Our Staff

Our team includes our Staff, Board of Directors and Advisory Board. Plus you can also meet our mentors.

Join our team

Job Opportunities

Please check-out or jobs board if you have a passion for helping others and want to join our team.

Shaleen Jones

Shaleen Jones

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Shaleen Jones has been an advocate, organizer, educator, and all-round rabble rouser in the field of eating disorders for over twenty years, holding leadership positions with community organization such as the BC Eating Disorders Association, Laing House, Peer Support Canada, and CMHA National.

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Debra Wells-Hopey

Debra Wells-Hopey

PROGRAM MANAGER

Debra is a “Jill of all trades” with a background that ranges from college instructor to newspaper editor to public relations professional and even a clothing store owner. Woven throughout these gigs has been a commitment to the non-profit sector where she has been responsible for outreach, facilitation, and program creation and supervision for various organizations.

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Scott Ellis

Scott Ellis

OPERATIONS COORDINATOR

Scott is a passionate, community-oriented leader with years of experience working in communities around Nova Scotia to improve the lives of others and create a better world. He is a strong believer in continued learning and is currently taking a certificate in Public Policy & Management.

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Rania ElSouri

Rania ElSouri

PSYCHOLOGIST

Rania has a Masters in Counselling Psychology, and bring 8 years of experience as a Clinical Therapist, supporting folks dealing with trauma, depression, anxiety, and disordered eating/eating disorders. She has also personally experienced and recovered from an eating disorder.

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Angela Malcolm

Angela Malcolm

CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER

Angela (She/her) holds a Bachelor of Human Ecology with a major in Family Studies from Mount Saint Vincent University and a Master of Social Work from Dalhousie University.

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Breanne Hopkins

Breanne Hopkins

REGISTERED DIETITIAN

Breanne (she/her) is an Anti-Diet Professional Dietitian from Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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Kathryn Fraser

Kathryn Fraser

REGISTERED DIETITIAN

Kathryn (they/them, she/her) is a queer, non-binary dietitian originally from a small town in South Shore Nova Scotia who now lives in Halifax. They are a Professional Dietitian with a BSc in Nutrition from Acadia University and a MSc in Applied Human Nutrition from Mount Saint Vincent University.

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Nicole Otto

Nicole Otto

REGISTERED DIETITIAN

Nicole Otto (BSc, BSc FN, RD) has been a registered dietitian for over 7 years.

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Nora Richter

Nora Richter

NATIONAL PEER SUPPORT COORDINATOR

Nora (she/her) has been working in the non-profit sector for over 7 years, with a focus on gendered experiences of mental health and wellbeing. She lives and works with an anti-oppressive, non-judgemental and person-centred mindset.

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Daphne Wornovitzky

Daphne Wornovitzky

PEER MENTOR

My name is Daphne (She/Her). I am 23 years old and from Calgary, Alberta although now I am splitting my time living in Toronto and Ottawa Ontario.

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Nikki Olguin

Nikki Olguin

YOUTH PEER SUPPORT COORDINATOR

Nikki (she/her) is currently completing her Bachelors of Social Work degree at Dalhousie University. She holds a BA in Psychology from Wilfrid Laurier University and a Social Service Worker Diploma from George Brown College.

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Jaime Delaney

Jaime Delaney

PEER SUPPORT NAVIGATOR

Jaime (she/her) is an excited learner and passionate mental health advocate. Growing up seeing the impacts of mental health and illness around her, as well as having her own experiences of anxiety and eating disorders through young adulthood, propelled her interest into an education and career path.

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Board of Directors

Cara Pfeffer

Cara Pfeffer

CHAIR

With over ten years of experience in the world of finance, Cara (she/her) feels privileged to serve as Treasurer on the Board of Directors for Eating Disorders Nova Scotia. Cara is an accounting student working toward a professional designation, and is a mom of three.

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Anne Marie Coolen

Anne Marie Coolen

PAST CHAIR

When Anne Marie’s child became severely ill with an eating disorder, she saw firsthand the tremendous need for more treatment and support services, standardized care practices, better education and awareness, and intensified research for eating disorders.

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Collette Deschenes

Collette Deschenes

VICE-CHAIR

Collette Deschenes (she/her) is a creative communications professional with a passion for helping organizations build and foster relationships.

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Mark Thibodeau

Mark Thibodeau

TREASURER

Mark (he/him) is a Program Manager at GDMS-C, leading his teams through the wild, crazy ride of delivering a new anti-submarine warfare system for the Canadian Navy.

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Becca Bishop

Becca Bishop

Becca Bishop has been a community development practitioner for over five years with a degree in community development from St. Francis Xavier.

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Clarisse Nga Fouda

Clarisse Nga Fouda

Clarisse Nga Fouda is a customer service and human resources consultant and a law school graduate, and is always volunteering to help people discover their inner potential.

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Hannah Baillie

Hannah Baillie

Hannah Baillie is a public relations student at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She is passionate about communication and using storytelling to advocate for a variety of topics, particularly eating disorders and mental health.

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Jennifer Brady

Jennifer Brady

Jennifer Brady is a registered Dietitian and Assistant Professor at Mount Saint Vincent University. Her broad research interests cover critical feminist perspectives of food, nutrition, eating, bodies, and expertise.

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Matthew Moulton

Matthew Moulton

Matthew Moulton (he/him) is an associate lawyer in Cox & Palmer’s Halifax office. He received his law degree from the University of New Brunswick, where he graduated on the Dean’s List, and his Master of Laws from the Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University.

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Ruth Shelton

Ruth Shelton

Ruth (she/her) is a Masters of psychiatry research student at Dalhousie University where she will be conducting research in the subjects of childhood trauma as well as mood and anxiety disorders. She has been involved in various mental health causes and initiatives over the last several years. During her undergraduate she founded the Mental Health Society, was the student lead for the Healthy Minds Team, worked for the university Counselling Centre, and was the president of the Psychology Society.

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Advisory Board

Our Advisory Board is Dr. Marriam Abou-El-Haj and Dr. Hali Bauld.