Board Members

  Alex McCumber and his family are new to Oaklands, having recently joined us from Vancouver! Alex brings his experience as an architect with extensive training and professional experience with land use and planning, public consultation, mediation, functional programming, as well as building planning and design. Alex is looking forward to making a valuable contribution to the Oaklands community.    

Melissa was born and raised in Northern Saskatchewan. Drawn to the west  coast by the great memories of her childhood camping trips to BC, she  has lived in Victoria since 2005 and moved to Oaklands neighbourhood in  2015.  
Melissa is a Landscape Architect and has great appreciation both  for the beauty of the neighbourhood and the excellent services provided  by the Oaklands Community Centre. She considers herself to be equally a  plant-person and a people-person, and is passionate about the vital role that quality outdoor spaces play in our  communities. Outside of volunteer and work commitments, you can often  find Melissa on a soccer pitch, or enjoying the outdoors with her young  family. 

Dean is an energetic and highly skilled executive with significant senior level experience in championing reform, encouraging innovation and providing strategic leadership. He has a strong record of delivering results and building successful relationships with community leaders, senior executives in the public and private sectors, labour and First Nations. He is comfortable managing emergency, urgent and challenging situations. He is seen as a positive leader, an effective decision maker and an excellent communicator.

Amanda Putman, a French Immersion, Spanish and English teacher currently working in School District 61, has lived in Oaklands for the past seven years.  A Victoria resident since 2004, Amanda is originally from a small town near Ottawa, Ontario.  

She holds a B.A. in International Development Studies and an M.Ed in Community Development and, prior to becoming a teacher, worked for a number of years in the non-profit sector.  

She enjoys spending time in the outdoors, kayaking, hiking and cycling with her partner and two step-children and looks forward to contributing to the Oaklands community with the goal of keeping it a wonderful place for her children to grow up.   

Meribeth Burton is a communications manager in the provincial government and has also worked at Island Health, BC Transit, CHEK News and CTV News Vancouver Island.
Meribeth moved to Oaklands in 2016. She is a mother of two, a frequent beach goer, book club member and on the adventurous side, has recently discovered of love of paddle boarding and archery.

Shannon Johnson has been  employed in Healthcare Leadership for over 15 years. Originally from the  mainland, she moved to the Island to work in the Oakland’s  neighbourhood.

She is an advocate for person centred care and seniors. She volunteers and  is on the Board for a few organizations. She enjoys spending time with  family, outdoor activities, reading and searching for antiques. 

Shannon is looking forward to contributing to the Oakland’s Community.

 Brenda Turner has worked in Oaklands for over 25 years. She bought the daycare she operates in the neighbourhood 10 years ago. The daycare is often out and about around the neighbourhood supporting the community. In her spare time, Brenda enjoys traveling, taking photographs, and reading - she does not own a computer or cell phone! She holds a Bachelor of Science in Home Economics, a Bachelor of Education as well as Early Childhood Education and Infant Toddler diplomas. 

John Michael (JM) McColl lives in Oaklands with his partner Sara and his  daughter Sophie. Most days you can find him chasing Sophie around the  "purple park" near Oaklands School. He grew up on Salt Spring Island  where he co-founded the Salt Spring Forum, an organization devoted to civic engagement. He works for the provincial  government and likes good coffee, sunny days, and meeting new people.  

Evan Pivnick originally came to Victoria to attend the University  of Victoria, and to play soccer for the UVic Vikes. Graduating in 2013,  he stayed in Victoria working in the Legislature with the BC Greens, and  ultimately taking on the role of Chief of Staff to the B.C. Green Caucus during the e-minority government from 2017-2020. He now runs his own full-service consulting firm, Cascade Strategies.

Evan and his partner Jess moved to Oaklands in July 2020.