Our Team

GABRIELLE LOREN

President
Gabrielle Loren is a CPA, CGA, who is the founding partner of Loren, Nancke & Company, an accounting firm with offices in North Vancouver & New Westminster that specializes in small business and personal tax and accounting since 1989.

She is a strong community supporter and currently also sits on the Board of the Lions Gate Hospital Foundation.  She is a popular speaker and has appeared as a financial expert in several local and national media including Global TV, City TV, Globe & Mail, Financial Post, Toronto Star, Business in Vancouver, Vancouver Sun and many more. She presents monthly seminars on tax matters to a variety of business organizations, the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board and non-profit associations.

KEVIN MANNING

Vice-President
Kevin grew up on the North Shore and did his post-secondary studies at Simon Fraser and Concordia Universities. After living and working abroad managing language programs and schools for close to a decade, he and his wife returned to raise a family on Bowen Island. He currently manages Bowen’s first financial institution, the Bowen branch of First Credit Union, and has overseen its growth from zero to over 40 million in assets in eight years. He was a former director on the Bowen Island Chamber of Commerce, helped to facilitate the merger with the West Vancouver Chamber in 2012, and has sat on various committees for the Bowen Island municipality. In addition to his WVCC duties, Kevin chairs the Bowen Island Business Association,

PETER KVARNSTROM

Treasurer/Secretary
Peter was born in Stockholm Sweden but landed in West Vancouver in 1965. A graduate of Simon Fraser University’s Business Administration faculty, he found his passion when he joined the North Shore News in 1991. The combination of community service and business has kept him busy ever since. Today Peter serves as Publisher of North Shore News and President, Community Media for Glacier Media Group. Married with three grown sons, Peter still coaches baseball and serves on a variety of community and industry boards.

CATHERINE BARR

Governance
Since 1996, Catherine (Cat) Barr has reported on all aspects of life in Vancouver and has over 15,000 photos and articles published in print. She is also the founder/owner of WestVancouver.com and NorthVancouver.com and is a pioneer in the web publishing industry. An accredited journalist, with a background in print, television, radio and production, she is best known for her social event columns and celebrity photos in various newspapers and magazines. A graduate of the University of British Columbia (UBC) and Capilano University, Catherine also has an extensive background in tech, online publishing and web development (including PHP, MySQL, CSS and HTML) as well as social media and video production.

VIRGINIA BIRD

Director
Virginia is currently the Director of Client Services at Pottinger Bird Community Relations, a real estate consultancy firm specializing in development-related community relations. Virginia’s responsibilities include establishing and maintaining relationships with local stakeholder groups and individuals in communities across Vancouver and the Lower Mainland. Virginia is also active in industry organizations and non-profit associations including the Urban Development Institute, the Eagle Ridge Hospital Foundation and is a Director of the Mole Hill Housing Society in Vancouver’s West End Neighbourhood.

JOFFREY J. KOEMAN

Director
Joffrey was born and raised in West Vancouver and grew up skiing and snowboarding at Cypress Mountain. He started at Cypress Mountain – home of the first Olympic Gold Medal won on home snow – in 2000,  shortly after graduating from the University of Victoria with a BA double major. Joffrey is now the Director of Sales & Marketing at Cypress Mountain.  A highlight of working at Cypress for several years was the 8 year project leading up to hosting the Freestyle Skiing and Snowboarding Events for the Olympic Winter Games in 2010.

ELAINE McHARG

Director

Elaine is the owner of McHarg Consulting, which offers customized, high impact, and progressive solutions to help business and non-profits thrive.

KELVIN MONTEIRO

Director

Born and raised in Vancouver, Kelvin knew that the hospitality industry was the perfect path for him. He is the Executive Director for Maison West Vancouver, President and CEO at M-Solutions Consulting and a passionate motivational speaker. He has over 15 years of experience in the hospitality industry with many years in leadership and executive roles.  Kelvin has worked with companies such as; Amica Mature Lifestyles, Hyatt Hotels, Sheraton Hotels, Fairmont Hotels, and more. Kelvin has been a member of the Program Advisory Board for the Canadian Tourism College, Tourism Career Awareness Program with Go2HR, MPI International panelist, and is a regular guest speaker at many colleges and universities around British Columbia.

TERRY PASK

Director

Community Strategist – Business Consultant. Terry is a former Director, Business Development and Regional AVP in the financial services industry. Terry’s primary strength is his ability to connect people, concepts and the product to produce a win-win situation for all parties. Terry currently sits on several community based boards and is a member in good standing of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, the Vancouver Club and the West Vancouver Chamber of Commerce.

DAVID RUTLEDGE

Director

David Rutledge, Investment Advisor at TD Wealth, builds wealth one relationship at a time. He is committed to a steadfast focus on each client’s particular needs, offering an innovative approach that combines the best available research with top-level financial expertise to maximize your assets and secure your future. David’s loyal clientele of affluent business owners, professionals and retirees benefit from the distinctive process of discovery he has developed in his work with TD Wealth. This long-range planning tool promotes understanding, communication, and agile response to your changing circumstances. Teamwork is central to the discovery process, as David works with your trusted advisors to fully integrate your financial, estate, taxation and succession plans.

MARK SENNER

Director

Born and raised in West Vancouver, Mark enjoys our vibrant community with his wife, two grown children and dog.  After graduating from UBC (BSc.), Mark pursued a 24 year career in the Pharmaceutical industry in a variety of roles from sales representative to senior level management roles with companies in BC and Ontario. Mark returned to his roots in 2005 with a vision to give back to the community and to support aging parents.  Mark is now owner of CareAge Home and Health Inc., a certified Aging in Place company based on the North Shore, dedicated to renovating homes and installing specialized accessibility equipment with Universal and Inclusive design principles, to improve overall accessibility and quality of life living at home. As a passionate advocate for small business, Mark brings his business experience to the Chamber to promote and support our local businesses.

LUIS SOPEÑA

Director

Luis occupies a special place in the field of modern art. Throughout his professional career he has attempted to paint human nature in an extremely individualistic manner. His work has been exhibited in France, Holland, England, Spain, the United States & Canada, and many of his paintings are in private collections throughout the world. Luis has owned and operated the Caulfeild Art Gallery for the past eighteen years in West Vancouver offering his services of restoration, appraisals and evaluations. Luis is President of the Caulfeild Business Association.