Our Team
Board of Directors
John Glynn-Morris
President
John has been involved with Yukonstruct in various roles since its inception. He has witnessed and helped bring the organization from start-up to maturity. John has already served on the Board twice, with two breaks, and is keen to serve members in a Board capacity again. John is particularly interested in financial sustainability, talent recruitment and retention, member and community relevance, as well as strategic partnership development. As a facilitator, John hopes to bring constructive and relationship-building elements to the Board.
Justin Grenier
Vice President
Justin joined the Yukonstruct board out of a love for the space, the people who fill it, and the ideas that are shared here. He has lived in Yukon for 3 years, and is in his 2nd year on the Board.
Kathie Szpajcher
Treasurer
Katie has over 10 years of experience in internal audit, risk management, and financial accounting in a number of industries such as: non-profit, government, and power and utilities. She hold a Chartered Professional Accounting designation, and qualified as a Certified General Accountant in 2007. She loves playing softball, hiking and biking.
Lana Welchman
Secretary
Lana is a community-minded self-starter who has founded innumerable programs and projects including: Yukon Girls Rock Camp, Live Well (an exercise program for people with chronic health conditions), and DawsonPops Community Choir. She is also former treasurer of the Dawson City Music Festival, and Parks and Recreation Manager for the City of Dawson.
She is eager to bring a Dawson perspective to the board, and give a voice to how Yukonstruct can better serve communities outside of Whitehorse.
Antonio Zedda
Director
Antonio Zedda has over 25 years experience planning, designing and developing buildings across Canada’s North. He is a partner in the Whitehorse, Yukon based design and planning firm of Kobayashi + Zedda. He has been the principal in charge of numerous government and private sector led multi-family residential, educational, cultural and commercial building projects.
Dan Guhl
Director
Born and raised in Whitehorse, Yukon, Dan attended University on the east coast of Canada where he was heavily involved in school and maintained grades in the top 10% of his program. Dan received a BBA with a major in information systems. He returned to his hometown and has been working in professional environments ever since. Dan is well versed in Business, Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Advertising, Management, Tourism, and the North. He is currently the Director of Marketing and Sales for Solvest.
Alyssa Carpenter
Director
Alyssa Carpenter was born and raised in the Western Arctic region of the Northwest Territories and identifies as Inuvialuit, Gwich’in, and Dene. She is a northern social worker that currently resides in Whitehorse, Yukon with her partner and daughter and that is currently enrolled at the Masters of Social Work in Indigenous Trauma and Resiliency.
Alyssa is looking forward to serving on the Yukonstruct board to build connections and network with other individuals in various sectors, as well as her ability to bring in an Indigenous and Northern/Arctic perspective. Alyssa is excited about the opportunity to gain new experiences and learn and contribute.
Jeff Wong
Director
Jeff moved to the Yukon at the end of 2019 for his new job with Transport Canada as a Civil Aviation Safety Inspector. His role there is to ensure enterprises that perform aircraft maintenance are doing so in accordance to the Civil Aviation Regulations using a risk-based approach. He has extensive experience in risk analysis, safety management system, and aircraft maintenance. He enjoys working with his hands and making new things, tinkering with gadgets, and troubleshooting problems, which is why he always looks forward to volunteering at the Repair Café!
Steve Sorochan
Director
Steve has been involved in Yukonstruct since its inception, initially as part of his job as the Director of Technology and Telecommunications at Government of Yukon’s Economic Development Department, and now as a business owner with the company he co-founded, Digital Engine Technology, which is head quartered in Cospace.
He’s looking forward to serving on the board of Yukonstruct to generate some excitement in the space, and is particularly passionate about the Yukon being a great place to start businesses and wants to focus on initiatives that increase Yukonstruct’s capacity and reputation in this area.
Staff
Lana Selbee
Executive Director
Lana is passionate about creativity, community and entrepreneurship. Her first startup experience was launching a retail boutique and community art gallery in Calgary, AB. Since then she has consulted for many startups, nonprofits and community organizations, helping them grow and support their members.
Cat Kelly
Director of Entrepreneur Programming
With a background in journalism and advocacy, Cat believes entrepreneurship is the future of social change. After placing first at Ottawa’s Techstars Startup Weekend (2018) for her homesharing platform, she became a NEXT 36 Fellow (2019), and Halcyon Fellow (2020). As a consultant, she’s worked with artists, solo-preneurs, and large corporations alike. When Cat’s not writing emails, she can be found writing her fantasy novel, sewing clothing, or remaking furniture.
Rick Yorgason
Makespace Director
Rick spent ten years as a programmer, designer, and project manager at an indie game studio, working with a small team of artists and programmers on an engine built from scratch using nothing but C++, DirectX, and passion. His other passions include traditional woodworking, electronics, leather working, and chocolate making.
Ashley Cummings
Community & Social Media Coordinator
Ashley thrives on helping her community. A proud northerner, she is from Pangnirtung, NU where she was surrounded by makers of many kinds, who continue to inspire her to make and learn while living in Whitehorse. She has spent time on governance and operational boards, as well as co-chairs Kids Help Phone’s Indigenous Advisory Council. Ashley looks forward to bringing her expertise as a board member while she studies Indigenous Governance at Yukon University.
Fahd Rizwan Fazal
Operations Director
Fahd is originally from Pakistan but has been living in Canada for the past five years. He recently completed his undergrad from the University of British Columbia, Okanagan and moved to Whitehorse in search of new challenges and opportunities. He is super excited to join the Yukonstruct team and is looking forward to helping the community in any way possible. Fahd is passionate about learning and exploring new skills, he loves to cook, and to be outdoors hiking, biking, and many other activities.
Lisa Preto
Community Outreach Manager
You may know Lisa as “the fur pom pom lady”, the “goat milk soap lady”, or remember her from the jazz lounges of Whitehorse. Lisa was a carpenter before moving to Haines Junction to raise 2 daughters with her husband Andy. She loved living in a community, and being part of the network of volunteers there. She started and ran her company Minus 40 Fur in Haines Junction, sewing fur directly from the trapline. In 2020, her family packed up the goats, chickens and trapping/sewing supplies and moved to Whitehorse. Lisa is excited to work at Yukonstruct, and to connect with entrepreneurs from the communities.
Jeramy Mattie
Operations Assistant
A local entrepreneur and maker, Jeramy is owner and head craftsman at Frozen Forge Alchemy. Jeramy has 15 years experience in industrial construction, is a red seal steamfitter/pipefitter ticket, a third year welder, and CWB welding supervisor. He also has a You Tube U degree in making, with a major in Need a Tool Make a Tool. When not in the Makespace, or his home shop carving jade, you can find him hiking a trail, paddling a river, or playing Dungeons and Dragons with his friends.
Kristen Sinclair
Makespace Coordinator
Kristen loves to learn, explore, create, and discover new things. As a resourceful creator and entrepreneur she finds great joy in seeing her students awe and excitement as their world opens to new possibilities. When she isn’t teaching or creating you can find her enjoying a great deal of outdoor activities including hiking, biking and skiing.
Ratan Singh
Operations Assistant
Ratan joins the team as a recent graduate of Yukon University’s Multimedia Communications program, where he served as President of the Student Union. He is passionate about animation and gaming; and is excited to put his design skills and knowledge of computer hardware to work in his new capacity at Yukonstruct. Ratan plans to become a full time game designer in the future. Outside of work, Ratan loves playing Badminton and Basketball, and enjoys outdoor activities like hiking and canoeing.
Cedrick Vinoya
Operations Assistant
Cedrick moved to Canada 3 months ago, from the Philippines, where he completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration Major in Marketing Management. He moved to Whitehorse to study Liberal Arts at Yukon University. Passionate about community engagement, Cedrick volunteered for a group in the Philippines that focused on disaster relief and back-to-school projects! In addition to bringing his enthusiasm for community engagement to Yukonstruct, he looks forward to contributing his years of customer service experience to the Yukonstruct community.
Cindy Ngo
Operations Assistant
Cindy is originally from Yellowknife, NT, and is currently a student at Yukon University. She is passionate about mental health advocacy, climate and social justice, learning and cooking new foods, and is looking forward to learning laser cutting.
Tanya Van Valkenburg
Bookkeeper
Not just our bookkeeper, Tanya also shares her in-depth knowledge of not-for-profit administration and management. Before becoming a self-employed bookkeeper, she was General Manager of Whitehorse’s Nakai Theatre. She is a maker too; she’s been designing and making jewellery for over 20 years.
