Gail Di Cintio

Chair

Gail Di Cintio comes to this role with significant executive and governance experience in the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors. In addition to a long career as an executive working in technology and consulting, Gail is an experienced Board Director and has served on numerous boards in the health,
credit union, and social enterprise sectors, among others. Gail brings a passion for supporting her Toronto community to her leadership and is committed to ensuring Sistering meets the current and future needs of participants, staff, and the wider community.

Sara Fruchtman

Vice Chair

Sara has over 10 years of experience in the non-profit sector as a volunteer, employee and board member. She has worked with organizations supporting sex workers, young people involved in the criminal justice system, and individuals struggling with housing and employment discrimination, as well as a number of arts and culture organizations. Sara first began volunteering with Sistering as a teenager working in the kitchen with her mom. She returned to the organization over 15 years later as a board member to contribute to Sistering’s mission to support marginalized women and gender-diverse people in Toronto. As a member of the board of directors, Sara is motivated to help steer the board through difficult decision making so that the organization's staff, volunteers, peers can continue to make an invaluable difference in the lives of Sistering’s participants and throughout our community. Sara is currently a PhD student at University of Toronto and a policy analyst at the Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario.

Joey Noble

Secretary

Joey Noble has been volunteering at Sistering for 15 years, teaching weekly ESL classes, helping in the Sistering kitchen and assisting with special events. She became involved with Sistering because she witnessed the fun and pleasure experienced by women and trans people participating in programs at Parkdale Outreach. She has retired after a 20-year career as a Professor of Social Sciences at Humber College but continues to teach part time. Prior to Humber, she worked for 15 years in the social service sector. Past roles include work as a community organizer with a variety of low-income groups, primarily women and immigrants.  She has experience with fundraising, grant writing and working closely with volunteer Boards.

Vera Ranieri

Vera is a lawyer licensed in California, living and working from Toronto. She is grateful for the opportunity to be involved in the community she now calls home. While she is currently in private practice, she previously worked at the non-profit legal services organization Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), where she was a Senior Staff Attorney. She also served for two years as a director of the AIDS Legal Referral Panel, a charity based in San Francisco that assisted those living with HIV/AIDS access legal help.  Vera received her law degree from Harvard Law School, and her B.Sc. in Mathematics from Mount Allison University.  Vera has a strong interest in ensuring all those that are part of her community have the opportunity to access resources, and in supporting the ability for everyone to reach
their full potential.

Kathryn Fox

Kathryn is a union-side labour lawyer who is dedicated to workers’ rights. Working in-house for a union based in Toronto, her practice includes complex contract negotiations, strategic advice to elected union representatives and managing individual member issues, which may include anything from handling accommodation requests to termination grievances. Passionate about international human rights issues, over the course of her career she has also spent time working in Uganda, the Netherlands and most recently in Myanmar. Settling back into Toronto and concerned about the widespread impact of the pandemic on vulnerable and marginalized populations, Kathryn is pleased to serve on Sistering’s Board of Directors and find a way to connect and give back to her community.

Michaela Ferguson

Honorary Member

A Community Worker graduate and current BSW student at Toronto Metropolitan University, Michaela’s experiences and interactions at Sistering have deeply impacted her decision to pursue further education in social services. Michaela is a mental health, social action and housing advocate, working with adults
with dis/abilities ranging from physical to psychological. Michaela promotes self-autonomy and has interests in local policy and community-based research initiatives. She wants to see the end of homelessness in her lifetime – and envisions Sistering as a leader in improving housing access and solutions for women.  Michaela is an avid hiker, kayaker and MCU fan.