MAR. 26, 2018 – BURLINGTON, ON – Today, PetSmart Charities of Canada announced four new members have been appointed to its Board of Directors. Dr. Michelle Lem, Mr. Malcolm Khan, Mr. Nils Kravis and Mr. Sean Williams will bring expertise from the veterinary, investment, restaurant and pet retail sectors respectively. They will join a board comprised of community leaders from the corporate, philanthropic, animal welfare and financial industries to provide governance and oversight to a leading Canadian charity dedicated to saving the lives of homeless pets and bringing people and pets closer together.
Dr. Michelle Lem, DVM, MSc, MSW Candidate
Dr. Lem is a veterinarian, research scholar and the founder of Community Veterinary Outreach, a registered charity that improves the health of homeless individuals and their pets through a One Health model of care. By offering human health services and education alongside preventative veterinary care for pets, Community Veterinary Outreach provides access to both veterinary and human health care for underserved and homeless populations in Vancouver, BC, Winnipeg, MB, Halifax, NS, as well as in Ottawa, Toronto, the Golden Triangle and York Region of Ontario. Dr. Lem will be completing her MSW in July, adding to her knowledge of and direct experience with vulnerable and at-risk populations with pets. As PetSmart Charities of Canada has a grant category focused on keeping people and their pets together during challenging life circumstances (such as experiencing homelessness or escaping situations of violence), Dr. Lem will be an invaluable member of the board. Michelle lives in Ottawa, Ontario with family including their German Shepherd, Allie.
Mr. Malcolm Khan, MBA, FICB, CIM
Mr. Khan has been an investment banker for the past 36 years and has extensive experience both on the buy and sell side. Mr. Khan was most recently the managing director and head of investment operations for Canada’s largest pension fund. His responsibilities included management of a cost-efficient and scalable investment platform; business improvement process and diligence for one of the largest hedge funds in the world and full responsibility for the firm’s business continuity planning and execution. Prior to that, Mr. Khan was the COO and business planning director for the Institutional Equity Department of one of Canada’s largest investment banks. Mr. Khan’s investment background will help to ensure the financial portfolio at PetSmart Charities of Canada remains healthy, transparent and poised for growth. Malcolm lives in Oakville, Ontario, with his wife and two children. The family fondly remembers Peaches, their much-beloved Chihuahua, who recently passed away.
Mr. Nils Kravis
Mr. Kravis has more than three decades of experience leading and managing the growth and expansion of retail restaurant operations in food service chains in Canada and across the globe. He's personally helped to transform the Canadian foodservice and hospitality landscape by opening close to 500 restaurants, developing leading restaurant brands and building teams of professionals that have received numerous accolades like being named Canada's Restaurant Company of the Year. He is currently launching a new artisanal pizza concept called RAD Pizza. Mr. Kravis’ experience in the retail and food service sector will support PetSmart Charities of Canada, which receives more than 80 percent of its donations in PetSmart’s retail stores from shoppers who generously choose to donate to help pets in need using the PIN pads at the registers. Nils lives in Oakville, Ontario, with his wife Jennifer, their collective four children and two Golden Retrievers named George Michael and Hudson.
Mr. Sean Williams
Mr. Williams has worked at PetSmart since 2009, holding increasingly senior roles across the company’s merchandising, pricing and supply chain teams. In 2017, he was promoted to Vice-President of Merchandise Buying and Pricing at PetSmart Canada. Giving back is a core value for Mr. Williams who has volunteered with the United Way of Oakville, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Toronto and is also the co-founder of the LWW Foundation. His in-depth knowledge of the PetSmart business and operations paired with his strong belief in philanthropy will be an asset to the board at PetSmart Charities of Canada as many of the charity’s signature adoption events and donation drives are achieved thanks to a strong and rewarding partnership with PetSmart stores across Canada. Sean lives in Oakville, Ontario with his wife and two children and a very vocal beagle named Penny.
To view the entire list of the Board of Directors or to learn more about how PetSmart Charities of Canada is helping to reduce pet homelessness while bringing people and pets closer together, please visit www.petsmartcharities.ca.
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About PetSmart Charities® of Canada:
PetSmart® Charities of Canada is committed to finding lifelong, loving homes for all pets by supporting programs and thought leadership that bring people and pets together. Through its in-store adoption program in all PetSmart® stores across Canada, PetSmart Charities of Canada helps to find forever homes and families for more than 25,000 shelter pets each year. PetSmart Charities of Canada also provides grant funding to registered Canadian charities aligned with its mission under four key areas of support: Preventing Pet Homelessness; Helping Shelter Pets Thrive; Supporting the Bond Between People and Pets and Providing Emergency Relief and Disaster Support. Each year, more than 500,000 generous PetSmart shoppers help pets in need by donating to PetSmart Charities of Canada using the PIN pads at checkout registers inside PetSmart stores. In turn, PetSmart Charities of Canada efficiently uses more than 90 cents of every dollar donated to fulfill its role as a leading funder of animal welfare in Canada, granting more than $14 million since its inception in 1999. PetSmart Charities of Canada is a registered Canadian charity, a member of Imagine Canada and is independent from the PetSmart business in Canada. To learn more visit www.petsmartcharities.ca
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