It is a distinguished privilege and honor to join the strong and dedicated team at the Black Business and Professional Association (BBPA), as the First Executive Director in this prestigious organization’s 38-year history. I have worked as a Procurement & Supply Management specialist for 36 years but my passion for community has progressed in parallel with my career. I have dedicated most of my life work to community service, serving more recently as Communications Director and Corporate Secretary of the BBPA and as founding President of the Council of Caribbean Association, an organization comprised of fourteen (14) registered Caribbean organizations in Canada.

As a child growing up in the Commonwealth of Dominica, I assisted my mother, a retired school principal and Community Servant, as she worked alongside UNICEF and other international agencies to improve the lives of the disadvantaged and less fortunate. At the early age of nine, I learned the concept of “paying it forward” from my father, a former Police Officer. He was well regarded as a respected community servant, and he taught my family to practice the same. It is that mindset and that inspiration from my parents that has instilled in me the need to continue to give back and to help build our community. I commit to doing just that in my current role.

I am thrilled to bring my knowledge and skills to the BBPA. I want to help forge new and stronger relationships with the professional community, with all levels of Government and politicians, with law enforcement, service providers, and donors to make sure everyone in our community is given the opportunity to live their best life. Systemic racial discrimination, social injustice, economic imbalances, domestic and sexual violence are all issues that impact our community in myriad ways and require the support of the entire community.

With your support we will always be able to do more. I invite you to join us at the BBPA, as we work to improve the lives of all our constituents. Help to make the BBPA an inclusive and transparent community resource, where we join hands, and everyone contributes to the critical work of building better opportunities for the Black Community.

At the BBPA, we’ve revamped our organizational structure, enhanced our programs, and fine-tuned our model for engagement with sponsors, donors, partners, and our community. There is power in this type of collaboration. It takes time to develop relationships of trust and understanding but together we are building a new way of working together and we are already seeing impact at all levels.

I believe the future of BBPA is bright and I am confident that with our partnerships we will continue to capitalize on the wealth of experience and expertise in our community as we build a brighter tomorrow.

I look forward to your collaboration and support,

Warmest regards,

Frances Delsol

Executive Director