Library Board

Kelly McManus, Vice Chair

After 15 years leading community partnerships in municipal government and the non-profit sector, Kelly joined the University of Waterloo in May 2013 as Senior Director, Community Relations & Events. In her role, Kelly represents the University on a wide range of community initiatives, including the Region’s Immigration Partnership Council and the City of Waterloo’s Town & Gown Committee. In 2017, Kelly was appointed a Canada 150 Ambassador by the Mayor of the City of Waterloo.

Kelly is the incoming Board chair of the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce, and has contributed to the boards of THEMUSEUM and the Kitchener Public Library. She has especially enjoyed being a volunteer grant reviewer with the Ontario Trillium Foundation and Lyle S. Hallman Foundation.

Kelly earned her Masters degree from the University of Guelph and recently began her PhD at the University of Waterloo. She and her son Ben live in Waterloo and can frequently be found at the Stork YMCA and John M. Harper branch of the Waterloo Public Library.

Rick Chambers

Rick is a former secondary school English teacher and department chair who, for more than 26 years, taught in several schools in Dufferin and Waterloo counties in Ontario, and for three years with the Canadian Department of National Defence in Europe.

Rick was the last chair of the 55+ Advisory Board for the City of Waterloo where he had served for three years. In 2016, the board’s role was amalgamated with the work of the Mayor’s Advisory Committee for an Age-Friendly City. Rick has served on that Committee since 2014, and he serves on the Region of Waterloo Age Friendly Network, and chairs the Region of Waterloo’s Hall of Fame Committee (Pioneers and Builders division). He also co-hosts the Friday Flicks Travelogue series for the City of Waterloo. In 2017, he was named Senior of the Year for the City of Waterloo, and in 2018, awarded the Senate of Canada’s Sesquicentennial Medal for Community Service.

Rick holds degrees from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, and the University of Calgary in Alberta.

He has lived in Waterloo since 1988, was married to his wife, Trish, for 51 and a half years. He has three married children and four grandchildren.

Dawn Charlton

Dawn Charlton (she/her) is returning to the WPL Board after an eventful first term focused on supporting staff throughout the pandemic, opening the Eastside Branch, and transitioning to the new CEO and leadership team. At a time when equitable access to public libraries is critical, she looks forward to continuing to champion WPL’s important contributions to the City of Waterloo.

In 2023 Dawn retired from University of Waterloo as Director, Marketing and Brand following a 35-year marketing and communications career that also included Toronto Public Library, Destination British Columbia (Vancouver), HR MacMillan Space Centre (Vancouver), Canadian Museum of Civilization (Ottawa), and Charlton+Company (Ottawa). She graduated with a degree in communications from Carleton University.

Community service roles have included: Vice-Chair/Member, Waterloo Public Library Board; Board Director, Crieff Hills Retreat Centre; Inclusion Initiatives Team Member, Knox Waterloo Presbyterian Church; Mentor, Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council; and Board Director, Ottawa Food Bank.

As residents of Uptown Waterloo, Dawn and her wife Sue, can be found at WPL’s Main Branch as well as hiking or biking to community activities and locations throughout the region.

Micaela Kelly

Graduating from University of Waterloo in 2009 with a degree in communications, Micaela worked in Vancouver, Taiwan, and Ottawa in public relations and for non-profits before placing roots in Waterloo with her husband in 2013. She now works at the University of Waterloo as a communications specialist in the Co-operative and Experiential Education unit while completing her Master of Environment and Business degree.

A life-long advocate for sustainability, Micaela has worked for various non-profits including Friends of the Earth, DeSmogBlog and David Suzuki Foundation. She has done volunteer work for Sustainable Waterloo Region and United Way Waterloo Region. She continues her passion for advancing sustainability messaging in her current role and through her master’s work.

Micaela lives with her husband, Mike and their two sons in Waterloo. Instilling an early love of reading in her children, her family can often be found at the Waterloo Public Library's Eastside Branch or Main Library.

Leilei Li

Leilei is a highly accomplished professional with 16 years of management experience in various industries, ranging from Canadian retailers to international luxury brands. She is also passionate about giving back to her community, by serving on the boards of non-profit organizations that promote music, art, and education.

Growing up in an immigrant family on the Prairies, she benefited immensely from the public libraries. She continues to enjoy, now with her children, the reading and other programs available at her home branch John M. Harper. She is a strong advocate for the library system that fosters EDI and civic engagement in our community and nurtures younger generations.

She holds an MBA from ESSEC Business School in France and double bachelor’s degrees in Commerce (Honours) and Psychology from Queen’s University.

Frank Mensink

Frank Mensink retired from Conestoga College where he was the Executive Dean – School of Business and Hospitality. He has taught audit, tax and accounting courses at the University of Waterloo, Conestoga College and his professional association. Frank is also a fellow of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario and currently serves on their Professional Conduct Committee. He completed his BMath and MBA at the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University respectively.

Frank has served as Chair and member on many boards including the Audit Committee for the City of Waterloo, the Certified General Accountants of Ontario and Community Support Connections – Meals on Wheels and More. He has completed the Director training program delivered by McMaster University and the Conference Board of Canada.

Frank received the Waterloo Award in 2014 for enhancing quality of life in Waterloo. He has lived in Waterloo for over 45 years and is a regular user of the library.

Jennifer Amy Murphy

Jennifer is an educator and has spent most of her career as a Special Education Coordinator with the Limestone District School Board in Kingston, ON. In 2020, she moved to Waterloo and joined Shad Canada as the Director of Alternative Programs where she designs programs for youth to see themselves as changemakers. Her professional passions include early literacy, design thinking and inclusive education.

Jennifer loves being outdoors and enjoys exploring many of Waterloo Region's parks and trails. A new skill she recently picked up during the pandemic, is baking croissants from scratch - which is both an art and a science! Jennifer is a huge fan of libraries and is proud to be a member of the Waterloo Public Library board.

Nicole Roach

A lifelong Lakeshore resident, Nicole has fond memories of the WPL. Many Sunday afternoons were spent at the McCormick Branch. The Main Branch had paper Career Catalogs and Nicole used these to research her future options regarding employment and childbirth options.

A graduate of the University of Waterloo and McMaster University, Nicole had a 20 year career as a Registered Midwife. She attended hundreds of births in our community, primarily at Grand River Hospital (GRH) but also at home. Nicole was proud to serve as Head Midwife at GRH and on the Board of the Association of Ontario Midwives.

Nicole loved participating in WPL programs creating great family memories. Every summer, they would pick a book series to read, requiring the children to learn where & when to find the next book, how to put it on hold, and find alternatives like audiobooks if hard copies weren’t available.

In 2018, Nicole was formally diagnosed with Primary Progressive MS. She shares her home with her husband, two children, mother-in-law and Portuguese Water Dog.

Councillor Julie Wright, Council Liaison

A resident of Ward 7, Julie is committed to championing climate action, affordable housing, a resilient Uptown, and engaging the city’s brain trust to solve the challenges we face. Julie makes her home here with her husband and two children.

Julie is currently the Director of Partners for Action, a research initiative at the University of Waterloo that focuses on flood risk and resilience. Previously, she led Waterloo Global Science Initiative (WGSI) – a non-profit partnership between the University of Waterloo and Perimeter Institute – through its start-up phase to successfully launching a decade-long Summit series and catalyzing collaborations related to each event. The series included Energy 2030 (2011), Learning 2030 (2013), OpenAccess Energy (2016), Generation SDG (2018) and Together|Ensemble (2020). Prior to working at WGSI, Julie spent ten years in communications and public affairs roles for companies, clients, and campaigns in the tech, cultural and non-profit sectors at the forefront of sector disruption.

Over the past decade, Julie co-founded and co-chaired the Uptown North neighbourhood association, coordinated a long-running Walking School Bus for the Canadian Cancer Society, volunteered with a neighbourhood-based refugee resettlement group, volunteered for festivals and cultural events, and served on both the WRDSB’s Parent Involvement Committee and as a director at Emmanuel at Brighton Childcare Centre. She currently serves as a board member at Education Canada.

Julie is a voracious reader and is frequently hatching some sort of plan that involves growing something.

You are here

Library Board