Board Members

Pascal Murphy

President, St. Clare’s Housing (Board Membership 2010-Present)

Pascal is an award winning Instructor at Ryerson University who teaches in the areas of Homelessness and Social and Environmental Justice. He was critical in the creation of the Social Justice and Peace Studies program at King’s University College (at UWO) and completed his degree in this program in 2004, followed by a Masters in Environmental Studies at York University in 2009. Pascal is also a Capital Asset Manager for May Stone Investments Inc., a Toronto-based commercial landlord. His specialties are strategic marketplace analysis and project management. He has participated in and/or facilitated a number of cross-cultural/cross-class immersion experiences in West, South and East Africa, Dominican Republic, Ukraine, Brazil, Guatemala and various parts of Canada and the US. Pascal is a passionate advocate for social justice and a co-founder of Peace Flag House, a community-orientated creative agency in Toronto focused on cultivating positive social and environmental change.

Evan Van Dyk

Board Member

Evan VanDyk is a labour and employment lawyer currently practicing at Toronto-Dominion Bank. Evan has also worked at Bell Canada and in private practice. In addition to St. Clare's, Evan's community involvement includes acting as the Chair of the Board of Directors at the Abelard Centre for Education, a small private high school in Toronto. Evan has been a Board member since 2011 and is proud to be part of an organization building and providing much-needed solutions in the midst of Toronto's ongoing housing crisis.

Saadiye Ally

Board Member

Saadiye is currently working at the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health (CAMH). Her previous employment includes Stella’s Place and Street Haven at the Crossroads Women’s Shelter as well as work in addiction services. Saadiye’s community involvement includes volunteer work at the YWCA as well as St. Michael’s Centre for Depression and Suicide Studies. As a LGBT Muslim woman of colour who has experienced precarious housing and homelessness, she is passionate about stable housing and recognizes the significant impact this has on an individual. Saadiye is proud to be a member of St. Clare’s Multifaith Housing Society as it provides real solutions towards decreasing/ending homelessness.

Sandra Willow Lang

Board Member

Sandra Willow Lang is a founding member of St. Clare’s Multifaith Housing Society. As a person with lived experience of homelessness and (dis)ability she truly understands how easy it can be to fall through the cracks and just how fast it can happen. Sandra recognizes the need to take political principles and put them into practice so they can make an actual difference in people’s lives. She appreciates the fact that St. Clare's was originally founded to demonstrate that housing those who have experienced homelessness is not only possible, but can be done in a effective and supportive manner.  The demonstration was and continues to be very effective as St. Clare's now houses more than 350 people.   Sandra also works as an administrative staff in a Toronto supportive housing agency and is an active member of the Reclaiming Spiritual community.

Kyrsten Howat

Board Member

Kyrsten Howat is a social worker in the downtown east end of Toronto and has been working in the field for the past eight years. She graduated with a Bachelor of Social Work from Carleton University in 2010 and a Masters in Social Work from the University of Toronto in 2011.  Currently, she works with people impacted by homelessness. She provides counselling and outreach with a focus on mental health and substance use. She believes strongly in Harm Reduction, which places a person’s strengths, autonomy, capacities and dignity at the forefront. She also endorses Mindfulness and compassion for all as a way of healing and supporting one another in our communities. She is passionate about justice and sees the provision of affordable and safe housing as a fundamental step in rectifying the injustices suffered by people who have been marginalized. 

Jim Jarvis, P.Eng

Board Member

Jim is a retired Professional Engineer with 30 years of experience in major project and corporate management with Hatch, a leading engineering, project management and consulting firm. Having lived and worked in 3 continents over the course of his career, Jim held a variety of progressive positions throughout the company’s global organization, his last being Managing Director of Engineering. His work has entailed engineering and project management activities for major industrial clients as well as corporate leadership roles which included directorships on boards of various international Hatch companies. In retirement, Jim’s focus has been on new learning, understanding and volunteering in a variety of social justice related areas in Toronto and across Canada.