Our Founder
Melissa Lundy has spent over 20 years making the world a better place. As an intergenerational Survivor of residential schools, Melissa believes in the power of creation and healing.
Melissa Lundy
(Indigenous/Métis Cree/She/Her)
Founder & President
Melissa is from Calgary, Alberta, and is a Citizen of the Métis Nation of Alberta. She brings 15 years of expertise developing management systems, programming, and inclusive strategies in the oil and gas sector. She led the development of Public Awareness, Indigenous engagement, and other programs throughout her career. Melissa cultivates meaningful connections by behaving in a way that makes people feel valued, included, and respected. Her motto is “you cannot do anything alone,” and she believes you can do incredible things as a team.
Board of Directors
We are an Indigenous-led not-for-profit that leads with Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing. We recognize and acknowledge that we work better together as a unified team. To that end, diversity and inclusion are the core of our organization. We commit to increasing diversity today to lead to a better tomorrow. This starts with our Board of Directors, a mix of male-identified, female-identified, non-binary, and more. Please have a look at our Diversity and Inclusion Commitment for more information.
To be transparent, we share that none of our Board Members participate in conversations or votes that create or could create a conflict of interest. Currently, the Tipi of Hope Foundation Directors and Volunteers do not receive pay, commissions, or bonuses. They all donate their time as they believe in our mission.
We wish to thank those who contributed to the
Foundation over the past year. Their contributions help
shape who we are today. Former Directors are:
Cristi Adams
Ankit Jhingran
Tiffany Sinclair
Michelle Cameron
Laio Hyrcha.
Indigenous Guidance Circle
We have formed an Indigenous Guidance Circle (the Circle) to continually preserve, protect, revitalize, and share wisdom from Indigenous Elders, Knowledge Keepers and Survivors of residential schools and the 60s scoop. The Circle is vital in preserving Indigenous Cultures. In addition, they provide their perspectives on how Tipi of Hope initiatives can make meaningful progress toward reconciliation and will help us strengthen our relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.
The overreaching goals of the Circle are:
Offer knowledge and wisdom to Indigenous and non-Indigenous Board Members and Volunteers.
Protect, revitalize, and share Indigenous oral knowledge and practices.
Protect, revitalize, and share Indigenous oral knowledge and practices.
Advise Tipi of Hope in ongoing Programs and Projects.
The first three members of the Circle are listed below. The Circle will increase to include Métis and Inuit members. More to come!
Jeanne Chonkolay
(Indigenous/First Nations/She/Her)
Dene Tha’ First Nation
Elder and Survivor of Assumption (Hay
Lakes) Residential School
Alvine Wolfleg Eagle
Speaker
((Indigenous/First Nations/She/Her)
Siksika Nation Elder
Phyllis Chonkolay
(Indigenous/First Nations/She/Her)
Dene Tha’ First Nation
Survivor of Assumption (Hay Lakes) Residential School
VOLUNTEERS
As a Registered Charity, our work is 100% led by volunteers. Our Board Members, Indigenous Guidance Circle and Volunteers all donate their time to advance reconciliation and our mission. Additionally, volunteers have led bottle drives and other initiatives to support our work.
Thank you to the following Volunteers for their time and energy:
Darren Lundy
Jason Zaal
Alix Adair
Simon Graham
Ankit Jhingran
Note: Ankit became a volunteer in December 2023 after stepping down from the Board.
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