term investigative efforts on that important case. For a number of years he has written a monthly column ”Perceptions”  in the MUFON Journal.

He has provided written testimony to Congressional Hearings, appeared twice at the UN, and been  a pioneer in many aspects of ufology including Roswell, Majestic 12, The Betty Hill-Marjorie Fish star map work, analysis of the Delphos, Kansas, physical trace case, crashed saucers, flying saucer technology, and challenges to the S.E.T.I. (Silly Effort To Investigate) cultists. He has spoken at more MUFON  Annual Symposia than anyone else.  He wrote the forward for the book  published in May 2012“The Aztec Incident” by Scott and Suzanne Ramsey, and the  2013 book by Kathleen Marden and Denise Stoner “The Alien Abduction Enigma: Is It Real?”.He was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by Open Minds TV in 2013.

Hollywood has optioned two of his books “TOP SECRET/MAJIC and “Captured! The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Experience” for possible motion picture treatments.Titles will be” Majic Men” and “Betty and Barney”.

Deputy Premier Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Minister of Justice Minister responsible for Military Affairs

Stephen Horsman was first elected to the Legislative Assembly on September 22, 2014, as the member for Fredericton North, and was sworn in as Deputy Premier, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, Minister of Justice, and Minister responsible for Military Affairs on October 7, 2014.He graduated from Oromocto High School in 1980. He received his bachelor of arts from St. Thomas University in 1985, and a bachelor of education in 1986. During his time at St. Thomas, he was a two-time recipient of the John Frederick Walls Award for Excellence in Academics and Athletics and was named Most Valuable Player of the basketball team six times. He was a three-time male athlete of the year and was also awarded the Sports Governing Board Medallion for his outstanding contributions to STU Athletics.Mr. Horsman graduated from the Atlantic Police Academy in 1987. He served as a police officer for the City of Fredericton for 25 years before retiring. He has experience as a supply teacher and coach and has served as a volunteer on various community boards and committees.Mr. Horsman and his family reside on Fredericton’s north side.

Steve Butler is the Owner/Operator of Yard Gear and the General Manager of Sunpoke Energy Systems. Steve has been a business owner and active community volunteer for over 20 years. A native of Newfoundland, Steve has called New Brunswick home for over 14 years. Working with fellow business owners and community volunteers, Steve brought Touch A Truck, an event used to raise money for the Sargeant Mark Gallagher School in Haiti, to Fredericton/Hanwell. Collectively, this work has raised over $60, 000 in the last three years.

If you’re interested in talking Touch-A-Truck, chainsaws or lawn tractors, take me to lunch for a good cause and a little learning.

Councillor Steven Hicks

Steven was elected to Fredericton City Council in 2008 and is currently serving his second four-year term as City Councillor after being elected in May 2012.

Councillor Hicks is currently working with the provincial government, as a probation officer in the Department of Public Safety.

Councillor Hicks is currently a member of the Transportation Committee, the Community Services Committee, and the Negotiations Liaison Committee. He is also a member on the Killarney Lake Master Plan Advisory Committee and the Fredericton Exhibition (FREX) board.

He graduated from St. Thomas University in 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Criminology & Psychology.

Councillor Hicks was a member of the Fredericton Senior Royals Baseball Club for six seasons and is currently a member of the team’s Board of Directors.

Councillor Hicks is a life-long resident of Fredericton and continues to reside in Marysville with his wife, Angela and daughters, Grace and Sophia.

Susan Cassidy is originally from the west, having been born in Alberta with her early years spent on the Prairies. Her career has taken her from Halifax to Ottawa and finally to the Fredericton area in 1990. She retired in 2010 after a 38 year career in administration with the federal government. As a resident of Hanwell for the past 20 years she decided to stay in New Brunswick as it is now her forever home!

Susan believes it is important to participate in the community, which can be fun and rewarding, and has been a volunteer for various organizations. She was a volunteer member of the Hanwell Local Service District Advisory Committee from 2006 to 2014 and is a Past President of the Fredericton Botanic Garden Association. Being one of the founding members of the Hanwell Community Development Association she helped to obtain land which the Association is developing as the Hanwell Recreation Park. After being elected Mayor of Hanwell in 2014 Susan also became a member of the new Rotary Club of Hanwell.

The position of mayor is allowing her to continue to serve in the community and hopefully help to build a strong foundation for the future development of Hanwell. In her spare time Susan enjoys gardening, baking, and bird watching, and loves cats.

Susan Holt is passionate about business in New Brunswick and growing our province's economy. That's why she accepted the Premier's appointment to serve as Chief, Business Relationships of the newly created Jobs Board, advising Cabinet and the Premier on economic policy. Prior to this challenging role, she was President and Chief Executive Officer of the New Brunswick Business Council, a unique group of 23 CEOs of NB's largest and most respected businesses.

Raised in Fredericton, she has gone from her first job scooping ice cream at Tingley's to working in sales and HR roles around the world with companies like Xerox, HP and Blackberry. Susan returned home in 2007 and has been supporting our city and province's businesses since. If you want the inside scoop on NB's economy, bid on lunch with Susan!

Terry Seguin has been in Broadcasting for almost 40 years. For 4 decades, Terry has been asking questions, holding politicians accountable for public policy decisions they make, and helping Canadians tell their stories. Over his career, Terry has interviewed Prime Ministers, Premiers, a President and Presidential candidates. Terry has won several Regional and National awards for his Journalism. Terry has hosted several National programs, including Newsworld Morning, Midday and The National/Saturday Report.

 Terry is married and has 2 children

Tim Yerxa is the Executive Director of the Fredericton Playhouse (NB), where he is responsible for the overall operation and development of Fredericton’s premiere performance venue. He oversees an annual multidisciplinary presentation series of 40+ performances as well as an extensive education and outreach program. He has also produced several projects for the Playhouse, including world premiere production of The Bricklin by Allen Cole and Paul Ledoux, which he commissioned in 2009. Under his leadership, the 709-seat venue was named Organization of the Year (2003, 2010) by the Canadian Arts Presenting Association (CAPACOA), the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce’s Business Excellence Award – Community Impact winner (2008), and Venue of the Year (2006, 2007, & 2009) by the East Coast Music Association. He was the first recipient of the New Brunswick Foundation for the Arts’ Caisses populaires acadiennes Arts and Cultural Managememt Award in 2009.

He has volunteered with a number of organizations including serving as chairman of Fredericton’s prestigious Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival from 1997 until 2000 and the 2008 East Coast Music Awards and Conference. Tim is a past president of the Canadian Arts Presenters Association (CAPACOA) and the Atlantic Presenters Association (APA).

Fredericton’s #1 Morning Show wakes you up weekdays starting at 6am. Trevor Doyle is the veteran of the show and is a  well known member of the Fredericton community. Trevor loves his wife and family very much and is passionate about radio, his motorcycle and animals. Melody Robinet is new to Capital FM and Fredericton. Mel was born in Windsor, Ontario but has fallen in love with the Maritimes and more specifically our fine city! Mel has known that she wanted to be an entertainer from an early age when she would go door to door and charge people a nickel to come watch her perform on her front porch. She’s been following that dream ever since!

Growing up in a small community in New Brunswick Tristan's life, personal experiences and strong family values would inevitably find themselves embedded in some of his songwriting.

 Tristan has grown up with the musical influences and aspirations of one day following in the footsteps of his idols Alan Jackson, Waylon Jennings and Brooks and Dunn.

Tristan along with his band members have performed with some of the biggest names in country music such as The Stampeders, Confederate Railroad, Dean Brody, George Canyon, Jimmy Rankin and Travis Tritt to name a few. 

Tristan's current album “A Little Bit of Alright” came out on Royalty Records/Sony Music Entertainment Canada in 2014 with rave reviews, chart topping singles and the title track recently received a Canadian Radio Music Award nomination, which will the winner will be announced in May at Canadian Music Week in Toronto. This has helped pave the way to a bright career ahead for Tristan. With a 3rd album underway, it's full steam ahead for this east coast country artist. 

2014 World Senior Mens Curling Champion

Wayne has represented New Brunswick at 10 National Curling Championships. He competed in three (3) Briers, Three (3) Mixed Championships and four (4) Senior Men’s Championships.

He was silver medalist at the 2000 Brier in Saskatoon. He was also a silver medalist at the 2008 and 2009 Canadian Senior Men’s Championships. He finally made his breakthrough by winning the Gold medal at the 2013 Canadian Senior Men’s in Summerside P.E.I. After winning the Canadian Seniors he went on to win Gold at the 2014 World Senior Men’s Championship in Dumfries Scotland. This past season he went back to Senior Nationals and won a Bronze medal. Wayne is one of the most decorated curler’s in New Brunswick with a total of 1 Gold, 3 Silver and 1 bronze medal at the National Championships as well as 1 Gold medal at the World Championships.

When not curling Wayne is employed by the City of Fredericton as the Director of Public Safety. He is responsible for Police, Fire, Emergency measures operations and By-Law enforcement divisions.

Wayne has been curling for 44 years and curls out of the Capital Winter Club in Fredericton and he is also the incoming President of the CWC.

Highlights:

1999, 2000, 2006 – New Brunswick Provincial Men’s Champion

2000, 2001, 2003 – New Brunswick Mixed Champion

2008, 2009, 2013, 2015 – New Brunswick Senior Men’s Champion

2013 – Canadian Senior Men’s Champion

2014 – World Senior Men’s Champion