WMFC Governance
The WMFC has a Board of up to nine members, all of whom are volunteers. Oversight of the Board is through our Statutory members acting very much like trustees. There are up to 27 Statutory Members, depending on the size of the Board. Statutory members elect the Board. The WMFC is always looking for Statutory members who are willing to give time and direction to the WMFC. (If willing to consider, contact the WMFC Board Secretary raffaela.mercurio@wmfc.ca.)
The WMFC Board holds monthly Board meetings and an Annual General Meeting in the spring of each year.
The WMFC is a registered Canadian charity – Registration no. 86755 2713 RR0001
WMFC Board and Officers
Member Name | Title | Province | Joined the Board |
---|---|---|---|
Paul Kitchen | Chair | New Brunswick | 2018 |
Betty McPhee | Vice Chair | Ontario | 2008 |
Dave Johnston | Treasurer | Ontario | 2011 |
Raffaela Mercurio | Secretary | Ontario | 2015 |
Cam Fraser | Alberta | 2019 | |
Joe Lewicki | British Columbia | 2020 | |
Jim Mason | Nova Scotia | 2020 |
WMFC Board and Officers Biographies

after 29 years as the Head of School of Rothesay Netherwood School, in
2016. Paul graduated from U of T and taught at Ridley College School and St. Andrew’s College for six years before becoming the Head of RNS for 29 years. Paul continues his work with independent schools as an Onsite Coordinator during school accreditation visits. Paul’s mother was diagnosed with WM in the late 1970’s and passed away in 1983.
Paul was diagnosed with WM in 2014, was treated with Velcade, Dexamethasone and Rituximab for a four month regime and subsequently did two years maintenance treatment. After watching his IGM increasing over the last 16 months, he recently started taking Ibrutinib.

Board teaching deaf students in American Sign Language. Betty has also served as the Executive Director of Durham Deaf Services – a non-profit organization providing programs and services to support the Deaf community. In other positions she was involved in advocacy, community and organizational development, program development, strategic planning, communications, fundraising and curriculum materials development.
Betty was diagnosed with WM 17 years ago in 2002.. Just a few months after her diagnosis, she found the Oakville Support Group – the only WM support group in Canada at the time. Shortly after, she joined the board as Vice President (now Vice Chair) and is now the Toronto Support Group Leader and WMFC Support Group Liaison.
years in the life insurance industry as an actuary, first with a life insurance company where he was chief actuary, and later at Assuris, which ensures the payment of guaranteed policy benefits of insolvent life insurance companies. Dave’s diagnosis of WM followed a routine medical check-up in 1998, showing a low hemoglobin count, and two years of tests for other possible causes which were all negative. He has been a WMFC Board member since 2011 and Secretary of the Board since 2012, and served as Treasurer from 2013 to 2018.

When Raffaela was first diagnosed with WM in late 2011, she began regularly attending the Oakville support meetings. She found the meetings very helpful in her WM journey. She became a statutory member in 2014 and then became a member of the board in 2016. She helps organize support group meetings, educational forums and fundraisers. It is her way of giving back to WMFC for all the support given to her over the past years.

Diagnosed with WM in 2003, was on Watch and Wait until 2013, when he was treated with combination of Bendamustine/Rituxin. January 2012, he established and still chairs the Alberta WM Support Group and assisted in organizing the Calgary 2015 Education Forum. In addition to WM, he volunteers in various conservation associations involved in wildlife management and habitat restoration.

Joe was diagnosed with WM in 2002 and promptly searched out a long term clinical trial strategy. He was in three successful clinical trials in Boston with Steve Treon from 2003-2008. In 2009 he finished CVPR at Vancouver General and then proceeded immediately to an unrelated donor stem cell transplant. He lost his wife, Lynn, to ovarian cancer in 2017. He continues to work with cancer patients and has assisted with Canadian Institute of Health Research grant applications for BC Children’s Hospital and BC Cancer.

Diagnosed with WM in February 2009, he was a candidate for immediate treatments, which commenced with several rounds of Plasmapheresis, followed by Rituxin and again by several more rounds of Plasmapheresis prior to 4 cycles of Fludarabine. Five years later he was treated with Cyclophosphamide and Dexamethasone prior to being approved to begin Imbruvica, August 2016. Jim Co Chairs the Atlantic Canada WM Support Group and Chaired the organizing committee for the 2018 Educational Forum held in Halifax, Nova Scotia. In addition to WM, he has volunteered with numerous boards and organizations throughout the years. Other interests include golf, enjoying boating activities on the waters of Mahone Bay, curling and travelling.