Steering committee

Dr. Bill Mackie was born and raised in Vancouver. He started at UBC in Physical Education then transferred to the University of Michigan graduating with a B.Sc. in Physical Education "Magna Cum Laude" and then entered graduate school at U of M for a M.Sc. in Education, Physiology of Exercise. Since childhood, Dr. Mackie trained and competed in gymnastics and was also a member of the Canadian 1972 Olympic Team.

In 1977 he began practice in both Family Medicine and Sport Medicine in Victoria and coaching gymnastics at UVic. After 8 years, he moved to Vancouver in similar roles, becoming involved in the BC Gymnastics Association and later its President, as well as serving 3 years on the Board of Sport BC. In 1989 Dr. Mackie was elected as delegate for Vancouver in the BC Medical Association (BCMA), and in 2008 became President. Dr. Mackie became President of DASH in 1993. He has also taught extensively in UBC Medical School, Department of Family Practice and is a Clinical Associate Professor. He has been a Member of the Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine for about 30 years and was recognized as Canadian Community Sport Medicine Physician of the Year at 2010 CASM Meeting in June in Toronto.

Bill has 6 children, all physically active, and two grandchildren. His daughter Gael is also an Olympian, competing at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, and youngest Charlotte, 16, competed in the 2007 PanAm Games in Rio and 2009 World Championships held at Venue O2 Center, site of the 2012 Olympic Gymnastics Competition.

Gene and his wife Betty own and operate Cloverleaf Farm in the Cariboo. As primary producers, they grow forage crops, raise bees, and have a greenhouse and a large garden. As a patient with two chronic diseases - diabetes and chronic kidney disease - Gene balances the self management of these diseases with the management of the farm. A love for the land and all things related to agriculture provides Gene with the essence of a quality life style.

When not involved in farming activities, Gene spends time volunteering with a multiple of groups including the Knights of Columbus, Quesnel Power & Sail Squadron, Quesnel 4-H, and the BC Kidney Foundation. As a patient advocate for quality primary health care for B.C., Gene is an active member of Patient Voices Network (Steering Committee), Patients as Partners, and is receiving Peer Tutoring Training. In 2001 Gene was presented with the Golden Rooster Award as the volunteer of the year.

Jami Brown is the Leader for Healthy Living/Healthier Communities in Fraser Health. She joined Fraser Health in 2004 after working for many years in Public Health on healthy living initiatives. She leads a team of Community Health Specialists committed to working together with communities by joining efforts in health promotion to support the health of people living with chronic disease by creating supporting environments for individual behaviour change. She is passionate about providing opportunities for people to work together in creating systems change and recognizing that good health is a shared responsibility and collective vision, involving both community leaders and citizens.

As a kinesiologist, Kate has a background in fitness and recreation programming and employee health promotion. She is currently the Health Enhancement Coordinator of the Fit City Program with the City of Vancouver and has been since 1991. She was a Fitness Programmer for the Vancouver Park Board for eight years and in 1988/1989, she was a member of the development team of Fit City - the City of Vancouver’s Health Enhancement Program.

She has developed and implemented the Active Civic Employees (ACE) Network as Coordinator of the Local Government Employees Health Promotion Project for 2010 Legacies Now and the Union of BC Municipalities in 2005/2006.

Liza is currently the Executive Lead, Practice Support Program (PSP), in the Professional Relations department of the BC Medical Association. The PSP is a joint initiative of the BCMA and the government through the General Practice Services Committee (GPSC).

PSP is a large-scale quality improvement practice redesign initiative, involving close to 1,600 individual family physicians (half of all practising FPs), which is currently transforming and revitalizing family medicine in BC.

Liza also served as Co-Director of both province-wide chronic disease quality improvement collaboratives — on Diabetes and Congestive Heart Failure collaborative from 2003 – 2005.

Marsha Wilson is the Primary Health Care Practice Lead within the Community Integration portfolio for the Interior Health Authority. One of her main responsibilities is to collaborate with other portfolios to ensure the seamless integration of patient-centered services. Marsha is also responsible for the delivery of the Practice Support Program, the current Integrated Health Networks, and the work being delivered by the Community Integration Facilitators.

Marsha is a Registered Nurse, graduating in 1979 from BCIT. She went back to school to obtain her BScN in the mid-1990s. She has worked in acute care, public health, and primary health care settings. She is married to a full-practice family physician, has three grown children, and parents in their 80s who are living independently.

Dr. Trevor Hancock is a public health physician and health promotion consultant who has worked for local communities, municipal, provincial and national governments, health care organizations and the World Health Organization. His main areas of interest are health promotion, healthy cities and communities, healthy public policy, environmental health, health policy and planning, and health futurism. He is currently a Public Health Consultant at the Ministry of Health in British Columbia, where he is working to implement core programs in public health, to increase preventive services in primary care, to foster a population health promotion approach, to develop a comprehensive self-care strategy and to ‘green’ the health care system.

Outside of his work life, Trevor is an enthusiastic Morris dancer — a traditional English folk dance, think ‘non-violent rugby’! — and a semi-professional outdoor photographer. He loves to travel somewhat adventurously and has sailed as voyage crew on a tallship in the South Pacific several times, enjoys diving — but only in warm water these days! — and has tried his hand at caving and blackwater rafting. He lives in Victoria BC with his wife Fran and their two dogs, where they have a small jewel of a garden — thanks to Fran, who does horticulture, while Trevor does infrastructure. They share a love of the arts, classical music, reading and, of course, their dogs — they are English, after all, as Fran is wont to remark!