Scott Meller moved to Fort McMurray in 1995. A graduate of Keyano College’s Music and Musical Instrument Repair Programs, Scott took a passion for music and the arts and applied it to his work with Campbell’s Music. Helping to guide and grow the business for more than 20 years helped Scott to develop deep roots in both the arts and business communities, while also establishing a home in the RMWB to start and raise a family. Now, with his wife, Natasha, and their two children, Scott applies his abilities to advocating for the arts and growing his skills and abilities. Scott is a Singer, Songwriter, and Poet with a passion for learning, spreading positivity, and discovering the artist in everyone.

Jes Croucher has been on the Board of Directors since June 2019. She is Nehiyaw from Fort McMurray No. 468 First Nation. She is a small business owner specializing in non-profit & small business finances and has over 20 years of experience in her field.

Jes reclaims her Nehiyaw culture & traditions through beading and fine crafting, as well as reading, watching, and listening to content put out by Indigenous artists. There is an important connection between art & history, and she believes in celebrating the role artists play in the legacy of Indigenous people.

Because her work & culture take her to different businesses and organizations, Jes enjoys taking the opportunity to connect people in her community. Jes advocates for Indigenized spaces, and strongly supports programming that works to uplift Indigenous communities. 

Jes has set roots in Fort McMurray with her husband and two children.

Born and raised in Winnipeg, MB and fully immersed in arts from an early age. Cathy enjoyed several wonderful years at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and as a guide at the Winnipeg Art Gallery. Music played a large part of her life as a musician in the school jazz band, concert band and later in the military band. Proud illustrator of two children’s books, Baby Braun Hockey Superstar and Baby Braun Basketball Superstar. As a teacher, Cathy taught in California, France, Grand Bahamas, Manitoba, and British Columbia until her life-journey brought her to Fort McMurray, the place she fondly calls “home.” Although she may have drifted away from the arts for the past few years in the pursuit of a career in safety and in emergency management, Cathy finds herself moving steadily back towards the culture of visual and musical creativity, where she feel most comfortable.

Alexandra is a born and raised Fort McMurrayite, and is no stranger to the stage. She started dancing at 11 years old at Taylor Dance Studio, and then moved to Keyano Conservatory dance program to study Modern. The dance program quickly grew and she was able to train in many styles of dance under the instruction of Nola Antony, Leah Moen, Julie Funk, Kim Hurley, and Linda Hovagimian.

She started teaching dance in 2008 at the Keyano Conservatory, and in 2012 helped open UpTown! at the Suncor Energy Centre for the Performing Arts where she teaches Modern, Musical Theatre, plus many more styles. She was also the Choreographer for the Theatre; Just Because performance of Evil Dead: The Musical, Keyano Theatre’s performance of The Great Gatsby, and the Waypoints Dinner Theatre productions in collaboration with Theatre; Just Because.

Mitchel (he/they) is a two spirited Métis artist who uses drag as their main artistic medium. They use their drag persona Simma Downe to embrace and express their feminine spirit. Mitchel grew up in Ontario where they were taught traditional hunting and fur harvesting. As an artist Mitchel has experience working with traditional mediums including wood, clay, furs and painting as well as theatre and technical arts. Mitchel is the founder of the local drag troupe the Oil Royals, where they produce, host and perform at local events throughout the region. They are also an activist for equality in Wood Buffalo as the Pride YMM Committee Chair and sit on the municipal appointed committee RACIDE. 

Nabil is a progressive and creative contributor (in a small way) to the cultural fabric of our region. He is a strong advocate of the arts' vital role in placemaking, creating vibrant communities, and fostering a sense of identity and belonging.

He has witnessed the impact ACWB has had on the local arts ecosystem and the broader region. As Chair and Vice-Chair of the RMWB Public Art Committee, Nabil has had the opportunity to see how well ACWB works with partners to make lasting and meaningful opportunities for artists. He has always thought of ACWB as an essential institution within our region; however, as a Board Member with the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, he has also realized its importance within the broader provincial arts ecosystem. Since moving to Alberta from Ontario, he has had the honour and privilege to serve on many boards for organizations. Many of his appointments have been with organizations in transition, and he believes that ACWB is currently going through a transition as it looks to establish the region’s first arts incubator. Nabil has the experience to support the path that ACWB will be taking from a governance perspective and through his professional understanding of the developing process within the region. He believes the next few years are very exciting for ACWB, and would like to play a role in the excitement. He has deep roots within the community, and is proud to call the region his home. It is his fundamental belief that it is through the arts that great communities are built. The work that ACWB does daily helps support and strengthen our region’s cultural fabric for the betterment of all residents and visitors. 

Dawn Booth is a community journalist, communications expert, storyteller and poet. With 20 years of experience in the print media field, the Humber College journalism graduate has worked as a newspaper and magazine editor in the Wood Buffalo region for over a decade. She was born and raised in the Ottawa Valley but Fort McMurray is where she made her career and started her family of five, including her husband, two sons and daughter.

In the community, she is an ambassador for the literary arts and the President of the Northern Collective Society of Writers, which is a volunteer-based committee that publishes the literary magazine, NorthWord, bi-annually. As a poet, she won awards and accolades from organizations and institutions, including the Arts Council Wood Buffalo, the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo and the Wood Buffalo Regional Library.

Dawn looks forward to creating and promoting more community opportunities for literary artists of all ages within Fort McMurray Wood Buffalo.

Harmanjit is a Mechanical Engineer by profession and has worked in food processing, aerospace, automobile and the oil and gas industry for the last 25 years. Harmanjit and his wife have lived in Fort McMurray for almost 16 years, raising two kids. His son is in High School and daughter is enrolled in an Engineering Program at the University of Alberta.

In his spare time, he is a long-distance runner (Marathoner), with hiking and skiing being two main hobbies – got to love the winter here!

Harmanjit is a core member in the Fort McMurray Sikh Society and a Food Bank contributor. He is excited for the opportunity to be able to contribute towards Fort McMurray’s arts and culture community. Serving on the ACWB Board is a great opportunity to get involved in the community and utilize his industry experience to help Arts Council succeed in its mission and goals. This is a learning and development opportunity for him as well as an opportunity to support the growth and success of the arts. 

Harmanjit calls Fort McMurray home and has a strong sentimental connection with this town, wanting it to flourish and become an even more vibrant community. He believes Arts and culture play a huge role in bringing community together. 

Having been a resident of the region for over twenty years, Theresa is deeply committed to improving the quality of life for all those who call Fort McMurray Wood Buffalo home, whether through her volunteer or professional roles.

She believes ACWB plays a critical role in the region. In a community often identified solely by a commodity, the development and fostering of a vibrant arts community is essential not only for the many artists who have chosen to live here, but to address the external image we often encounter. She believes her previous experience on the ACWB board was a gift for her own personal and professional development. After having been away from the board for several years, she believes she has further honed her personal skills and experience and has come back to board with a fresh perspective. Theresa brings experience from several different sectors of her personal and professional life, including municipal governance and administration understanding and strong relationships with Indigenous Peoples in the region.

Early life brought a passion to learn music which led Bill to study music at Concordia University in Montreal, rooting the musical foundations which led to working in Musical Theatre, Canadian Military, Orchestral work, and several years at sea in Theatre Show Orchestras.

Although his career path led him far from music experience, he has maintained connection via the community concert and jazz bands, helping young bass students develop skills and Keyano Theatre (Les Misérables).

As Bill transitions from his current career back into music, he hopes to lend myself to supporting arts in our community. For Bill, what was a passion as a young person, became a self-identity, a meaning to his life goals. The voyage led him around the globe to experience many situations. He feels all should learn that access to arts is not for a special cast of magically endowed people, but, the learning, self-awareness, and gratification is something we all have access to within our own selves.

A transplanted Nova Scotian, Dave has made Wood Buffalo his home in 2007. "Back home" and here he has served on boards for numerous social profit societies, focusing on those who promote recreation and arts. Locally, he has been seen in many theatrical productions at Keyano Theatre, Katie’s Playhouse, and most recently with the local comedy troupe he co-founded, ThunderStruck Improv.

Dave is very excited to be a part of the ACWB board of directors, and promises to put his skills in social profit governance to good use while promoting the theatre and theatrical scene here in Wood Buffalo.

Liana Wheeldon is a graduate of Emily Carr College of Art and Design and is a professional visual artist. Since moving to Fort McMurray in 2009, Liana has been an active volunteer and arts advocate in our community.

Prior to joining Arts Council Wood Buffalo in 2016, Liana’s extensive leadership career was primarily in ‘big box’ retail, as a manager, mentor, and coach. Her introduction to the social profit sector was as the Wood Buffalo Regional Manager administering the Royal Conservatory of Music’s  Learning Through the Arts program in 2014/2015.

In her time away from her responsibilities as ACWB’s Executive Director, Liana maintains an active art practice, and enjoys creating, reading, and traveling. www.lianawheeldon.com

Phone: 587.674.1625 x100
Email: [email protected]

Luay is a Lebanese-Canadian arts & culture manager and theatre artist living in Wood Buffalo since 2004. He holds an MA in Contemporary Performance Making (Brunel University London), a BA/BEd in Drama (University of Alberta) and a Certificate in Project Management (University of California, Irvine). Prior to joining Arts Council Wood Buffalo, Luay has worked as the Programs & Communications Manager for the Multicultural Association of Wood Buffalo, which has further developed his passion for nurturing an inclusive culture and positive sense of community among people from all corners of the globe. As a theatre artist, Luay has worked as a writer, director and audiovisual designer on projects across Canada, and the United Kingdom. His local theatre credits have included Freeing Heaven’s Secrets (2019), Sexy Laundry (2018), Grease (2008) and Beauty and the Beast (2006) among others. He founded theatre company Symmetree Theatre in 2019, which aims to share stories that empower marginalized members of our society. www.luayeljamal.com

Phone: 587.674.1625 x102 / Email: [email protected]

Sharon is a graduate of Ryerson and has studied at Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Grant McEwan University, and Keyano College. With extensive experience in the social profit sector and ten years in real estate, she brings a unique perspective to her work as an Arts Consultant, helping other people find opportunities to realize their artistic dreams. Sharon is strong advocate for the role of art in community building. As such, she is a long time member of the Municipal Public Art Committee and is currently their chair. On an artistic level, Sharon has always had a passion to be creative and it spills over into all aspects of her life. Sharon’s current primary artistic practice is painting and drawing, and she has experience in fine craft and fibre arts.

Phone: 587.674.1625 x105
Email: [email protected]

Akshaya Lakshmi is an Indo-Canadian creative artist local to Fort McMurray. She holds a Bachelor of Medical Sciences (2020) with a focus in Anatomy and Physiology from Western University. During this time, her passion for the arts continued as she partook in the Elective Music program in Voice Performance.

Growing up in Fort McMurray, she delved into the world of arts and culture: music, visual arts, theatre, and dance. Captivated by all forms, she continues to actively pursue all disciplines and is currently adventuring into videography and editing. Akshaya proudly embraces her Indian heritage, performing and teaching various forms of Indian classical dance and music. 

In her free time, Akshaya can be found baking cakes, watching musicals, writing songs, and playing instruments (except guitar - currently in progress). She is excited to be a part of the talented team at Arts Council Wood Buffalo and give back to the wonderfully diverse arts community in Wood Buffalo.

Phone: 780.880.8586
Email: [email protected]

Donna is the Rural Arts Support Liaison for the North and works out of Fort Chipewyan. Her role includes working with rural residents to co-envision and develop new initiatives, programs, and services to meet the unique needs of Fort Chipewyan residents, while enabling community-at-large to engage with the arts, crafts, traditions of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.

Phone: 780.381.5705

Email: [email protected]

Originally from Sweden, Fridhed is an actor, director, writer, and arts administrator who started in the performing arts during her university days. Fridhed has a Bachelor of Arts and two Bachelor of Science degrees from Lund University and recently received her certification in Contemporary Arts & Cultural Management from the University of New Brunswick.

She is proud to participate in the arts locally and provincially through her newly founded theatre company Swamp Rat Experience, which she co-directs with her partner Zenon Campbell, as well as Secretary of the Board for Alberta Drama Festival Association (ADFA), and as a Director-at-Large for literary publication NorthWord. She has previous experience as the Artistic Director of Theatre; Just Because and Secretary of the Board for Theatre Alberta. Hanna is thrilled to be a part of the creative and colourful arts community of Wood Buffalo.

Email: [email protected]

Byron Gard is a graduate of Saskatchewan Polytechnic receiving a diploma in Recreation and Community Development (2021). After growing up in Stonewall, Manitoba, Byron spent his time in Saskatchewan working and attending school. He has recently made the move to Fort Mcmurray in 2022.

Prior to joining Arts Council Wood Buffalo, Byron was the Recreation Director for the Town of Whitewood, Manitoba. Through this position he was able to develop his passion for recreation, programming, and community development.

Byron is the only "non-artist" on the team as he grew up in the sports community playing hockey and baseball. He is still playing as of today! Byron is excited to learn about the arts community and bring his knowledge and experience in the recreation community to the Wood Buffalo arts community.

Phone: 587.674.1625 ext.105

Email: [email protected]

Treasure is a self-taught Métis artist. Using multimedia, stories and knowledge from Elders in the community, she explores the Métis and Indigenous culture through her art. 

Treasure is proud to be part of the artist group ‘The Northern Crones’ and has shown her work with them since 2018. Some of her public art pieces include sculptures featured on the Total One Aboriginal Interpretive trail at Macdonald Island. They are entitled "Honesty" and “Rose.” She was commissioned in 2018 to paint the "Education is our Buffalo" mural located at the front entrance of St. Kateri Catholic School. A second mural was installed onto Dr. Clark School in 2021 featuring the 7 grandfather teachings and the Métis sash. Most recently, a third mural was installed on Composite High School. Treasure’s beadwork entitled "Solstice" is featured on the cover of NorthWord Magazine Vol. 4 issue 5. 

Treasure has called Fort McMurray home for over 25 years and has raised her family there. 

She is a member of the McMurray Métis and until recently worked as their Cultural Coordinator. As lead of their Arts and Culture Programs she developed the Beading network, Traditional craft, Paint Night, Coffee Cree Chat social group and was instrumental in developing the Crafty Kids Club.

Treasure is looking forward to a new adventure working within the Indigenous communities with Arts Council Wood Buffalo as their Rural Arts Support Coordinator.

Email: [email protected]

Chanè is a mixed-media artist. She enjoys the messiness of the paint and the rhythm of the drums. Holding a note is a fun pastime and the pencils never rest. Art has always been a part of her life and she is always willing to broaden her horizon with new ways of making art. 

Never sitting still, being out and about in nature is a favourite pastime. Hikes, long walks, and cycling, are just some of the many outdoor activities she indulges in. She completed her Office Administration program at Keyano and thus soon after found her place at Arts Council Wood Buffalo.