Meet Our Team

Board of Directors

We are proud to introduce our Board of Directors, a dedicated group of leaders whose diverse expertise and shared commitment are instrumental in guiding our organization and advancing our mission.

  • Lucy Sun is a commercial litigation lawyer at a national firm in Vancouver. She believes in giving back to her community as she served Vancouver’s migrant community and the Canadian Association of Food Law and Policy.

    Lucy is admitted to both the BC and Ontario bars, having been educated at McGill for a BA (Hons), Queen’s for Juris Doctor and UC Berkley for Executive Education Certificate in Sustainable Capitalism and ESG. In her spare time Lucy is an avid painter and visual artist and is mom to rescue dog Nougie.


  • Stan de Mello is a lecturer, field faculty, Affiliate Faculty-Canadian Studies and a member of the Community Centered Integrated Practice concentration. He has been on faculty at the Native Education Centre, Vancouver, University of British Columbia and the University of the Fraser Valley.

    Stan has a sustained interest in First Nations community development and has worked extensively with urban and rural communities in Canada and the United States. He has also been involved in developing field education sites and institutional relationships in Kenya, UK, Vietnam, Cambodia, India and Canada. Stan has an enduring interest in the multicultural history of Canada, especially the Culinary history and evolving Gastro & Vini Tourism scene in Vancouver and BC.

  • Nancy Fong was born and educated in Vancouver, BC. She graduated from UBC with BCom & LLB combined and practised law at a solicitors’ firm in Vancouver & Richmond. In 2004, she transitioned to become a certified financial planner, earning a CFP designation by 2005 and joined a prominent financial planning and insurance services firm in Richmond, BC and becoming a partner in 2013. She is the secretary for the Estate Planning Council of Vancouver for 2022-2023 and a life member of Lions, past president, past secretary and past treasurer & volunteered as Lions member in Vancouver Pacific Lion for over 27 years.

    She is also the Vice-President of the Vancouver Pacific Housing Society managing Golden Age Court low-income housing in Chinatown, and a past member and past Chairperson of the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation Chinese-Canadian Planned Gift Committee. She has appeared on radio and TV for various charities regarding estate planning and charitable gift planning.


  • Frances is an experienced educational leader and communications professional with expertise in digital transformation and community engagement. She has worked internationally in Canada, Australia, China, and the Philippines, fostering inclusivity and driving impactful initiatives.

    With dual Bachelor’s degrees in Mass Communications and Marketing and a Master’s in Business Adminstration, Frances combines her academic and professional experience to amplify underrepresented voices and empower marginalized communities. Her innovative storytelling and strategic approach reflect her passion for cultural preservation, inclusivity, and community building.

  • Joann Anokwuru (She/Her) is an accomplished special/inclusive educator, advocate, and author with 28 years of experience. She holds multiple degrees, including M.Ed.s from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and the University of British Columbia (UBC), and a PhD from UBC. She also earned an Advanced Diploma in Inclusive Education from Queens University, Belfast.

    A Certified Educational Assessor and a member of the British Society of Psychologists, Joann is dedicated to ensuring people with disabilities have access to learning and participation.

    Currently, Joann coordinates and teaches the Gateway to Adulthood (GTA) program for the Vancouver School Board, preparing young adults with disabilities for community and college. She was recognized with the 2022 CIBWE award as one of the Top 100 Black Women to watch in Canada. Joann also serves on the boards of OneWorldUv New York, Swenam College, Canada, and Kerridale Preparatory School, Nigeria.


  • Andrea D Cruz, of Indian origin, was born and raised in Dubai, U.A.E. She completed her undergrad in Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting at the University of Wollongong in Dubai. She later moved to Vancouver, BC in 2018 and is currently studying to become a CPA. While Dubai will always be where the heart is, Andrea is warming up to call Vancouver home.

    Andrea has been working for the last 5 years in the accounting department for Lynch Bus Lines, a school bus company serving the lower mainland.

    Andrea loves to travel and see new places. One of the things on her bucket list is doing a road trip from Vancouver to Toronto one day. She also loves spending time with her niece and nephew and enjoys life as an aunt!

  • Tāriq Malik is a Vancouver-based, Pakistan-born, serial volunteer/social worker/teacher/listener/mentor, BIPOC author. He has worked across poetry, fiction, and art for the past four decades to distill immersive and compelling narratives that are always original. He writes intensely in response to the world in flux around him and from his place in its shadows.

    Even though his published works Rainsongs of Kotli (TSAR Publications, short stories, 2004), Chanting Denied Shores (Bayeux Arts, novel, 2010), and now Exit Wounds (Caitlin Press, Poetry, 2022), challenge entanglements in the barbed wires of boundaries, he seems to have finally found home in downtown Vancouver, and has no plans to move elsewhere.

    He has continually challenged racism in the workplace and society, and the reflection of cultural stereotypes of immigrant communities; and has sought outlets to frame the narratives of the marginalized through the lens of their own stories and lived experiences, and in decolonizing education.


  • Vivian is a retired school principal and like her parents, has long been active within the Japanese Canadian community. She has been on the Board of Directors for the BC Principals’ and Vice Principals’ Association, and is a past president of the BC Retired Principals’ and Vice Principals’ Association. As an educator she has facilitated and worked with many administrators’ groups and school districts in areas of professional development. She was a member of a group that developed the first Leadership Standards for BC Principals and Vice Principals, and has presented at international educators’ conferences at Oxford University and Turku, Finland. In 2015 she was honoured as one of UBC’s Outstanding Alumni. Within the Japanese Canadian community she is committed to learning and educating others about Japanese Canadian history and its legacies. For the past eight years she was Chair of the advisory Japanese Canadian Community Council to the Landscapes of Injustice research project. She is one of the advisors to the Education component of the Japanese Canadian Legacies project in honouring the community’s past and looking to the future.

    As a third generation Japanese Canadian she says she’s more fluent in Norwegian and French than in Japanese. Her interests are history, music, reading, outdoor activities including skiing, and her family in Canada and Norway.

  • Mr. Pais has had a long career as a growth-oriented member of the management teams of several technology companies in Vancouver over the last twenty years.  As a finance professional, he has also worked with companies in Asia, South America and Africa.

    He has actively worked with networking organizations that assisted immigrants in the tech industry and will continues with these efforts through the Pacific Heritage Canada Heritage Council.  He holds a Master of Business Administration degree in Finance and a Master’s Degree in Accountancy from the University of Missouri and has passed the CPA examination in the US.

  • Raymond Williams, a proud Seattle native and biracial, was shaped by his mother's nurturing of plants and his father's building skills. He earned a BA in Biology from Harvard and a Master's in Teaching from the University of Washington. Ray's extensive teaching career spanned West Seattle, Marist School in Atlanta (where he coached wrestling), and the International School of Curacao.

    Returning to Seattle, he taught at Rainier Beach High School and served as an Equity and Race Specialist. His formal teaching culminated in incorporating urban farming into Biology and Nutrition at the Art Institute of Seattle. In 2018, Ray co-founded the Black Farmers Collective. As Managing Director, he oversees "YES Farm" and "Small Axe," fostering community health by teaching urban farming, developing Black and Brown farm managers, and growing food for local tables, restaurants, and food banks. Ray sees himself as a servant leader, dedicated to building the Black community through farming.

  • Pat was born in Langley, BC. In 1880 her great-grandfather migrated to Pacific Canada from southern China and later her grandparents migrated here as well. Their stories are briefly mentioned in Pat’s migration story which can be found on the PCHC website here.

    Pat has volunteered as a school race relations chairperson; facilitated at multicultural leadership camp; contributed to and edited multicultural publications; and delivered workshops on Canadian multicultural books..

    She has presented Human Rights Day Student Symposia; organized Human Library events in educational settings and has participated in educational trips including the 2019 Students on Ice Arctic Expedition, where youth (over 50% of the students from Indigenous communities) were connected to nature, knowledge, people and resources to become future leaders.

    Pat actively encourages all people in Pacific Canada to share their migration stories through PCHC, especially IBPOC, LGBTQ2S+, women, people with disabilities whose stories are underrepresented or unseen.

  • Gwendolyn (“Wendy”) Yip served as President of the Board of Directors for PCHC-MoM Society from January 2020 through October 2022, and remains active as President Emerita. She serves as First Lady at the University of Michigan, and she was University Ambassador for the University of British Columbia (2016-22). In that role, she promoted an intercultural learning environment, and good “town and gown” relationships between UBC and outside groups, particularly local schools. At UBC, Wendy supported such efforts as the Asian Canadian & Asian Migration Studies program, UBC Opera, Museum of Anthropology, Belkin Art Gallery, UBC’s faith communities, Transcending Boundaries, BC Brain Wellness, and mentored graduate students. Wendy has served as an active Honorary President for the UBC Faculty Women’s Club (2016-23), on the Advisory Board of the Chinatown Storytelling Centre, and the Board of the Knowledge Network Corporation (2022). Wendy previously served as the First Lady of the University of Cincinnati, and served on the Board of the Seven Hills Neighborhood House.

    Wendy trained as an immunologist at McGill University and as a lawyer at Boston University. She practiced law for a decade in the US, primarily at patent law firms. Wendy was also an Anheuser-Busch Legal Fellow at NAPALC, which later became the Asian American Justice Center, in Washington, DC. She taught patent law as a visiting fellow at the London School for Economics 2001-02. She is married to Santa Ono, now the 15th President of the University of Michigan, and is the proud mother of two independent, resilient, and compassionate daughters.

Join Our Dedicated Volunteers

Become a vital part of our mission by contributing your time and skills. Our volunteers are the heart of our organization, helping us to create meaningful impact in the community. Explore diverse opportunities to get involved and make a difference.

Our Leadership Heritage

Meet Past Directors and Presidents

Join us as we acknowledge and celebrate the visionary leadership of our past Directors and Presidents. Their dedicated service and strategic guidance have been instrumental in shaping our journey and laying the groundwork for our continued success.

Remembering Those Who Paved the Way

This section honors the legacy of the founding members of PCHC-MoM who have passed on. Their vision, dedication, and tireless efforts laid the foundation for the work we continue today. We celebrate their lives and the lasting impact they’ve made on our community and mission.