Almonte ON – In the coming weeks, Dive Ontario will be saying goodbye to three valued members of our organization. Our Executive Director, Nathan Abdelnour, as well as his team – consisting of Megan Pereira (Administration and Operations Coordinator), and Harper Stone (Marketing and Communications Intern) – will be moving on.
Nathan has been able to assist in many achievements in his short time with Dive Ontario. He joined during a time of confusion, and was able to bring strong order to the organization. He was able to keep Ontario’s diving community engaged through the tough times of the pandemic. Throughout the past year he worked with the various committees and volunteers to organize the first ever Dive Ontario Virtual Competition, Work-Out Wednesdays, and our Virtual Dryland Summer Provincials. Nathan also started the internship program at Dive Ontario, which has enabled the organization to continue to expand our capacity and grow our operations. However, possibly his greatest accomplishment in his time with us, was the efficient organization of the of the 2021 Winter Provincials in collaboration with the local organizers and the Sport Performance Committee.
Nathan will be moving on to pursue his new role as Executive Director of Rugby Quebec. He has always had a passion for rugby, and is excited to see what his future will bring.
I cannot thank Dive Ontario enough for what they have done for me. When I accepted the role in the sport of diving I really did not know what to expect, but the organization from top to bottom welcomed me with open arms. The Board of Directors and membership guided me through my first executive director role, and for that I am grateful. I also want to personally thank François Bernard, President of Dive Ontario, for trusting in me and believing in our process. – Nathan Abdelnour
Megan Pereira has been with Dive Ontario since May of 2021, and has provided an invaluable amount of work in that time, supplying Nathan with all the administrative and operational help needed to keep Dive Ontario running smoothly. Her dedication to the diving community can be shown through her contributions to numerous diving initiatives that were executed in the past several months, notably the restructuring of Dive Ontario’s concussion resources and procedures to comply with Rowan’s Law. She will be sorely missed.
Megan is leaving to pursue an administrative role at Diving Canada and Canada Artistic Swimming. We feel honoured to have been part of Megan’s journey to her incredibly bright future.
I am thankful for the opportunities in which the diving community, Nathan, and our interns have consistently provided me with to help me grow and develop as a professional businesswoman in the sports industry. Even though I was working remotely, I felt part of the diving community as its members were always welcoming and aided in my learning process. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn from and be mentored by Nathan. Nathan was a strong advocate for my learning as he challenged, encouraged, and supported me throughout my time with Dive Ontario. I am also glad that I had the opportunity to work alongside two of our Marketing and Communications interns, Kyarra Hasmatali and Harper Stone. Kyarra and Harper are incredibly talented individuals and were a pleasure to work with. Thank you Dive Ontario! – Megan Pereira
Harper Stone has only been with us since September. His departure was expected but sad nonetheless. He is the latest individual to come through Dive Ontario’s internship program. Harper has been responsible for the operation of the Dive Ontario social media platforms for the past four months, with his most notable contribution to Dive Ontario being his work to bring a livestream to the recently past Winter Provincials.
Coming in to this role I had very little experience in this field. Nathan was an amazing mentor to me. He worked with me to give me insight into a working sport organization. Showing me how he does his job as an executive director, helping me achieve my goal of being in his shoes one day. – Harper Stone
Although we are heartbroken to see these three leave, we know they are going to achieve great things. We will miss the energy and passion this team has been able to bring to Dive Ontario over their time with us. We want to wish good luck to Nathan at Rugby Quebec, Megan at Diving Canada/Canada Artistic Swimming, and Harper in his final semester at Brock University. Thank you for everything you have done for us!
