Staff

Jeffrey Gallant is Co-Founder of Capitalize for Kids. Jeff manages a wealth management partnership external to Capitalize for Kids alongside Kyle MacDonald. He was previously an Associate Portfolio Manager at Alignvest Capital Management, a Toronto-based alternative asset manager. Prior to joining Alignvest, Jeffrey worked as an Investment Analyst on the North American equity long short mandates at Gluskin Sheff + Associates. He has also held internship positions as an Analyst with CIBC World Markets.

To date, he has obtained the Chartered Investment Manager and Certified International Wealth Manager designations, and is currently a candidate for the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. Beyond these, Jeffrey has also obtained his options license and has completed the Canadian Insurance Course.
In 2013, Jeffrey was presented with the One to Watch Award by Queen’s University and was recognized as a Global Shaper by the World Economic Forum in 2012. He has served as a volunteer at The Hospital for Sick Children for the past three years and is a founding member of the SickKids Innovators program.

Jeffrey received an Honours Bachelor of Commerce degree from Queen’s University where he majored in finance. During his studies, he served as Chief Strategy Officer of the Queen’s University Investment Counsel, a student-run investment fund managing $500,000 of Queen’s endowment funds. He was also educated at the Stockholm School of Economics in Sweden through an international exchange and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania through a leadership program.

Kyle Co-Founded Capitalize for Kids alongside Jeff in 2013. Kyle manages a wealth management partnership external to Capitalize for Kids alongside Jeff Gallant. He previously led the Financial Services practice at Veritas Investment Research, an independent equity research firm headquartered in Toronto. In the 2014 Thomson Reuters StarMine analyst awards, Kyle ranked 1st for Banks and Insurance coverage in the country and 2nd for stock picking across all sectors. Prior to Veritas, Kyle began his career at Ernst and Young where he was awarded National Honor Roll status for his performance on the 2012 Uniform Final Exam (UFE). To date, Kyle has obtained the Chartered Profession Accountant (CPA, CA) designation, and is also a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Kyle received an Honours Bachelor of Commerce degree from Queen’s University where he concurrently played for the Varsity Football team. He was also a member of the 2009 Vanier Cup winning program.
Beyond Capitalize for Kids, Kyle is also a volunteer at the Hospital for Sick Children, and a member of the SickKids Innovators program. He was recognized as a Global Shaper by the World Economic Forum in 2013.

Justin is the Associate Director of Capitalize for Kids. Justin came to Capitalize for Kids from Accenture where he was a Management Consultant in the Financial Services practice. His work spanned across multiple functions such as product strategy, innovation strategy, org structure design, and application portfolio optimization business case design.

In 2013, Justin founded the Jack Summit, Canada’s student-led mental health innovation summit. Through this initiative, Justin has spoken on a national and international scale to inspire young people to be agents of change in the field of youth mental health, and educate doctors, policy makers and researchers on the importance of collaborating with youth leaders in this space.

Justin received an Honours Bachelor of Science degree from Queen’s University with a major in Life Sciences (specialized in drug development and human toxicology) and minor in Economics. Upon graduation, Justin was presented with the class nominated Carl Mastomaki Award which is awarded to the student who best demonstrates strong academic performance, significant extracurricular achievement, and collegiality with classmates.

Beyond Capitalize for Kids, Justin is a member of the Board of Directors for Progress Place; the first mental health recovery organization in Toronto. He also loves photography, traveling, soccer, and golf.

Eugene uses digital marketing to make good non-profits great. Prior to working at Capitalize for Kids, he was the Marketing and Communications Lead at Jack.org. As one of the organization’s first full-time employees, Eugene helped to grow Jack.org from a memorial fund into a national charity with thousands of volunteers and a network of 85 campus chapters across Canada.

Eugene is a digital marketing Swiss Army Knife. From strategy through to production he does it all. He has extensive experience in social media, content, and email marketing. He is a copywriter, graphic designer and video producer.

Eugene studied Film and Media at Queen’s University. While enrolled in school, he managed the student television station and created a live sports broadcast which revolutionized university sports webcasting in Canada. He was also involved with organizing a number of community and campus events like the Kingston Canadian Film Festival and TEDxQueensU. He was awarded the Mark R. Wilson Award by the Arts and Sciences Undergraduate Society for his service to the Queen’s community.

Eugene spends his free time at the gym, in the pool, and on the soccer pitch.

Evan is the Business Development Manager at Capitalize for Kids. He was most recently an analyst with the FICC (Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities) group at BMO Capital Markets. Prior to working at BMO, Evan worked at GE Capital as a member of their Commercial Leadership Program. He is currently a CFA Level 3 candidate.

Evan holds a Bachelor’s of Commerce degree from Queen’s University where he was a member of the Varsity Football team – playing alongside Kyle in his rookie year. Following a career ending injury prior to his senior year, Evan joined Queen’s Health Outreach – a student-run NGO promoting health initiatives both locally and abroad. Through QHO and after graduation, Evan went on to teach health education to secondary school students in Belize.

Rooted with a strong passion for promoting positive social impact, Evan strives to continually exemplify the Non Sibi (not for self) motto of his alma mater Phillips Exeter Academy.

Jessica is the Project Manager Intern at Capitalize for Kids. She was most recently the Director of the World Bank for the International Model United Nations Association (IMUNA), where she facilitated the diplomatic debate of over 150 student delegates.

Jessica is currently a student at Ivey Business School and about to complete her final year in the Honors Business Administration (HBA) program. Throughout her time as a student, she was a representative of the Ivey Fashion and Retail Club, member of the Ivey Consulting Club, and a Political Risk Analyst for the Democracy Lab. Most recently, she was elected as the VP Logistics for the Ivey Women in Management club where she is responsible for coordinating the second annual female empowerment conference.

Prior to beginning at Capitalize for Kids, she travelled to South Africa where she was able to experience African culture, game drives, and sunny weather 24/7. Jessica spends her free time travelling, binge watching the Food Network, and dancing.

Jessica is the Project Management Intern at Capitalize for Kids. Previously she has worked as an intern at the Major Gifts department of The Ottawa Hospital Foundation where she spearheaded strategic partnerships with a special focus on helping to raise the remaining 30% of the $20 million Healthy Women, Healthy Community initiative.

Jessica is currently in her third year at Queen’s Smith School of Business. Throughout her time at Queen’s she has been a mentor to incoming first year students and a passionate member of the Queen’s Women in Leadership club. An adamant supporter of children’s well being, she volunteers with Commerce Kids and The Boys and Girls Club.

In the first semester of her third year Jessica went on an international exchange to Hong Kong, this sparked her love of travel and Asian food. She spends her free time baking and travelling.

Yvonne is a seasoned professional with over 25 years experience as a senior executive manager. Prior to launching Elastic Communications & Events, she held the post of Director, Conference & Events for a leading North American communication & events firm.

A Certified Meeting Professional, Yvonne has traveled extensively, directing and managing events for 20 to 5,500 attendees. Programs have included annual general meetings, employee recognition events, national sales meetings, travel incentive programs, symposiums, trade shows, and product launches.

Yvonne’s clients include Fortune 500 companies in the financial, high tech and pharmaceutical industries, as well as government and association clients. Her clients return year after year because of her service standards, work ethic, and passion for the meetings industry. As a result, Yvonne was the recipient of the esteemed Meeting Professionals International (MPI) Toronto Chapter 2010 ‘Planner of the Year’ Award. She is also immediate Past President of the MPI Toronto Chapter, which has more than 700 members.

On top of her business achievements, Yvonne has earned the title of mother with all the fun and excitement of raising two very busy teenage daughters! From honour roll ceremonies to ice rinks, soccer stadiums, and karate lessons – Yvonne’s daughters keep her very active.

Julia is a graduate of Centennial College’s Festival, Event, and Conference Management post-graduate program and also holds a bachelor’s degree (honours) in Communication Studies, Women’s Studies, and Administration from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Before joining the team at Elastic as a program manager, Julia gained impressive experience in the industry by holding key volunteer positions at special events such as Gold Medal Plates (the Canadian Culinary Championships) and the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. She is also involved with the Professional Convention Management Association as a member of the Communications committee.

Julia has a talent for detail, especially budget management, and enjoys both the preparation and onsite delivery of events. Throughout her career at Elastic, Julia has managed events of 200 to 2,500 attendees within North America, Europe, and Asia.

Michelle Wilson’s 23 years of experience in the conference, medical, and legal fields have allowed her to develop into a highly-skilled conference/event coordinator and database manager.

As Elastic’s registration expert, Michelle is an enthusiastic team player with a vast knowledge of several computer programs, and brings meticulous attention to detail to each project she works on.

Having worked on registration for events attracting 50 to 3,000 attendees, Michelle is adept at developing practical and comprehensive registration systems that suit each project. She is proficient in developing, maintaining and managing attendee databases, and developing timely and pertinent reports. Working with the online registration provider, Michelle is able to advise and assist in developing customized registration systems and troubleshoot issues with her extensive and insightful testing process
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After years of spending all her free time at the ice rink with her daughter and son, they are away at university now and work during the summer. Michelle can finally say goodbye to those cold arena benches and enjoy life as an empty nester!