CALGARY—Hockey Canada’s 13 members have re-elected Marian Jacko and Kristi Miller to the Hockey Canada Board of Directors and elected John Kastner, with all three set to serve three-year terms, effective immediately.
“Hockey Canada and our members have ambitious goals to advance a healthier hockey for all Canadians, and we congratulate Marian, John and Kristi on the results of today’s election,” said Jonathan Goldbloom, chair of the Hockey Canada board of directors. “These volunteer roles are critical to the growth of hockey in our country, and we look forward to working with them to continue our efforts to transform the culture of hockey.”
First elected to the transition board of directors in December 2022, Ms. Jacko (who The Expositor was unable to reach for comment prior to this weeks press deadline) was instrumental in establishing Hockey Canada’s inaugural Indigenous Advisory Circle and serves as a board representative for the organization’s women’s and girls’ hockey steering committee.
Ms. Jacko, from Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory, is the assistant deputy attorney general for the Indigenous Justice Division of the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General. Prior to this role, she was appointed by order-in-council as The Children’s Lawyer for Ontario. “Marian has made significant contributions to the legal profession including being the first Indigenous person appointed as The Children’s Lawyer for Ontario, where she spent nearly 20 years representing and advocating for the personal and property rights of children and youth,” a Hockey Canada release notes. “Ms. Jacko has spent her entire 24-year legal career tirelessly working on behalf of children and Indigenous peoples.”
She raised her eldest child as a single parent while earning three university degrees, including a master’s degree in social work and a law degree from the University of Toronto. While working full-time as a lawyer and raising three children, Ms. Jacko obtained her Master of Law degree from York University in 2005.
Ms. Jacko strongly believes in community service, serving on many non-profit organizations’ boards and advisory committees over the years. Currently, she is the president of the Little Native Hockey League (Little NHL), and president of Anishnawbe Health of Toronto. She also joins a volunteer board of mentors with the Future of Hockey Lab whose work is committed to values-based social innovation and culture change while growing the game of ice hockey.
Ms. Jacko has over a decade of coaching experiencing having coached at the Little NHL over many years, at the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships and the Ontario Summer Games. She is currently the head coach of the U18A team in North York. “Marian is passionate about the sport of ice hockey and believes it has the potential to change the narrative for Indigenous children and youth to one of resilience,” Hockey Canada adds.