Mental Health Summit: Promoting Wellness in Trades, Industry and Agriculture  

Careen is the Community Engagement Facilitator with the Resource Centre for Suicide Prevention in Grande Prairie and currently facilitates 14 different workshops under the CONNECT program. She has a BA in Sociology and Psychology and is a retired social worker with over 30 years’ experience in crisis intervention, trauma response, psychological health & safety, and mental health promotion. In addition to being a facilitator for Psychological First Aid and Trauma-Informed Care, Careen is an Approved Instructor with the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation and one of two Alberta Trainers for the national Peer & Trauma Support Systems with the Mood Disorders Society of Canada.

Careen has worked with a variety of people of all age groups and diverse backgrounds. She spent over 10 years working with AHSEMS to provide psychological supports before, during and after critical incidents and disasters including the Slave Lake Fire Disaster, Fort McMurray Fire Disaster, Southern Alberta Flood, and the North Zone (Chuckegg Creek Fires). Careen was a plenary speaker at the World Congress on Stress, Trauma & Coping in Baltimore, Maryland and co-presented with an Australian colleague about collaborative efforts to provide support to first responders during and after wildfire disasters. Prior to her time with AHSEMS, Careen was with AHS Community Mental Health in crisis response, suicide prevention, and mental health promotion for approximately 15 years.

Kelly Gallant has a Master of Education degree specializing in Work and Learning from UCalgary and has been instrumental in designing Leadership for Safe Workplaces, Hazard Management, and Incident Investigation training for the Energy Industry. Viewing human potential through a human and organizational performance lens, she is passionate about health and happiness of humanity - for the future of work.

Tracy is the Director of Men’s Mental Health for the Resource Centre for Suicide Prevention and serves as the Coordinator for the Tough Enough to Talk About It program. With over 24 years of professional and lived experience, Tracy holds a Master Facilitator designation with the Mental Health Commission of Canada (15 years) and is a certified Critical Incident Stress Management Instructor through The International Critical Incident Foundation (18 years).

Michael Green (he/him), originally from a coastal town in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, deeply values mental health support, having grown up in a resource-limited environment. His diverse career has taken him across provinces and industries, from hospitality and sales to social enterprise and advocacy. Currently, he serves as the Community Engagement & Training Coordinator at the Canadian Mental Health Association, Alberta Division.

An Amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton) resident for a decade, Michael has spent much of that time supporting and leading grassroots advocacy work across rural Alberta with fearless whimsy. His work in 2SLGBTQ+ education and mental health support taught him the revolutionary power of sustaining hope through connection, storytelling, and empathy. When he’s not pondering the perfect metaphor to describe a frustratingly complex topic, you can find Michael listening to astoundingly niche science podcasts or walking his baby-faced rescue dog, Davey, in the beautiful river valley.

Agency Founder and Senior Human Resources Consultant Danielle Hessler is driven by action, drawing her energy from seeking results and solving complex problems. Her dynamic 15-year HR career spans all key areas of Human Resources, specializing in employee and labour relations, performance management and recruitment.

Danielle’s passion lies in supporting her community, providing valuable HR consulting services and working with businesses to effectively recruit qualified people that match their company values. She shows her dedication to keeping up with new and emerging industry trends by staying engaged with learning and development to generously share her knowledge and empower others.

Janene is a Registered Social Worker living and practicing in Fort McMurray, AB. Since 2003, Janene has been working in the field of mental health and wellness in both the public and private sectors.

Janene provides clinical support through her counselling practice, Wellness Solutions Inc. and facilitates national trainings, including Mental Health First Aid, Psychological First Aid, and ASIST
(Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) throughout the province.

Janene makes space for conversations about mental health and wellness, enabling opportunities for increased understanding, empathy, and support.

Janene believes in the healing powers of laughter and meaningful connection, and takes advantage of opportunities for both everyday!

Dr. Connie Korpan is a Psychology Instructor in NWP’s Department of Humanities and Social Sciences. In recent years, Dr. Korpan’s research has focused on the needs of the Grande Prairie community through two major community enhancement research projects. After securing competitive Tri-Council funding, Dr. Korpan worked in partnership with numerous community stakeholders, leading an investigation into the evaluation of Grande Prairie’s PACT (Police and Crisis) Team. She also oversaw a project addressing low community connection and engagement among youth, using the innovative methodology of Youth Participatory Action Research.

Kris Marks is an inspiring keynote speaker and community advocate, Kris empowers audiences with a captivating blend of lived experience, professional expertise, and immersive storytelling.

Kris is a Certified Psychological Health & Safety Advisor through the Canadian Mental Health Association and focuses much of his work on facilitated training, resource, and program development. Previously he was employed in the trades for fourteen years as a Journeyman Machinist, apprenticing at a machine shop in Grande Prairie during the first 3 years of his career. Kris is a vocal advocate for men's mental health awareness and supporting mental health in the trades and construction industries.

A lifelong musician and performer, Kris recently co-founded a therapeutic music program called Instrumental Health which is being used to aid in addiction recovery. He is an accomplished keynote speaker, stand-up comedian, an active harm-reduction and outreach volunteer, and the producer of three health podcasts for the Alberta Cancer Foundation.

Tammy Monro is the Public Education and Outreach Director for the Resource Centre for Suicide Prevention where she oversees the development of the Connect and Youth programs. Tammy has a background in Psychology and Crisis Intervention with nearly 15 years’ of experience in the field supporting individuals in crisis and bringing awareness to mental health and suicide prevention. Born and raised in the Grande Prairie area, she has chosen to remain here to work and raise her two teenaged children. Tammy has lived experience with mental health challenges of her own and supporting her children with theirs, which is what led her to field of mental health and helping others in similar situations.

Dave Nix manages the ConocoPhillips’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and has been with ConocoPhillips for over 13 years. His 24 years of EAP experience has taken him from military bases in Iraq during the war to the oil fields on the North Slope of Alaska. He has serve on the Employee Assistance Credentialing Commission (EACC) and chaired the EACC in 2020. Dave is currently the President of Employee Assistance Roundtable (EAR) and serves on the Employee Assistance Professionals Association (EAPA) Board of Directors.

Dave has a master’s in clinical psychology from University of Houston-Clear Lake. He is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Master Addiction Counselor and Certified Employee Assistance Professional.

He is married and has three active teenage boys. His hobbies include officiating High School Football, scuba diving, backpacking and being a scoutmaster.

Trish is the Owner and Operator of Counselling Now where she is a Clinical Social Worker and Clinical Supervisor. She has over 30 years’ experience in the helping field working with individuals, couples, and families. Trish has worked as a Camp Director, a Child Protection Worker, a Learning Consultant, a Mental Health Therapist and an Instructor at the University of Calgary and Northwestern Polytechnic. Trish has cultivated skills for having tough conversations that are respectful, direct and strength-based.

Lauren Van Ewyk is an engaging speaker, registered social worker, foster mom and agricultural mental health advocate. She has appeared in numerous radio, television and print articles concerning the issues of adoption, foster care, mental wellness and mental health in the agriculture sector.

She and her husband raise sheep in southwestern Ontario. She is a doctorate student, founding member, and CEO of the National Farmer Mental Health Alliance; Lauren seeks to meet the needs of farmers and their families across Canada and the US.

Kelley Winter has worked in Health and Safety since 2003, starting her career as a safety administrator for a small company and has had the opportunity to receive education, training, and hands on field experience to become the Director of HSE, Canada for Northern Mat & Bridge. Kelley is an advocate for Mental Health for all workers, including Health and Safety Professionals and believes through honest transparency, discussions, and education of employees we can bring this topic to the forefront for the protection of all employees and their families. Kelley and the NMB team has worked endlessly to implement Mental Health Training, most recently working with Buddy Up to start the conversation of Suicide Prevention in the workforce. It is imperative that a Health and Safety Professional is prepared to deal with the trauma of incident investigations, can shoulder when necessary the balance of being a worker advocate, and a representative of the employer. Ultimately this means that HSE professionals will at some time in their career have to deal with their own trauma and mental health due to the nature of their chosen profession.

Prior to her time in safety, Kelley worked as the AIDS Yellowknife Manager offering respite care to HIV patients and their families and educating individuals on grief, loss, healthy sexuality, diversity, and inclusion. Earlier in her career, Kelley had the opportunity to work as a Victims Services Coordinator which included volunteer trainer in incident response, support for Victims of Crime, and was one of the few that provided Critical Incident Stress Debriefing to the Yellowknife RCMP detachment under the umbrella of the Canadian Mental Health Association. Dealing with victims and their trauma has provided insight into those who work as advocates and play a large role in Mental Health. With a background in supporting people, workers and employers Kelley believes there can be more resources in training provided to HSE professionals especially in taking care of yourself in this role.