Most charities in Canada are governed by a voluntary Board of Directors. This group of individuals is legally responsible for overall governance. Generally speaking, this means that staff are responsible for day-to-day operations and decision making, while the Board provides leadership, direction, and oversight through, for example, the development of long-term strategic plans and organizational policies. They’re also responsible for making some of the bigger decisions such as approving the budget.
Our 9 Board Members are talented, generous, and dedicated volunteers that meet once a month. We have diverse members who each bring their experience, insights, and even expertise to help ensure that our day-to-day work stays on track as we keep an eye on future direction. To do this properly, especially in a highly collaborative organization like ours, we need to have a Board that actively engages and is ready to learn and get their hands dirty. Our Board does this beautifully and we’re lucky to have them!
Establish and hone governance framework – from bylaws, committee constitution, and budgets, to Board recruitment processes;
Develop long-term plan and objectives;
Support the organization’s financial stability through careful monitoring and even participation in fundraising;
Cultivate positive relationships, attend events, be spokespeople, and contribute to organizational life and culture;
Ensure that governance at the Roulant (including the Board) reflects our personality and aspirations;
Select, evaluate, and work with the Executive Director
If you want more info about the role of a Board, you can consult our bylaws on the publications section of our site.
Carole Déry
Board member – Executive Director, Cuisines Collectives du Grand Plateau
Santropol Roulant is my neighbor, my partner at work, my bike repair shop, my Friday’s stop to eat soup or buy vegetables, my “model NPO” that I want to know better and help, in short, my new volunteer commitment for the coming years! After 35 years in international consulting firms, I chose to finish my career in the community sector, allowing me to give back to society. Food safety and waste interest me, culture inspires me, cooking and oenology delight me, and the conservation of our planet matters to me. Thus, I am pleased to be involved within the board of directors where I intend to share my ideas and my business and governance knowledge. I hope that my pragmatism, my determination, my proactivity, and my team spirit will contribute to the well-being of the members. Le Roulant is a wonderful organization on the Plateau that has a soul and that carries us away!
Claire Aubert
Chair – Economic Development Commissioner, City of Montreal
On a bike ride in July 2016, shortly after my arrival in Montreal, I came across the idyllic place of Santropol Roulant. It’s love at first sight and I started enrolling to volunteers shifts in the kitchens, while becoming a happy client of the organic baskets … and finally being one of the lucky few to take care of the gardens in Roy street. Being there, every Thursday from 4 PM, learning the foundations of gardening, felt like sheer joy and empowerment. I strongly support the mission of Santropol Roulant and am very proud to join the Board of directors, bringing my knowledge and enthousiasm for everything related to organisations development to the table.
David Ouellet
Board member – Union Representative and Advisor, SEOM
I’m very excited to share with Ville-Marie’s community (my neighbors), Plateau’s and the central boroughs community healthy and energetic food. With almost a decade of experience working for the union movement including two years as legal staff of a Little Italy’s non-profit for injured workers, I contribute to the Roulant my knowledge of labour law and administrative law. During the day, I am proud to advise teachers and to contribute to their essential mission in solidarity. Also, I’m partial to pizza, cookies and I’m a big fan of Brave my rescue dog.
Emilie Poitout
Vice-Chair – Family Doctor
Delivering meals by bike for Santropol Roulant is how I got to know the streets of Montreal, so I am thrilled to now be on the Board of Directors. As a Family Doctor I hope one day to be able to prescribe food. Many of the chronic diseases that affect my patients could be prevented or better managed with access the healthy nutrition. Santropol Roulant’s mission echoes strongly in my values for those reasons.
Guillaume Charpenel
Board member – Entrepreneur
Good ideas and meaningful endeavors should spread quickly to create a positive impact. Santropol Roulant embodies this spirit, bringing people together through food and community. I’ve seen firsthand the difference it makes—its energy and purpose are palpable even before stepping through the door. As an engineer and entrepreneur with deep community involvement, I’m committed to helping the Roulant harness its innovative culture and expand its reach for even greater impact.
Lennyg Tercero-Estrada
Board member – City Manager
For me, Santropol Roulant is an emblem of community and collective action. The values of the SR shine through in all its members, and I hope to contribute to its development. I am passionate about cycling and outdoor activities; I particularly enjoy spending time exploring the city of Montreal. My interest in urban agriculture and beekeeping reflects my commitment to sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. At the same time, I have a deep passion for social justice and community inclusion, always seeking to promote equity and support initiatives that foster diversity and access for all. I firmly believe that every action, no matter how small, can contribute to positive change in our society.
Noémie Desbiens Riendeau
Secretary – Organizational development consultant and human resources manager
Even though I first got immersed in the Roulant’s unique culture thanks to my agricultural background and my deep love for food, it is while taking on the intern and then the urban agriculture program manager roles that I developed a special fondness and passion for group dynamics and the human processes that help teams work better together. It is hence highly inspired by my 5 beautiful years spent as a Roulant employee that I started my current professional path as an organisational consultant and HR manager. My personal and professional missions are to cultivate life in all of its forms, whether it is with plants or people! It is with this double expertise and love for food and relationships that I hope to support the Roulant as a board member. And as the line between giving and receiving often blurs in such a special environment as the Roulant, I also hope to continue to absorb and inspire myself from its inner ways of working, and inadvertently share my learnings into all the spheres where I gravitate.
Olivier Rénald
Treasurer – Accountant
It was during one of my many family walks with my little dog Émile that I discovered the Roulant,
a few days after moving into the neighborhood. Immediately, I felt the call for collaboration. Le
Roulant combines two pillars in my values: positively influencing my community and developing
awareness on everything surrounding food, from agriculture to processing, including education
from an early age. It is therefore as a chartered professional accountant that I am joining the
Roulant Board of Directors and that I am committed to sharing my skills in finance and
governance of non-profit organizations, acquired while serving similar organizations as a partner
at Demers Beaulne. In my free time, you will see me navigate between my two passions: music
and cooking!
Sebastian Roy-Heaton
Board member – Chef and trainer
Having grown up just a block away from the initial location on Duluth, the Santropol Roulant greatly influenced my upbringing by the strong community and by my multiple years of volunteering. I had my first experiences in a kitchen there when I used to accompany my father to volunteer in the kitchen and fell in love with cooking. Since then, I have worked in a multitude of establishments since, going from gastronomic restaurants and caterers, to urgency services and from cook to head of services. I am currently working to combat food insecurity through socio-professional insertion. These multiple different experiences led to me building an expertise that I am thrilled to be able to contribute to the Roulant’s wonderful mission.
