Diane Brickner has worked in the insurance industry longer than most of you have been alive! And loved every minute of it! At the heart of her career lies an inspiring personal story that she is always willing to share. Diane started her career at Peace Hills Insurance in 1982, the Company’s inception. Peace Hills Insurance is solely owned by the Samson Cree Nation. She was the first general manager of the company and then in 1991 became the first female president of an insurance company in Canada. She saw the company grow from 3 employees to over 350 employees and premiums in excess of 450 million. Diane has received a number of recognitions including McEwan University Chair of Business, Established Leadership Award from the CIP Society, The award of Merit from the Insurance Institute of Canada, Edmonton YWCA Women of Distinction in Business, the Alberta Venture’s Business Person of the Year (2014) an honorary degree in business from NAIT and the Canadian Senate 150 Anniversary Medal. Diane has an extensive history of Board positions and has sat on a number of Boards as the first female member. Some of her past board experience includes the Edmonton Elks (Eskimo) Board, Insurance Bureau of Canada, Western Financial, Canelson Drilling, ATB Financial and ZCL Composites. Today she sits on the Boards of Peace Hills General Insurance, Stampede Drilling and ALIA. Diane spends her time surrounded by friends, family and a busy 7 grandchildren. She enjoys time at the cabin in the summer and Palm Springs in the winter. Diane’s natural inclination is to GIVE and mostly she loves to give hugs.

As Managing Director of the privately held Maclab Development Group since 1991, Marc de La Bruyère has expanded the Edmonton-based company into a formidable development and investment firm with projects across North America. Building on an Alberta legacy that dates to the early 1950s, since 1991 Maclab has developed thousands of homes and millions of square feet of rental, commercial, hotel, and student-housing projects. Among other awards, the company has been recognized by the Canadian Home Builders’ Association with the Annual SAM Award and the Award of Excellence in Housing, as well as by BOMA Edmonton, which awarded Maclab the Pinnacle Award of Innovation. In his work, Marc has emphasized elegance and quality, as well as close collaboration with trusted partners and long-term colleagues. Marc has distinguished himself as a patron of cultural and educational institutions in and beyond Alberta and focused on open access to education and to the arts. His philanthropic reach has been extensive: He was the lead founder of the Youth Orchestra of Northern Alberta, was the lead private donor to the Winspear Centre Expansion, led the renovation of the Citadel’s Maclab Theatre, underwrote the Maclab Bistro at the Banff Centre for the Arts, as well as the Maclab Performing Arts Centre in Leduc, and has endowed both scholarships and awards at the University of Alberta. He has served on numerous boards and as the Edward P. Bass Distinguished Visiting Architecture Fellow at the Yale School of Architecture.

Dave is a member of the Mikisew Cree First Nation in Fort Chipewyan and is the President and CEO of six successful companies. Dave’s personal commitment and the purpose of these companies is to “Create opportunities for Indigenous people at every level of education and every level of employment.” The foundation for these businesses began in the OilSands region of Fort McMurray a quarter century ago. Although Dave’s businesses are now spread throughout Western Canada, Neegan Development Corporation Ltd., Neegan Technical Services Ltd., Tuc’s Contracting, Re-stock and Tuccaro Property Services form the core of Dave’s businesses and are based out of the Fort McMurray area. Dave is very active in the Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. Dave is also the founder of the Northeastern Aboriginal Business Association, which features over 100-member companies with combined revenues of over $1 billion. A member of the National Task Force on Oil Sands Strategies and the National Aboriginal Financing Task Force, Dave also served as Chair of the Aboriginal Business Canada Market Expansion Group. He has sat on the Board of the Regional Health Authority as well as the Alberta Chamber of Resources. As Board Chair of lndspire, an Indigenous-led registered charity that invests in the education of Indigenous people, Dave is helping to set strategic direction for the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards and deepen the organization’s support of K-12 education and Indigenous teachers across Canada.

Glenn Woolsey built his career the way he built his company: with grit, responsiveness, and an unshakable commitment to keeping his word. Born in Edmonton and raised across Western Canada, Glenn was an entrepreneur early on: seeing the opportunity to combine multiple paper routes and hire friends for delivery. After earning a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Alberta in 1975, Glenn began in residential real estate brokerage before shifting into commercial brokerage. In 1985, he and his wife, Sandra, founded York Realty Inc, which began as a commercial brokerage and, over time, found its edge by specializing in ownership and development in industrial real estate. Today, the business has grown to almost 10 million square feet of assets under ownership and expanded into a vertically integrated model for construction and development. Across four decades, York's business is rooted in relationships, creative deal-making, and a clear focus on clients. Glenn's leadership has been defined by sharp instincts and relentless follow-through. When challenges show up, he meets them with his trademark mindset: “There are no problems, only solutions.” Of everything he’s built, Glenn is most proud of his family and of passing along the same entrepreneurial spirit to his three children and ten grandchildren.