Management

One of the best parts of Jolene’s day is having dinner at home with her husband and two sons and their dog, Luna. This simple pleasure grounds her and fuels her at the same time—and she is keenly aware that not everyone in Canada has the same opportunity to share a meal in a place they call home.

Jolene believes that the growing housing crisis in Canada needs significant action on a national scale now. She also believes in the power and potential of the social profit sector. In 2021, she, with support from the Bespoke and Ramp Communications teams, founded Partners for Affordable Housing with a seed investment from the Government of Alberta. The charity seeks to ensure affordable housing for everyone in Canada.

Partners for Affordable Housing is a social profit organization that will accelerate and amplify the Canadian housing sector’s actions through the availability of centralized, maximized resources, resulting in a massive positive impact on the affordable housing crisis.

Jolene is uniquely qualified to lead this ambitious effort, integrating her experiences as an entrepreneur, board member, corporate community partnership builder, and prolific fundraiser. Energetic and innovative, she coaches social profit organizations on engagement, strategy, revenue generation, governance and ambassadorship. She helps clients weave these essential qualities into the DNA of their organizations to ensure their long-term sustainability. She has led capital campaigns ranging from $25 million to over $1.4 billion. She is a team builder, an idea generator, a champion of women leaders, and a guest speaker on transformation in the social profit sector.

Shelley Mayer, CM is a passionate and visionary leader, committed to the intersection of purpose and profit. Shelley believes that collaboration is at the heart of all success and is well-known as an industry connector and matchmaker.

With deep business experience and extensive knowledge of the social profit space, Shelley has advised hundreds of organizations in their quest for transformational change. A trusted industry expert, coach and advisor, Shelley has a reputation for challenging the status quo and solving problems creatively.

Shelley holds a business degree from Wilfrid Laurier University and a Chartered Marketer designation with the Canadian Marketing Association, and is a GRI Certified Sustainability Professional and a member of Social Value Canada.

With more than 20 years of combined client and agency experience, Shelley is a trusted strategic advisor to organizations committed to sustainability and leading social change. Since founding Ramp Communications in 2011, Shelley has partnered with over 100 social impact organizations and purpose-driven companies, helping them showcase their impacts across all 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals. Shelley’s expertise includes branding, storytelling, impact reports, awareness campaigns and a range of other communication tools to help organizations engage with communities, share their great work, attract funders and inspire change.

Jeni Piepgrass gained nearly 20 years of experience in the social profit sector prior to her role as Chief Development Officer with Partners for Affordable Housing. Her mission is to drive success by helping clients achieve their visions for making the world a better, more vibrant and more supportive place. She is a passionate advocate for the social profit sector as a whole.

Jeni's career includes successful capital campaigns, project management and levering innovative social finance tools to deliver community impact. Based in Calgary, she led the Glenbow Reimagined Campaign, which has raised over $173 million to date. She also headed the team that raised over $135 million for the construction of Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre.

Friends and colleagues appreciate Jeni’s wide-ranging trivia knowledge almost as much as her baking skills. A voracious consumer of ideas, she loves perusing bookstores and listening to thought-provoking podcasts—her current favourites are Literature and History, Radiolab, and the Criterion Institute.