OUR TEAM
Our work is energized by scores of active volunteers, team members, founders, and consultants working together to fulfill our mission with love, equity, and power.
We are an interdisciplinary, diverse group of unique professionals and advocates who work collaboratively and creatively dedicated to improving the lives of women and gender-diverse people in the spirit of equity. We are the community we serve and that community serves us. Our team and community members “drive” the solutions, the services, and our collective futures.
Together, we bring a wealth of professional and lived experience in program management and design, social services, communications and outreach, community building and support, activism, research and evaluation, organizing and mobilizing communities, leadership development, and partnerships engagement.
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Olivia Sue joined the Good To Be Good team in August 2021 as our Community Engagement Coordinator. Her education motivated her interest in social determinants of health and desire to address systemic barriers, and she is currently supporting the Change Make-Her program. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, spending time with family and friends, and discovering new music.
Mecca is a Social Work graduate from the Philippines, living and studying in Toronto. Part of her work and studies have involved working with marginalized women, financially disadvantaged women, and differently abled people.
As a community worker, she believes it is critical to have a strong desire to help others. As GOOD TO BE GOOD’s Community Worker, she focuses on developing her confidence so that she can help other women develop theirs.
She realizes how important every element and attention to detail is as a community worker agent and is dedicated and passionate about assisting underserved communities.
Lindsay (she/her) is Good to Be Good’s Peer Engagement & Social Work Specialist! Lindsay is a registered social worker with a deep passion for community building, empowerment, and growth. Her experiences across the social service sector have fueled her passions and motivated her to pursue social justice initiatives in her community. Lindsay also enjoys dedicating time to self-care with arts and crafts, and spending time with her family and cats.
Suzanne (she/her) is a humanitarian and social activist at heart. She believes that we all have the personal responsibility to help create a better world and to drive changes that will have a positive impact and make a difference in people’s lives.
To her, there is nothing more valuable and meaningful than giving back and advocate in support of communities who need it the most. She is eager to use her experience in the non-profit sector and in community building along with her deep understanding of intersectional supports to create empowering & holistic programs for women and folks who have experienced gender-based violence, and marginalized communities.
Marsha is a GOOD TO BE GOOD’s Program Mentor and Lead, and an entrepreneur and creator of SHED which stands for Sense Healing Every Day. Her program invites women to shed what is in the way of them being fully self-expressed to show up in the world as their true authentic selves. She’s also a skilled Marketing Professional who has provided her expertise and knowledge in telecommunications, media and not-for-profit sectors. She believes that through self-care and healing practices, we can move past our trauma to thrive, bring joy, love and our light to everything we do, especially running a successful business!
Char (she/her) is a friend, social entrepreneur, intersectional gender equity advocate, community-builder, orator, and writer.
Char serves as the founder and Executive Director of GOOD TO BE GOOD. The nonprofit’s mission-driven initiatives mobilize critical funds and awareness, which invest in social services and programming. She has led and architected projects and campaigns focused on building solidarity and empowerment through bottom-up approaches and mobilization. As a student of life committed to service, Char demonstrates an aptitude for visionary thinking and compassionate, values-driven leadership—the kind responsible for driving community-centric service while cultivating effective and meaningful spaces for people.
Char’s advocacy supports communities in addressing socioeconomic disparities, building a kinder and equitable society, and advancing the empowerment and rights of women and girls who have experienced gender-based violence, systemic inequities and injustices.
Tenika Bennett is a communications manager, entrepreneur, and founder of unattached and unbothered, A Greedy Bish, and Drinks by Nika. She’s passionate about food and using storytelling to better serve women. Across all platforms, Tenika aims to encourage young women to love themselves fiercely, unconditionally and unapologetically, and inspire them to live their best lives. Tenika serves as a Board of Director for GOOD TO BE GOOD.
Model turned actress, filmmaker, activist and mental health advocate Shreya Patel is altruism personified. A voice for empowering the underdog, she has, since childhood, dedicated her life to not only a professional career in film and the arts but also in social work. She is an honoree of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women of Canada (Arts, Sports, and Entertainment Category), Forbes 30 Under 30 (Media Category), Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award, Women’s Achiever Award (Youth Leadership Category), and CSPN Emerging Leader Award Under 35. She also gained an honourable mention by the City of Toronto for advancing equity in the city. DissDash named her “Top 50 Coolest South Asians of 2021” along with Priyanka Chopra, Kamala Harris, and Hasan Minaj. Shreya’s selfless doggedly-determined desire to serve and improve the welfare of others is borne from surviving her own traumatic experiences. She is determined to be a net contributor to society. She divides her time between Canada. USA, and India. Shreya is currently on the board of directors for GOOD TO BE GOOD.
Akanksha Gupta, commonly named Ava, is a Toronto based Graphic Designer specializing in Brand, Website, and Illustration Design. Completing her graduation from George Brown College, School of Design in Graphic Design, she learned to be a problem-solver, lateral thinker, and maker who prioritizes creating for diverse communities. With her roots in India, she practices on bringing her cultural art styles into the western world. When not working on projects, she likes to take walks, experiment with food and listen to music. She’s always curious to learn and develop new skills and shamelessly asks questions.