Meet the Soy Team

Nicole has always had a desire to work with her hands, and after raising three children and purchasing an income property which she helped renovate, she had found her passion, both in the work and helping others!
In 2018, she attend a skilled trades course in carpentry geared towards women. It was an amazing experience that gave her more value than just hands-on skills. She learned how to be empowered by others new to a field that was scary and unknown and saw a fearlessness by fellow classmates to embrace those new challenges, and for the past three years, Nicole has worked for Habitat for Humanity as a General Carpenter Apprentice.
The mission that Support Ontario Youth is working towards is incredibly important in order for Ontario and Canada to have a prosperous future. She is passionately looking forward to supporting her fellow apprentices in the trades and working with employers to help all realize their dreams!

Craig Brockwell is a veteran lobbyist with experience in developing and delivering workshops, writing briefs, delivering strategic plans and organizing major conferences. Craig is easily the most recognizable non-elected face at Queen’s Park. Previously, he served as the lobbyist for the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF). During this time, he worked regularly with many other unions on issues at all three levels of government. Prior to getting involved in advocacy work, Craig taught secondary school carpentry, architecture, offset printing, and art. Craig has extensive work experience in both the hotel and construction industries, including working at all levels n the hotel industry, and as a carpenter. Through these work experiences, Craig has developed strong relationships with groups that are important to Support Ontario Youth’s work – specifically student organizations, educational organizations, as well as indigenous employer and labour organizations. Craig also speaks English, French, Italian and Spanish.

Backed with many years in the field, Greg's experience includes serving with the Canadian Forces as an electrical distribution technician. This role presented him with world opportunities such as working with the Jamaican Defense Force, to being deployed to outposts in Afghanistan. He is also an electrical professor, teaching at both private and public institutions. He holds his masters licence and is also a licensed electrical contractor. He is passionate about the electrical trade and wholeheartedly believes in the mission that SOY is undertaking.

We are extremely fortunate to have him on our team, and to have his knowledge in our apprentices corner! If you have not had a chance to connect with Greg, please send him a welcome by emailing greg.dallaway@supportontarioyouth.ca.

Throughout his career, Steve has held a variety of positions with a number of companies. From service plumbing, to Operations Manager for a Municipal Construction company, and managing customer service for the water department of a large Municipality. He has worked in most of Canada, gaining experience and knowledge which allows him to provide training for Apprentice plumbers, as well as many safety programs for the trades.

Steve has been involved in his communities through Coaching, Managing, and Training for Hockey, Lacrosse, and Ringette teams. He has been involved as a member, and part of the executive for multiple service groups, working to provide learning experiences for youth in his community, and providing water wells for communities that have not had access to clean water.

Steve’s extensive work experience in his career and his inviting open communication style allow him to deliver relevant course and regulated information. All while, creating a safe atmosphere, and comfortable learning for his students to optimize their experience

Brandi is licensed as a Refrigeration Mechanic (313A) and Gas Fitter with over 14 years of experience working in the commercial industrial sector that makes up the HVAC trades (313A, 313D, 308A and Gas Fitter). During her career, she has gained extensive knowledge of air conditioning, refrigeration and heating systems while working at nuclear facilities, data centers, central power plants and health care facilities to name a few. She has been teaching at public and private institutions for many years and enjoys sharing her experiences and passion for the industry, and the trade.

Brandi has a unique view being a female in the industry and as a result she is highly involved in the industry, participating in women in skilled trades events all over southwestern Ontario to educate and inform young women on the career opportunities available to them in this fast-paced industry. For apprentices to be successful, she believes it's essential to provide support as they navigate through their career path.

She is excited to join the SOY team and work with this amazing group of individuals and we are fortunate to have her. Welcome to the team Brandi!

Having spent the past 13 years working in the finance sector, from a large multi-national investment and insurance firm, to small boutique financial planning practices both in Australia and Canada, Brent Mitchell brings his wealth of administration expertise, financial planning knowledge, communication skills and systems management to assist in the ongoing operations and client management for SOY.

Beyond finance, Brent has a broad range of experience across multiple industries – from retail to entertainment, transport to service, and has 2 bachelor degrees in business fields. Within his diverse roles, highlights of his employment have been his dedication to outstanding customer service, and implementing creative systems and procedures to improve quality and efficiency – two attributes that Brent is looking forward to applying in his role as Operations Support Coordinator.

Kenny Molotov started his plumbing career late 2013 after getting a degree from Toronto’s York University. With an extensive background in the arts and a Humanities degree in hand, he shifted gears and decided to follow in his grandfather’s and father’s footsteps by working towards his Plumbing Red Seal. Five challenging years later, Kenny’s life looked entirely different from where he began. Now as a licensed Journeyman Red Seal Plumber, one of his many dreams is to give back to the community that has shaped his life so profoundly.

During this time Kenny’s desire to perform didn’t lie dormant. He shifted his medium from comedy and magic to vlogging, and the subject matter of his newfound hobby was the trade he decided to dedicate himself to. Now, in conjunction with working with his father in their family-run plumbing business, Kenny also runs a YouTube channel where he shows the world what “A Day in the Life of a Plumber” looks like and the sorts of jobs that come his way. With his passion for teaching, Kenny hopes to bring his enthusiasm and knowledge to SOY as a mentor for the next generation of plumbing apprentices he is lucky enough to work with.

After spending the last few years working for the Ontario Electrical League, Huong Nguyen is known to many as a leading industry expert, who is now one of the spearheading figures for Support Ontario Youth. Recognized for her many affiliations and vast experience in the electrical landscape in Ontario, she takes on her role with grit and ambition to ultimately help those who are interested in a trades career.

Her spectrum of work includes public and media relations, global hospitality, events management and more! Huong’s meticulously detailed work ethic, and constant creative vision has made her a figure of leadership and guidance in the many industries she has been affiliated with, and the organizations she continues to influence.

Glenda Rahn is the program manager for Support Ontario Youth. Fuelled by a true passion about the value of apprenticeships, she offers guidance, support and direction to pre-apprentices, apprentices and employers. Her role involves one-on-one coaching, resource matching and wrap-around services tailored to an individual’s particular needs and circumstances. Glenda has a B.A. in psychology and draws on her experience with non-profits, larger corporations and grassroots pilot projects in educational and other environments. She also brings insight into the world of small business based on her background owning and operating a mobile fitness company. Glenda is proud to play a part in supporting apprenticeships and driving change to sustain and enhance one of the oldest, most respected forms of education and training.

Stephen Sell understands the challenges faced by employers and apprentices in navigating Ontario’s apprenticeship training system. He has led advocacy efforts in related fields including apprenticeship ratios, apprenticeship training processes for electricians, and actively participates in the Ontario government consultations on modernizing the apprenticeship training system.

During Stephen’s 30 years in the electrical industry, he has been involved in North America-wide IT and Six Sigma projects to improve company processes.

His unique combination of knowledge and experience allows him to lead Support Ontario Youth as its Executive Director, with a mandate to help close the skills-gap in Ontario by providing province-wide support and resources for apprentices looking to enter the trades.

After earning his college diploma in Electrical Techniques at Durham College, Brent spent the past 15 years working as an electrician throughout the GTA. He has worked in a wide variety of construction environments, including office towers, data centres, sports stadiums, malls, and schools.

During the construction of the Humber River Hospital in 2014, Brent began to guide his career towards service work that specialized in direct digital control systems and building automation equipment. This fueled his passion for troubleshooting and problem solving, using anything from simple hand tools to state of the art electronic equipment.

Brent currently works in facility management, which allows him to stay closely connected to industry leaders and some of the most experienced professionals in the trades.

He takes pride in performing installations and repairs as a part of a team, alongside other experts, such as HVAC technicians and plumbers. He strongly believes that working as a red seal tradesperson is a highly fulfilling career that is both challenging and rewarding.

Brent is excited to begin his mentor role with Support Ontario Youth and we are so fortunate to have him. Welcome Brent to the team!

Lea is no stranger to the skilled trades as much of her family, including her father, are currently working in the industry.

Lea previously worked as a law clerk with a primary focus in construction, labour and employment law. This position opened her eyes to the world of human resources and ignited a passion for training and development, which she is excited to continue to focus on. She is eager to bring her newly acquired knowledge, skills and abilities to her role with Support Ontario Youth.

Lea thrives in an environment where she is communicating and building relationships with all stakeholders and is looking forward to connecting with apprentices and employers. She would also love to see more women in the trades and is dedicated to being a part of this growing initiative.

We are very happy to have her join our team. Welcome to the team Lea!

Steve is a qualified Journeyperson Electrician, after having written his Certification of Qualification (CofQ) in February 2022. It was with the help of his employer and SOY, as his sponsor, that he was finally able to complete his apprenticeship (despite multiple Covid-19 delays) and write his CofQ.

Coming to the trades in his 40's, it was not easy for Steve to find a sponsor, as many employers were looking for younger apprentices. After months of answering online ads and getting no responses, he chose to take a different approach, which resulted in him successfully being signed up as an apprentice within 6 months. When Steve started in the trades, he had ZERO electrical experience and no contacts. What he did have was home renovation experience, some network cabling, and security installation know-how, a reliable car, tools, and a good attitude and willingness to learn.

Steve is keen to share his work and life experience to help those who are looking for guidance - from finding an employer and sponsor, to dealing with issues at trade school or work, to completing an apprenticeship and the CofQ exam.

Having completed his apprenticeship under SOY's guidance, Steve is proud to be joining them as a peer mentor. As a recent apprentice himself, this shared experience gives him an increased ability to relate, and provide support by being a source of insight, inspiration, and information for electrical apprentices. Having recently completed his CofQ, Steve has a special focus on helping Journeyperson Candidates complete their CofQ and achieve licensed Journeyperson status.

Melanie is the daughter of an auto-mechanic turned high-school transportation teacher. She is passionate about the skilled trades and the development of organizational, industrial and educational partnerships in order to address the labour shortage issues that plague employers, as well as the seemingly uphill battle that educators face getting students interested and engaged in the trades. In this endeavour, she is actively seeking out opportunities to build partnerships with school-boards across Ontario and not-for-profit organizations. This has allowed her the opportunity to better understand the skilled trades, in an effort help organizations create sustainable apprenticeship programs and create awareness of rewarding career paths in the skilled trades available for the workforce of tomorrow.

Melanie’s 20+ years working with industrial, unionized and non-unionized environments, coupled with her education and experience will be an important driving force behind her work with Support Ontario Youth and we are excited to have her join our team. Welcome Melanie!