BMFA 2024/25 Board Members
Carol Altilia – Vice Chair and Strategy
Carol is semi-retired having spent her career in post-secondary education. Most recently, she served as Provost and Vice-President, Academic at Sheridan College, supporting the institution’s unique academic mission to foster all forms of creativity. As a seasoned senior academic administrator, she has extensive experience in curriculum design, strategic planning, as well as advancement. Her scholarship includes planning, diversity and organizational change to which she adds a long practice of community engagement, with a focus on mentoring. Having recently moved to Collingwood, she enjoys being outdoors, participates in a range of sports, is passionate about the arts and is keen to contribute to the vibrancy of her new community.
Kathy Sutherland – Treasurer & Membership
In June 2018 I had the opportunity to move from Toronto to Collingwood full time. I retired after 18 years working as an administrative assistant with private fertility clinic. This gave me the perfect opportunity to focused on creating art first with alcohol inks and now with encaustic wax and India ink. In December 2022 I felt it was time to show my artwork and I also wanted to find a way to connect with other artists. This led me to become a member of BMFA and to volunteer in the shop.
Katie Jakobiec – Fundraising and Communications
Katie has been immersed in the arts her entire life. She earned a Studio Art degree from the University of Waterloo, specializing in painting, and went on to complete her MA and PhD in art and architectural history at the University of Toronto, focusing on the interdisciplinary connections between art, landscape, and architecture. After several international postdoctoral fellowships where she taught and conducted research, Katie transitioned into fundraising, completing the Fundraising Management certificate at Humber College. She is excited to bring her combined passions for art and development to the BMFA, where she has rediscovered her love for art practice and is committed to seeing the organization thrive. A passionate traveller, Kate enjoys exploring new places and spending time in nature. She currently lives in Collingwood.
Melanie North, BMFA Board Member and Director of Marketing
Melanie recently moved to the Blue Mountains and joined the BMFA board of directors in March 2025. She is happy to return to the Georgian Bay Area with her family, after many years, where as a young girl, she would spend her summers at her Grandparents’ cottage on Christie Beach.
Melanie is a lifelong art lover and enjoys learning about art history, personally collecting different genres of art, and touring galleries around the world. She admires the endless creativity of all artists and is passionate about supporting the art community.
In her professional life, Melanie is an international marketing consultant, who has enjoyed working with several lifestyle, luxury, travel, finance, and beauty brands including Fairmont Hotels, Scotiabank, McDonalds, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, General Motors, L’Oreal, Coca Cola, General Mills, Samsung, Auberge Resorts Collection, Bank of Montreal, Raffles Hotels and many more.
Melanie holds a BA from the University of Toronto, and postgraduate studies in Marketing from Toronto Metropolitan University. She developed extensive strategic marketing skills at top creative advertising & communication agencies. She is thrilled to bring her marketing expertise to support the BMFA Board of Directors and Artist Community leading marketing strategy and planning, brand management, advertising, media, PR, and will oversee the Art About Town Program.
Heather Smiley – Programming and Secretary
Heather moved to Collingwood where she taught high school until she retired several years ago. Since then, she has been an enthusiastic plein air and landscape painter, and has exihibited her work at BMFA and further afield.
Donna Brazelton – Director of Volunteers
Donna moved to Collingwood 12 years ago after retiring from a career in Human Resources. After a trip to Collingwood, she and her husband fell in love with the beauty of the mountains and the Bay and decided to make this their home. She loves the opportunities that the area offers for active people to hike, bike and play on the water. Donna joined the BMFA to be part of the local art community, to meet fellow artists and grow as a painter. Combining her love of the outdoors with painting, she soon discovered the plein air artists group and can be found painting in one of the beautiful spots around Collingwood during the warmer months. Volunteering with the BMFA has provided an opportunity to contribute to the art scene in Collingwood.
Christine Fenech – Director Visual Design
Christine Fenech is a design consultant and educator passionate about creating visuals and spaces that inspire and connect. With a background in applied arts/design, Christine aims to blend function and style while applying core design principles across print, digital, and event platforms.
Experienced in 2d planning/layouts, and the 3D environments, Christine brings creativity and strategic thinking to visual and tactile experiences. A proud supporter of BMFA and recent committee member of the BMFA50 Retrospective she was honored to contribute. Based in Collingwood, she values fostering community and strives to champion art and design as a means to connect and empower others.