Board of Directors
Jonathan Fowler
President 2020
Director 2019-2021
Jonathan Fowler graduated from the University of Victoria Faculty of Law in 2008. He practiced briefly in British Columbia prior to returning to his home Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. In the summer of 2015 Jonathan returned with his family to British Columbia to set up his practice in the City of Mission and has enjoyed a warm welcome to this friendly and growing city.
Jonathan is a member of the Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce and is the Vice President of the Downtown Business Association of Mission, of which he has been elected since 2016. In 2017 Jonathan became the owner of the Mission City Business Center, with the aim of assisting local small business owners start-up and maintain a presence in downtown Mission.
Jonathan Fowler Law Corporation
Mission City Business Centre
604.302.8381
Satti Grewal
Vice President 2020
Director 2019-2021
Satti is a Licenced Refracting Optician and working in the industry since 1998. He is very active in our community and involved with the Downtown Business Association for 16 years.
Satti is on the board for Mission Community Services, Community Futures and was on the Chamber of Commerce board for several years. He takes pride in offering excellent service with knowledgeable advice.
Satti Grewal
Owner Swing Optical
604.820.1112
Els Thune
Treasurer 2020
Director 2020-2022
Els is the branch manager at RBC Mission branch. This will be her fifth year in downtown Mission. She comes to us as a passionate and creative leader with demonstrated experience and results in team building and engagement. She is skilled in inspiring, coaching and creative problem solving.
Prior to settling in the Fraser Valley, Els made her home in places throughout The Netherlands and BC and AB. Her family moved to Canada in the 1980s and owned family businesses in both Cache Creek BC and Banff AB. She kept busy both working in her family business and attending UBC and University of Calgary, where she completed her BSc. with a Major in Biological Science and a Minor in Psychology.
No matter which place she calls home, Els is always looking for ways in which she can support her community. Els and her RBC team have been actively participating in all of DBA’s downtown initiatives and have been working with and supporting Mission Hospice, MyHouse, Centennial Place, Mission Friendship Center, the Indo-Canadian Film Festival, Fraserview Learning Center, and Mission Food Center.
Els has also spent many years volunteering for the Canadian Cancer Society.
When not at work, Els is either running, hiking, biking or looking for the next spot for a road trip adventure.
Els Thune
Branch Manager RBC Mission Branch
604.820.4700
Manny Deol
Director 2019-2021
Born and raised in Mission, Manny has been a professional Real Estate Agent and Residential Builder since 2010. As a local resident and realtor, he is passionate about the entrepreneurial spirit, small businesses, and the growth and development of Mission which has translated into his time volunteering for many programs including being a Director of Community Futures. He has been on our Board of Directors since 2013 and is our past Chair. Manny also dedicates his time as a director at the Mission Chamber of Commerce and sits on their Government Relations Committee as well as being Government Relations Liaison for the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board. Manny is a father of 2 young children and has been married since 2015. When he has free time, he loves to spend it with family and his hobbies include a good book or going to the gym.
Manny Deol
Owner / Realtor Realtor Royal Le Page
604.820.4689
Aaron Brisebois
Director 2019-2021
Originally from Northern BC, Aaron moved to Mission five years ago from Vancouver in order to escape the big city and embrace her small-town roots. She loves the community and is passionate about working towards growth and change that embraces Mission's unique spirit. She is deeply interested in creative entrepreneurship and is always up for a business chat.
Aaron strongly believes that there is a bright future for Downtown Mission and for the amazing businesses that call it home. Her spare time is spent cooking, getting outside, and being with family and friends.
Aaron Brisebois
Owner Pressland General
604.820.2006
Rocky Blondin
Director 2020-2022
Rocky Blondin is a Professional Industrial Engineering Technologist by trade and training. He has worked the world over on high-tech manufacturing and entertainment systems for a myriad of industries and customers - including Disneyland - and is very proud to call Mission home. Why is he on the board of the DBA? He is also part-owner of Independent Cycles in Mission, and with that role, he has become a serial entrepreneur, general manager, bike mechanic and continues his work on bicycling advocacy here in Mission. Forever an innovator, he sees the downtown as the centre of commerce of Mission's past and the future, and has a vision and ideas on some steps all businesses can take, working together to get there. He is a past-chair of the Economic Development Committee, past-President of the Fraser Valley Mountain Bike Association, current directing member of Mission Community Cycling Coalition (M3C), a current member of the Tourism Committee, and the District of Mission's 2020 Citizen of the Year.
Rocky Blondin
Owner Independent Cycles Inc.
778.860.0040
Carla Kennedy
Director 2020-2022
Carla grew up in Calgary and moved to BC shortly after graduating high school. The picturesque landscape was calling, so she moved to Mission in 2003 where she’s since been raising her family; a now grown daughter and a young son.
Carla has been in management with Canada Post for 13 years, spending the most recent 3 as the Local Area Superintendent of the Mission Delivery Centre. She and her family have participated in the Adopt-A-Block program in previous years and have enjoyed taking part in many of the community events such as MissionFest, Canada Day at Fraser River Heritage Park, Halloween on 1st and the Candlelight Parade. She is excited to be a part of the DBA and looks forward to being involved with the community.
Carla Kennedy
Local Area Superintendent
Canada Post
Peggy Fox
Director 2020-2022
Surprisingly enough, Peggy began her career in the optical business when she was about 11 or 12 years old. Looking at our careers that we have chosen throughout our lives, not many of us could raise our hand to claim anything similar. When Peggy was in grade 7, she used to frequent her friend’s family contact lens laboratory after school. True Flex was a small, family run business and they used to allow Peggy to laze-cut plastic buttons.
Peggy has always found her niche market in the optical world and opening up Perfect Piece Optical in Mission was no exception. Priding herself on not always going with the flow of what everyone else has, Mission has come to know Peggy as having more of a selection of unique brands and extraordinary eyewear. In addition to her successes and failures, Peggy has always been a giver, She started the Gift of Sight charity, which provides free eye surgery, glass and medical eye care to those who otherwise would live in a world of darkness.
Peggy Fox
Owner Perfect Piece Optical Boutique
604.410.2020
Gwen Schmidt
Community Futures / North Fraser Liasion (Non Voting)
Gwen’s background with a local credit union gave her the inspiration to want to help small businesses from the beginning of their journey. She has a passion for Marketing and helping businesses spread the word of their successes. As the Executive Director of Community Futures, she is excited to help small businesses in her community from start to end. Gwen has lived in Mission most of her life and loves the town and all it has to offer, has always enjoyed being involved in the community, from fundraising for local charities to being an active Executive Board member with the Mission Skating Club.
Gwen Schmidt
Executive Director of Community Futures Development Corporation of North Fraser
604.826.6252
Carol Hamilton
District of Mission Liasion (Non Voting)
Carol is the District of Mission representative. She has called Mission home since 1975. She enjoyed a successful career in banking working 20 years for TD Canada Trust and 13 years with Envision Financial. Carol retired at the end of 2013. She has two adult children; her daughter and family live in Kelowna and her son lives in Mission. Carol has served as an elected School Trustee for Mission Public Schools for 9 years. As well, she is a Rotarian, a member of our Distribution Committee and our Development Committee, and she sits on the Board of Fraser House. Carol was inducted into Mission’s Sports Hall of Fame for her volunteer work with The BC Winter Games. In her spare time, she enjoys playing golf and hopes to improve her game.
Carol Hamilton
District of Mission Councillor
Jag Gill
District of Mission Liasion (Non Voting)
Born and raised in Mission, Jag Gill attended Cherry Hill Elementary, graduated from Mission Secondary, and then studied Business and Communications at the University of the Fraser Valley.Gill holds a wealth of board experience, currently serving on Downtown Mission Business Association, Emergency Planning Committee, Municipal Insurance Association of BC, Mission Association for Senior Housing, Mission Arts Council, and the Cultural Resources Commission.
From a young age Gill was taught from his parents the value of working hard and to be grateful for what you have. Gill opened his first business in high school, Mission City Pizza, which he has grown and has become more successful then he could ever have dreamed of due to the support received from the Mission residents.
In 2018, Gill was elected as the youngest municipal Councillor in Mission and continues to working tirelessly on behalf of the residents of Mission. Last year, Gill also became a proud Rotary member. A big part of Gill’s life, which he enjoys, is volunteering with many great local organizations.
In his spare time, he enjoys long hikes with his puppy Kobe and reading a good book.
It’s Jag Gill’s love for the community that motivates him to strive for improvements and progress on a daily basis.
Jag Gill
District of Mission Councillor
Sean Barry
Director 2020-2022
Sean Barry
Owner The Candy Shack
604.410.1600
Bob Mackovic
Executive Director at Large 2022
Director 2019-2021
Bob Mackovic
Owner The Gold Bin
604.826.7336