President – Blair Dwyer
Blair Dwyer is a lawyer, practicing tax and estate planning law since 1985, first on Bay Street in Toronto and since 1992 in Victoria. Blair has been on ACT’s Advisory Council since its inception over 12 years ago. He also presents an online workshop for ACT and has contributed a chapter on wills and estate planning to ACT’s Autism Manual for BC.
Vice-President – Anne McCaw
Anne McCaw has a background in event facilities management and marketing and was General Manager for the Centre for Dialogue at Simon Fraser University for a number of years. Now retired and living on Vancouver Island, Anne and her husband, Mike Rekis, are the sponsors for ACT’s annual Herring for Autism Sale. Mike and Anne have two adult daughters, one of whom is autistic, and both are valued ACT volunteers.
Board Directors
Kenzie Curby
Kenzie is an autistic and multiply neurodivergent self-advocate. She has worked both in homes and schools for over 8 years, supporting autistic youth. Kenzie is currently working as an Integrated Child and Youth Peer Support Worker. Kenzie also works as an autistic consultant, providing feedback, ideas, and collaboration with other autism service providers through a neurodiversity-affirming lens. Kenzie has a love for public advocacy and has spoken at numerous events, providing insight into her lived-experiences and perspectives. Kenzie is passionate about voicing the importance of understanding demand avoidant profiles and co-occurring mental health disorders in autistic individuals. Ultimately, her goals are to help bring acceptance and understanding for all neurodivergent individuals.
Juliani Kusmanto
Juliani Kusmanto was brought up in Indonesia before emigrating to Canada as an adult, where she was diagnosed with autism. She has thought deeply about the challenges of explaining her diagnosis to her Indonesian family and the disbelief she has met when communicating her diagnosis both in Indonesia and in Canada, because she is a skilled professional. Juliani is active in a number of autism-related organizations and is especially interested in the challenges facing women with a late diagnosis.
Izabelle Stevens
Izabelle Stevens is an autistic, neurodiverse advocate and certified Social Support Worker. Her strong sense of justice and passion for the betterment of services and treatment for the disabled and neurodiverse community have led her to become the Youth Representative on the Ministry of Children and Family Development’s Minister’s Advisory Council for Children and Youth with Support Needs, and a board member for the Family Support Institute of British Columbia. Izabelle’s experience with ACT includes being a member of the Self-Injurious Behaviour Committee. Izabelle uses her lived experience to advocate in her community and is also a member of the SD46 Accessibility Committee.
Marna Nelson
Marna Nelson is a family physician with an interest in young adult health. She was the Director of UBC Student Health Service from 2016 to 2021. Marna continues to work at the clinic part-time providing health care for university students. She has been an active volunteer for many years with schools and community organizations that support individuals with autism. She has an adult daughter with autism.
Siyu (Suzanna) Chen
Siyu (Suzanna) Chen is an Autistic Vancouverite who is passionate about disability equality and youth leadership. Her advocacy involves everything from performing in a fundraising concert for a local Chinese-Canadian autism non-profit to representing disability-inclusive Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) campaigns by international charities during United Nations events. Siyu is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences (BASc) degree at University College London (UCL), where she is the Disabled Students’ Officer. Her academic and career interests include public policy, journalism, data visualization, and interdisciplinary disability studies.
Kinder Kullar
Kinder is the mother of two children, one of whom is on the Autism Spectrum. Kinder is a strong advocate for her son and all children with disabilities or diverse abilities. Kinder has relentlessly advocated for more resources for children in the education system. Although her son is now a young adult, she is still actively involved in his career planning. Kinder is also an active member of the Parent Support Network and continues to help families navigate available resources. Kinder has also supported ACT families whose children have complex medical conditions. Kinder is employed with the federal government, and in her role she also volunteers as an Employee Assistance Program Representative to support employees and their families with various personal or work-related issues, often including mental health support, counseling and other resources. Kinder is also a member of the CISM team (Critical Incident Stress Management) that provides support to colleagues and other individuals who have experienced a traumatic or stressful event.
Linda Richkum
Linda Richkum is a Partner in KPMG’s Enterprise Tax Practice with over 30 years of experience advising companies and their shareholders on taxation and business matters. She has been a Tax Partner at KPMG for more than 22 years and works with organizations across a variety of industries, including technology, manufacturing, consumer markets, professional services, and real estate.
Linda specializes in advising private corporations and their shareholders on complex tax and business matters such as corporate reorganizations, divestitures, estate planning, compensation planning, and business financing structures. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Simon Fraser University and is a Chartered Accountant (ICABC).