Past Mentors

Cst Michelle Everson

Police Program Coordinator

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Michelle Everson is a Halifax Regional Police Officer. She grew up in New Brunswick and after a full career in the Information Technology field at NBTel / Aliant decided to make the jump to policing. After three years as an auxiliary Constable with the Saint John Police Force, Michelle attended Holland College in PEI and graduated the police academy in 2006. Michelle currently works in Halifax as a Youth Court Officer in the Integrated Court Section. She has also done general patrol, worked as a school resource officer and most recently was a Crime Prevention Officer in the Community Relations Crime Prevention team where she was responsible for the HRP Co-op program with area high schools, the ride along program and other events. Michelle has two adult children, four adult step-children and two dogs. Michelle is one of the main police program coordinators

Cst Natasha Dantiste

Police Program Coordinator

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Constable Natasha Dantiste of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, graduated with a Certificate in Business Administration from Mount Saint Vincent University and began working at various federal government departments. In 2001 she worked her first of two administrative positions with the RCMP. During her tenure as a federal public service employee at the RCMP division headquarters in Halifax, Natasha considered applying to become a regular member/police officer. She says “the more involved I became, the more involved I wanted to become”. Upon completing the recruitment process and travelling to Regina, Saskatchewan for training, Natasha graduated from the RCMP Training Academy in December 2005. She began her policing career working general duties in New Minas then transferring to Wolfville both in Kings District RCMP, Nova Scotia. In October 2012, Natasha transferred to Halifax District RCMP where she works in Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia as a community policing officer.

Natasha’s involvement with Camp Courage began as it aligned directly with her role as a Community Policing Officer and her former work with youth as a School Liaison Officer. Natasha is a mother of two and remains committed to supporting law enforcement educational programs aimed at youth. Natasha is one of the main police program coordinators.

Cst Susan Camus

Police Program Coordinator

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Cst. Susan Camus has been a member of the RCMP for 22 years. She has served in Duncan British Columbia, Toronto Ontario, Port Hawkebury Cape Breton and Halifax Nova Scotia. Most of her service has been in uniform on patrol and in Community Policing. Susan loves working in her Community and Schools in Tantallon where she and her 15 year old son reside. During her off time she loves to ski, play hockey, practice yoga and spend time relaxing at her cottage in PEI.

Sherry Dean

Mentor

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Sherry Dean is a Training Officer and Captain with HRFE. She is a level II Fire Service Instructor who enjoys recruit training and is completing her diploma in Adult Education. Her qualifications include HazMat, Technical Rescue and Vehicle Extrication. Assisting young women in Camp Courage attain new skills and conquer challenges is a rewarding experience for her. She is excited for this year’s Camp

Nikki Butler

Mentor

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Nikki Butler has been a Fishery Officer with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) since 2002. Over the years, she has mentored, coached and trained numerous fishery officers as they began their careers with DFO. She has been a police defense tactics instructor for ten years and is currently the recruiting manager for fishery officer trainees in Maritimes Region. She stays active by hiking, running (she’s completed four marathons!), strength training and playing outside. Originally from Newfoundland, Nikki now lives in Dartmouth and is excited to become part of Camp Courage.

Veronica Faulkner

Mentor

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Veronica Faulkner grew up learning all about fire services. Her father, John, was one of the founding members of what is now Station 16 in Eastern Passage. She very quickly learned that telephone access was limited only to what was necessary and to keep her calls very short, because you never knew when there would be an incoming fire call. She and her siblings learned how to quickly make those most important calls to volunteer members. Of course, today those calls are made by the Communications Centre. She spent many years working in land development in various cities across Canada and the United States. Returning to her home community she worked for many departments in Halifax Regional Municipality including her last position as Administrative Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Operational Support Fire Services up until July 2012. Always passionate about her job and the welfare of her co-workers, she concentrated her efforts on the health and welfare of our firefighters which resulted in the Health & Wellness Committee receiving an award. She has spent a lifetime volunteering and although she is now retired and is enjoying the opportunity to travel she continues to volunteer in the community including as many of Fire Services functions as she is able. She has been with Camp Courage since 2008. She can be found in the classroom, on the training grounds and always with her camera in hand. Remember to smile because you will more than likely find your photo displayed in one of the Camp Courage scrapbooks.

Colleen Clarke

Director – Event Planning

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Colleen Clarke graduated from Camp Courage in 2011, graduated from Saint Mary’s University with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology 2016 and graduated from Mount Saint Vincent University with her Bachelor of Education. Colleen currently works as a grade 4/5 grade teacher at John McNeil Elementary school. She aspires to become a career firefighter and currently is a volunteer firefighter at station 13 downtown Dartmouth. She is a Director of Event Planning for Camp Courage. Her hobbies are playing hockey, being physically active and enjoying the outdoors.

Holly Coote

Mentor

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Holly Coote is a primary care paramedic with EHS ground ambulance in central Nova Scotia and loves her job! She has been a volunteer firefighter since 2015. Holly started her firefighting journey at station 65 in Tantallon and has since transferred to station 60 in Herring Cove. She has a strong passion for the firefighting field and plans to serve for many years to come.

Barb Vidito

Mentor

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Barb Vidito has worked at the IWK since 1995 booking ultra sounds for women and children. She has volunteered providing first and to the general public with St John Ambulance since 1996. Barb loves being a volunteer firefighter since 2009.
Some of her hobbies are baseball, curling, reading, horseback riding and golf. Barb’s parents have always supported the choices she has made. We love our two black, boy and girl cats dearly. My dream is to have a hobby farm, with one of each animal.

Trish Pittman

Mentor

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Trish Pittman served in the Canadian Armed Forces for 8 years in both the Naval Reserves and Regular force. She has earned her level one certification from the Nova Scotia Fire Service and is currently a member of the Enfield Volunteer Fire Department.

Joan Helson

Mentor

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Joan Helson is an empowerment-based self defence instructor, women’s educator, speaker, author and cancer survivor. Joan founded Sisu Women’s Self Defence (2006), which is Atlantic Canada’s first self defence training school for women. A long time student of the martial arts and an instructor for over 2 decades, she holds black belts in Chon Tu Kwan (Combat) Hapkido (4th degree black belt and certified senior instructor) and Taekwondo (Kukkiwon and ITA certified black belt, certified instructor). In addition to teaching, Joan cross trains as often as she can in a variety of defensive-oriented styles of martial arts (including Jeet Kune Do, jujitsu, krav maga, jiujitsu and Filipino martial arts), has completed PPCT’s Defensive Tactics, Pressure Point Control Tactics and Spontaneous Knife Defense certification programs and is an apprentice instructor in the ICHF’s Tactical Pressure Points program. Her job-specific safety training programs have been attended by Realtors, health care professionals, security staff, lawyers, small business owners and many others. She has presented workshops for hundreds of women, teens and pre-teens in Atlantic Canada, and has been invited to speak to issues of women’s safety and self defence on CBC television, CTV National and Atlantic, Global TV, radio talk shows, newspapers and blogs. In 2013, Joan was honoured to be a recipient of the prestigious Canadian Progress Club Women of Excellence Award for contributions to her community in the area of health, sport and wellness.

Krista Eisan

Mentor

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Krista Eisan has volunteered with Halifax Regional Fire since 2010. In that time, she has also assisted as an instructor with volunteer recruits. She works with Muscular Dystrophy Canada as the regional advisor for Firefighters in HRM assisting with fundraising efforts when needed.

Allison Bolton

Mentor

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Allison Bolton currently an art and band teacher at Dartmouth High School. I’ve been teaching for over twenty years. When I turned 40, I saw a sign recruiting volunteer firefighter. It seemed like a great idea for a new start to serving my community. I started at Goffs seven years ago and transferred to Sackville shortly after VFR. I enjoy fire a great deal as I’ve had the opportunity to help others and meet new people.

Taigan Ross

Mentor

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Taigan Ross is a Critical Care Paramedic that graduated from Camp Courage in 2007. It was Camp Courage that opened her eyes to her dream job in paramedicine. Over the next 10 years, she became a PCP, then an ACP and finally a CCP – all while combining it with working in a high call volume center and volunteering at Camp Courage in an attempt to give back. When not wearing a stethoscope, you will find her roaming walking trails with her 4-year-old Boxer dog named Disney who believes she is the queen bee!

Donna Reid

EHS Program Coordinator

Allison Bolton

Mentor

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Taigan Ross

Mentor

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Jodi Lambert

Paramedic Program Past Co-ordinator

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Jodi Lambert brings years of experience to the Camp from being a member of the Naval reserves and living abroad. Basing herself from Lower Sackville but indulging her love of travel at every opportunity, Jodi has worked with Emergency Health Service for eleven years as a Communications Officer and Primary Care Paramedic. Jodi is on the board of directors for the camp.

Nadya-Lyse Paré

Mentor / Past Vice President

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Nadya-Lyse Paré has been with Camp Courage since its inception and has remained committed to its goals and purpose. She is mother of two amazing and strong young adults and mentor to many more. In 1994, she became one of the first female career firefighters in Halifax Regional Municipality after breaking barriers as the first female firefighter in 2 different volunteer departments. She became the first woman career officer and has been very successful leading various crews in Halifax Regional Municipality, notably the first and only all-female crew. Certified diversity professional and educator she has been teaching the value of diversity on her days off, for many years and believes in it strongly. So strongly in fact, that both passion and profession have merged in her position as Assistant Chief, specializing in workplace culture. Nadya-Lyse is a public speaker, a writer and an advocate. She is a Justice of the Peace for the province and also owns a lovely Bed and Breakfast on the shore of the Bay of Fundy that she shares with her partner.

Lorne Piercey

Mentor

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Lorne Piercey started firefighting in 1995 with the Gibson’s and District Fire Department. He completed his level I and II firefighter and Instructor I and II with the Justice Institute of British Columbia. He served the role of Training captain with the fire department and Emergency Response Fire Chief at his place of employment. Upon moving to Halifax in 2006 Lorne was employed as Instructor with the Nova Scotia Firefighters School and worked as Lead firefighting Instructor with Survival Systems Training in Dartmouth in 2012. During that time Lorne volunteered with Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency where he served in various roles as Firefighter, Captain, Deputy Chief and Zone Chief. Lorne has a certificate in Fire Services Leadership from Dalhousie University and is certified as an Airport Rescue Firefighter from South Carolina. Lorne has been a guest instructor at FDIC Atlantic on several occasions teaching Vehicle extrication and Rapid Intervention Techniques. In 2017 Lorne became a career firefighter with HRFE and currently is at 10 Station in Sackville on C Platoon.

Heather MacNeil

Mentor

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Heather MacNeil grew up in Dartmouth NS and serves as a volunteer firefighter, driver and pump operator at Station 13. She became interested in volunteering with Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency for the personal challenges and learning opportunities presented by the department. Always being active and part of team sports growing up; becoming a volunteer firefighter allowed her to continue to be part of a high functioning team all while giving back to the community in which she grew up and most importantly helping others along the way. Heather currently works with Halifax Regional Municipality as a Community Recreation Coordinator.

Krista Lane

Mentor

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Krista Lane is an Acting Operations Supervisor with EHS. She has been a paramedic since 2014, and in that time has worked on the ground as well as in the Medical Communications Centre as a Senior Communications Officer. She graduated from Mount Allison University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Performing Arts and English. Krista is a founding member of the Committee for Diversity & Inclusion; outside her work with EHS, she and her wife founded a business that champions health equity for marginalized populations. In her spare time, Krista sits on the advisory committee for BRIC NS, writes and plays music as creative outlets, and keeps active with her six-year-old son, Oscar

Miranda Newhook

Paramedic Program Director

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Miranda Newhook, originally from Newfoundland, has been with EMC since 2006, working as an Advanced Care Paramedic and currently serving as the Operations Supervisor for the NCCT Program within the EHS LifeFlight Program in Nova Scotia.

Outside of her professional role, Miranda is an active volunteer, contributing her time to initiatives such as Camp Courage, Peer and Family Support Services, and the Youth Forum through the United Church. Her vibrant personality and dedication also make her a respected Paramedic and Mentor at Camp Courage. Miranda Newhook exemplifies a compassionate and committed professional in the field of paramedicine.

Shari Affleck

Coast Guard Program Coordinator

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Shari Affleck, the National Executive Director for the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary in Ottawa, Ontario, boasts 25+ years of experience in safety and regulatory compliance across provincial and federal governments in Canada. Beyond her professional achievements, she is a dedicated advocate for marginalized women and girls, especially those affected by substance abuse and violence. Shari’s contributions include mentoring women in transition, creating art programs for incarcerated individuals, leading Girl Guides of Canada, and supporting the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for over 29 years. Her multifaceted commitment to both her career and community exemplifies her as a catalyst for positive change.

Natasha Prest

Program Director & Mentor

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Natasha is not only a trailblazer but also a dedicated public servant, proudly holding the distinction of being the first African Nova Scotian career female member of Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency. A lifelong resident of Halifax, Natasha has spent a significant portion of her life living and working downtown, deeply connected to the community she serves.

Over the span of 14 years with Halifax Regional Fire, Natasha has worn many hats, showcasing her versatility and commitment. From her roles as Firefighter/Engineer and Fire Prevention Officer to her current position as Operations Captain, Natasha has continually risen to the challenges within the department. Beyond her operational duties, she has honed her expertise as a Technical Rescue Specialist and proudly contributes to the CAN-TF5 Urban Search and Rescue Team.

A graduate of St. Mary’s University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology, Natasha’s pursuit of knowledge extends beyond the fire service. She values education and understands the importance of continuous personal and professional growth.

Natasha’s dedication to service extends to her role as a mother, with her daughter having graduated from Camp Courage—a testament to Natasha’s commitment to empowering the next generation. In her spare time, Natasha enjoys the adventure of travel, evident in the numerous stamps adorning her passport. Her active lifestyle includes regular workouts at the gym and serene walks in the sunshine.

A quote by Martin Luther King Jr. encapsulates Natasha’s philosophy: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?'” This quote reflects her deep sense of responsibility and commitment to making a positive impact on the lives of those around her. Natasha’s journey is not only one of personal achievement but also a narrative of inspiration for aspiring individuals in her community and beyond.

Odette Gaudet

Mentor

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Odette, a native of Clare, Nova Scotia, has deep roots in her close-knit community. Currently residing in Grosses Coques, Nova Scotia, she boasts an impressive 30-year career as a dedicated paramedic.

What sets Odette apart is her warm and nurturing personality, which leaves a lasting impact on the campers she encounters each year. Her caring nature has a profound influence on those she mentors and guides.

During her well-deserved spare moments, Odette finds solace in leisurely strolls along the beaches and cherishes quality time spent with her loved ones. Her commitment to her profession and her genuine love for people make her a cherished member of both her community and the Camp Courage family.