Board of Directors
Chair – Sarah Emons
- Municipality of Chatham-Kent – Amy Finn
- Municipality of Chatham-Kent – Trevor Thompson
- Municipality of Chatham-Kent – Michael Bondy
- Municipality of Dutton Dunwich – Ken Loveland
- Municipality of Lakeshore – Larissa Vogler
- Municipality of Leamington – Paul Tiessen
- City of London – Paul Van Meerbergen
- Municipality of Middlesex Centre – Hugh Aerts
- Municipality of Southwest Middlesex – Martin Vink
- Township of Southwold – Sarah Emons
- Municipality of Strathroy-Caradoc – Sandi Hipple
- Municipality of West Elgin – Richard Leatham
Committees
The LTVCA has several Committees. Directors are appointed to these committees.
Get to Know Our Board of Directors
Amy Finn – Municipality of Chatham-Kent (Municipal Councillor)
Amy was born and raised in Blenheim and has resided in Chatham for 30 years. She is the mother of four sons. Amy attended Carleton University and studied Law/Psychology . She is a retired Chatham-Kent Police Constable of 30 years and received the Police Association of Ontario – Officer of the Year Community Service award.
She enjoys the outdoors, cycling and walking and has volunteered with Goodfellows for 30 years , Big Sisters, and the Chatham-Kent Children’s Safety Village.
Amy supports the reforestation and phosphorus reduction efforts in the LTVCA watershed.
Trevor Thompson – Municipality of Chatham-Kent (Municipal Councillor)
Trevor grew up in Hamilton. He has a wife Patricia and two children – Ian and Zoe. Trevor attended Mohawk College from 1999-2002, and has worked for Blackburn Radio, CFCO, CKSY, and CKUE 2003-2014. His current employment is with CKXS in Wallaceburg.
Trevor’s interests include canoeing, camping, antique cars and motorcycles. He enjoys volunteering in the community, especially “prefer to help day of, with the heavy lifting as opposed to sitting in meetings for six months”.
In support of conservation efforts in the LTVCA watershed, Trevor tries to raise awareness through his position as a councillor and his role in the media. He paddled the Thames from Delaware to Chatham, planted trees on his hobby farm and practices water conservation at home.
Michael Bondy – Municipality of Chatham-Kent (Municipal Councillor)
Ken Loveland – Municipality of Dutton Dunwich (Deputy Mayor)
Ken has lived in the municipality of Dutton Dunwich his entire life, and is married to his wife Susan for 48 years. They have two grown sons and three grandsons. He has a college diploma in Business Administration and has taken numerous Municipal courses. Ken has been the CAO Clerk for two lower tier municipalities for a total of 36 years. He is now retired and is the newly elected Deputy Mayor of the Municipality of Dutton Dunwich (former Councillor for one term).
Larissa Vogler – Municipality of Lakeshore (Municipal Councillor)
Paul Tiessen – Municipality of Leamington (Municipal Councillor)
Paul grew up in Leamington and has a wife Lisa and two daughters Erin and Lauren. He graduated from Ridgetown College of Agricultural Technology in 1986.
Paul is currently a self-employed farmer of cash crops – soybeans and wheat. He received the Conservation Farm Award in 2005 and enjoys fishing, farming and family.
Paul volunteers at his church and at the school. Although he doesn’t farm within the LTVCA watershed, he does employ conservation practices on his farm.
Paul Van Meerbergen – City of London (City Councillor)
Hugh Aerts – Municipality of Middlesex Centre (Municipal Councillor)
Hugh’s parents emigrated to Canada in the early fifties and settled in Lobo Township which is now the Municipality of Middlesex Centre.
He farms with his two brothers and is in the process of scaling back to make room for some nephews who would like to farm. This has given him the time to run for local council to which he was elected in 2018.
Over the years Hugh has done some travelling, which usually involved some hiking. He has pitched a tent on every continent.
Hugh hopes that his life experiences will enable him to make a contribution to the Board.
Martin Vink – Municipality of Southwest Middlesex (Municipal Councillor)
Martin has lived in Southwest Middlesex his entire life, is married to Nelly and has 3 children. He attended Fanshawe College and is a Graduate in Municipal Administration. Martin has had a life long involvement in agriculture and 28 years as a Property Assessor. He is starting a 5th term as Councillor Ward 3 Southwest Middlesex. Martin is a member of St. Vincent De Paul Glencoe and North American Martyrs Cemetery Board in Wardsville. The Vinks have taken approximately 1/2 acre of workable land out of production on their Farm Land to control erosion and runoff, along with creating trails in their bush land for hiking and to create a healthier forest.
Sarah Emons – Township of Southwold (Municipal Councillor)
This is Sarah’s second term as a Director for the LTVCA. She is currently a Councillor in Southwold Township and is Conservation Director for the Long Point Biosphere Region. She has previously worked for Ministry of Natural Resources as a Restoration Ecologist. Sarah did her MSc. Thesis research in Norfolk County, studying wetland hydrology with the University of Western Ontario. She received her BSc. from the University of Waterloo, with a focus on freshwater ecology. She sits on multiple other community committees, including Zero Waste, Young at Hearts and War VeteransMemorial Committee. When she is not volunteering in her home community, in the Long Point area or spending time with her children, Sarah can be found in the forest with her dog, Scout.
Sandi Hipple – Municipality of Strathroy-Caradoc (Municipal Councillor)
Sandi grew up in the Municipality of Strathroy-Caradoc and comes from a local farming family. They had a chicken farm with laying hens, and also had various crops within 75 – 100 acres of land. Her mother is a retired teacher and both her father and mother were very involved in the local United church for many years. She has one sister who has worked for Master Feeds for 30 years and also married a farmer, and have 4 grown children.
Sandi married Brad Hipple whose family has owned and operated Strathroy Monuments for 62 years, a 3rd generation business and also one of the oldest businesses in Strathroy-Caradoc. They have 3 boys aged 28, 22 and 12. Their oldest son Robert is married and works and resides in Kitchener with his wife. Their middle son Andrew is an electrical apprentice and youngest son James is in grade 7 attending Caradoc North Public School.
Sandi attended Caradoc North Public School, Strathroy District Collegiate Institute and Western University for Educational Psychology. She was a Western University – Academic Advisor. Her current employment includes the Thames Valley School Board, Strathroy Monuments, Owner of Komoka 5on5 Hockey, Municipal Councillor of Strathroy-Caradoc and Ontario Minor Hockey Association Convenor. Sandi’s special achievements include UWO Student’s Appreciation Award, Belle River PS Volunteer Award, Western Award of Excellence and OMBA Youth Involvement Excellence Award.
Her passion is everything community and family oriented and she believes in helping make our community a better place for existing families, new families and businesses. Her family always comes first and they are a fantastic and fun priority. Sandi’s hobbies and interests include obstacle course races with her 12 year old, kayaking, paddle boarding, tennis, badminton, many outdoor and indoor sports with family and friends, long walks and hikes with the boys and dog, escape rooms, hockey and trying to stay healthy mind and body. Sandi’s volunteering includes, Strathroy and District Chamber of Commerce, Brydges Minor Hockey Association, Elgin Middlesex Chiefs Hockey Organization, Caradoc North Public School, Whiteoaks Public School, Salvation Army, Belle River and Leamington Emergency Pregnancy Centres.
As a Councillor, community leader and most importantly as a mother, conservation inside the LTVCA and beyond has always been a passion and a concern of Sandi’s. Whether taking personal steps such as managing household waste output and limiting behaviours that produce extra trash, pollution and waste, or tackling larger projects such as ensuring that new development is eco-aware and offering support for efforts to appropriately manage shoreline erosion, species preservation and overland runoff, Sandi knows that every action matters. Conservation is a shared responsibility that cannot be an afterthought or a secondary concern in Municipal policy. Efforts to promote conservation of our natural areas, species and water resources must be central to so much we do and in keeping with this notion, Sandi tempers and gauges her actions as a Councillor against her responsibilities to leave our environment for our children in a state that is better than when it was gifted to her.
Richard Leatham – Municipality of West Elgin (Deputy Mayor)
Richard was born in the beautiful, rural county of Shropshire, England. After graduating from the local high school he worked in agriculture for five years before finally owning his own farm. Although he ran his 50,000 broiler operation throughout, he had a 27 year career with the Severn Trent Water Authority, working his way to rank of Inspector.
In 1992, as a widower, he emigrated to Canada and since then has built four new homes in the West Elgin area and has owned and operated a 100 acre farm throughout. In 1994, he married a local lady and is the proud step dad to a son and daughter, and granddad to five lovely grandchildren. He also has a son and daughter born in the UK and four grandchildren, all who visit regularly and enjoy their extended family.
Richard began a 12 year employment with the Thames Valley School Board in 1994. In 2010, he ran and was elected Councillor in West Elgin and is now in his third term, holding the position of Deputy Mayor of West Elgin. For the past eight years Richard sits on the Rodney Fire Service Board, Community Policing,