Monika Kawka
Executive Director
monika@cowichanhospice.org
Monika Kawka (pronounced Kaaf Ka) joins Cowichan Hospice with a strong leadership background in Human Resources (People and Culture) and a passion for the work of Hospice. She has worked to build engaging cultures in British Columbia, in Europe and in India, including recent work with Arc’teryx, the Vancouver-based outdoor clothing company. Monika believes that compassionate end-of-life care generously offers the time, presence and a desire to honour and comfort a person. It creates a safe space for all the feelings and beliefs that may arise.
Kathleen Ramsay
Bereavement Services Coordinator
kathleen@cowichanhospice.org
Having taken on the role of Bereavement Services Coordinator, Kathleen blends her corporate experience helping employees cope with change, caregiving and compassion fatigue into a hospice vision of serving clients impacted by death. Kathleen enjoyed a first career as a percussionist in a Symphony Orchestra. She felt privileged to play great music for many years. She believes that compassionate care is one other human supporting us with their time and attention as we heal. Kathleen experienced a shocking loss that she managed on her own, thinking she was doing well. It wasn’t until she spoke with someone who understood and had time for her story that she really began her life again.
Tina Schoen
Volunteer Programs Coordinator
tina@cowichanhospice.org
As the Volunteer Program Coordinator, Tina ensures that Cowichan Hospice’s activities are supported by amazing volunteers who bring their hearts, skills and experiences to their work with clients, our community and our organization. She also connects our volunteers with support and education to empower them to do their good work and to grow as individuals. While working with a crisis support program for women fleeing abuse, Tina helped implement a shift from abstinence-based theory to a provision of shelter and trauma-informed support for women who use substances. This shift was profound for both the team and clients, and the process strengthened Tina’s commitment to the collaborative process. As a co-founder of the Pacific Rim Whale Festival 30 years ago, Tina supported the communities of Tofino and Ucluelet – villages with different lifestyles and values –to come together to celebrate, educate, and create a tourism focus based around the spring grey whale migration. This work was contingent on the ability to find common ground and develop relationship with community partners – a foundational aspect of her work at Hospice.
Sanja Duggan
Bookkeeper
sanja@cowichanhospice.org
Having been professionally raised in an accounting environment, Sanja spent many years working in an accounting office and learned immensely valuable information from all the designated accountants. These relationships with the accountants in her life, coupled together with her spirit of enquiry and commitment to learning have empowered Sanja to become an extraordinary bookkeeper with Cowichan Hospice. She also had the honor of working in an addiction treatment centre, where she witnessed the healing that takes place as people come together in community to hold space and honor one another. This experience opened her heart and mind to living more fully present with herself and others in her everyday life. To Sanja, providing compassionate care means listening with an open heart full of gentle kindness and honouring and accepting people’s words as their heart’s truth.
Lisa Chileen
Community Palliative Services Coordinator
lchileen@cowichanhospice.org
As the Palliative Community Coordinator, Lisa meets with people in their homes for the purpose of heart connection and provides emotional support to the person dying and their family. In her own words, “The spirit in me will journey with the spirit in you.” She served as a Certified Mandt instructor for over five years at Clements Centre, developing personal relationships and workplace cultures that provide emotional, psychological and physical safety which allows individuals to say, “In this place, and with these people, I feel safe.” Lisa helped advocate for and develop a Death and Dying course during her time teaching the Community Support Worker program at Sprott Shaw Community College. Her proudest accomplishment is being asked to join the Cowichan Hospice team.
Holly Bowen
Development Coordinator
holly@cowichanhospice.org
Working closely with the Executive Director, Holly develops and implements fundraising plans that will enable Cowichan Hospice to continue meeting the growing need for hospice support in the Cowichan Valley. Her role also includes graphic design, writing and editing to provide consistent and transparent information to the community – those who might need hospice services, and those whose support is vital to keeping our doors open. Her happiest professional moment was the sod-turning celebration for Cowichan Hospice House, seeing the beautiful crowd of determined people who’d given so much and worked so hard to make the House a reality. To Holly, compassionate care is providing comfort while respecting and supporting the unique needs, beliefs and desires of each dying or grieving person.
Nigel Keatley
Office Coordinator
frontdesk@cowichanhospice.org
Before relocating to Canada from the UK, Nigel supported clients affected by long-term mental health issues as they attempted to transition back to independent living. This initial experience in the non-profit sector was a radical change for him in employment and perspective, a life-altering choice in which he felt his work was meaningful and worthwhile. As the Office Coordinator, Nigel is the first point of contact between Cowichan Hospice and individuals seeking compassionate care, and he connects clients with the most appropriate coordinators and support – work that he sees as life-affirming and fundamentally humane. He brings with him six years of experience as the General Manager of a resort and marina, where he honed his interpersonal/customer service and administration expertise, and developed a deep understanding of the needs and dynamics of a small team.
Kacey Nicholson
Development Assistant
kacey@cowichanhospice.org
Kacey brings a lifetime of caregiving experience to the role of Development Assistant. While living on the Saanich peninsula, Kacey contributed greatly to community fundraising efforts during her work in the private sector, which amplified the annual VIATEC Food Bank Challenge, the 24-Hour Relay and the United Way Campaign campaigns. Kacey was responsible for planning, overseeing and promoting events, while connecting with new and existing donors. To Kacey, whole-person care is created by open-heartedly acknowledging and holding space for an individual’s thoughts and feelings in the moment, assessing their needs with careful consideration of their boundaries and beliefs, and providing options to support them physically, mentally, and spiritually while acting with love, empathy, and encouragement.
Maureen McKay
Support Services Coordinator, Hospice House
maureen@cowichanhospice.org
Maureen joined the team at Cowichan Hospice in early 2024, fulfilling her long-time dream of living on Vancouver Island. Grounded by many years of working as the Coordinator of Palliative Support Services with Ridge Meadows Hospice Society in Maple Ridge, Maureen is deeply committed to applying her experience and dedication to this meaningful, impactful work in her new community. Understanding the significance of dying on one’s own terms, Maureen feels honoured to meet people where they are, helping them to live well to the end of their lives with comfort and dignity, while also supporting their families and loved ones throughout the journey. Outside of work, Maureen enjoys being with the trees, with the water, exploring the wonders of Vancouver Island and reading a good mystery with her cats close by.
