Puja Ahluwalia

National Lead, Rehabilitation, Optimal Health and Wellbeing

Puja is a physiotherapist with a background in disability and rehabilitation. She has extensive experience in the fields of pediatrics, global health, and research. Puja most recently worked in the primary care sector where she was involved in engaging patients and clinicians in the process of determining how to measure quality in primary care. She also has a Masters of Public Health in Health Promotion from the University of Toronto.

Melissa Egan

National Lead, Episodic Disabilities

Melissa has worked in the field of health and HIV for over 15 years as an educator and facilitator, developing and delivering workshops to diverse audiences across Canada. She has worked extensively with marginalized, LGBTQ, and Indigenous people. Melissa’s experience includes front-line work at YouthCO in Vancouver, 8 years at CATIE as Regional Educator for the Prairies, and has helped create online learning courses using her background in curriculum development and adult education.

Aarti Hurry

Digital Engagement Coordinator

Aarti comes from a diverse background. She has experience in building strategic relationships with stakeholders at all levels in small to mid-sized organizations to drive mutually beneficial outcomes in the marketing, operations, HR, administration, and sales functions. She has a working knowledge of both theoretical and practical aspects of business management and administration. She has strong interpersonal skills accompanied by a strong business acumen and adaptability to fast changing environments and is flexible to meet the demands of the job.

She holds an MBA with specialization in Marketing from UK. She also has a Post Graduate Diploma in Digital Marketing from the Digital Marketing Institute, Ireland, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management, from the Association of Business Executives ABE, UK.

Cathy Kozuch

Bookkeeper

As a member of the senior management team for a number of organizations, Catharine has been a part of the financial decision making process in companies from both the private and public sectors. After obtaining a degree in Economics from York University, Catharine worked for many years at the original IBM manufacturing plant in Don Mills, Toronto, Ontario. Following her tenure at IBM, Catharine went on to freelance as an accounting advisor at a number of small businesses in various sectors, such as, educational publishing, cellular systems, and group homes. Catherine, a long time social activist, is excited to work with an organization that is committed to improving the lives of people living with, and those affected by, HIV.

Janet London

Manager, Program Support

Janet joined the Realize team in March 2005, bringing extensive experience in small business management to her role as Manager, Program Support at Realize.

Kate Murzin

National Program Manager

In July 2013, Kate transitioned into the position of Aging Initiatives Lead after joining Realize to work on the Equitable Access to Rehabilitation project and in March 2015, she was promoted to the position of Health Programs Specialist. In this role, her objective is to build and nurture collaborative working relationships between the HIV, aging and/or chronic illness sectors leading to joint initiatives which improve the health and quality of life of people and communities aging with HIV. Kate was previously Group Programs Coordinator at the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT) and played an integral role in developing, implementing and evaluating a programing on HIV and aging. Kate has experience in health promotion program planning, health communications and policy advocacy. She is also a trained group facilitator and has experience in adult education. Kate studied biomedical sciences and received her Masters of Public Health degree from the University of Toronto.

Roger Musselman

Communications and Program Officer

Roger brings extensive not-for-profit communications and marketing experience to his work with Realize. As the Marketing lead with Oxfam Canada for many years, and with the Marketing Committees of Oxfam International and the Humanitarian Coalition, Roger has helped shape international and national campaigns for fair trade, the right to education and other public services, people’s access to healthy food and the responses to major humanitarian crises. He has served in communications and marketing roles with a number of organizations in the health sector both on staff and as a consultant, including his work with Realize.

Melissa Popiel

Curriculum Development & Program Officer

Melissa is an educator and researcher in the areas of disability, diversity, and social justice, focusing on access to social determinants of health for people living with episodic disabilities and their caregivers. Her work aims to reduce access barriers by integrating critical, structural, and systems perspectives to improve quality of life for people impacted by unpredictable health episodes.

Elizabeth Racz

National Research & Program Officer

Elizabeth’s experience spans academic and community-based research in HIV, transplant and cardiac care, as well as patient engagement in research. A Realize alumna, she completed her Master of Public Health practicum placement implementing the PANACHE ON study under the supervision of Kate Murzin; and returned as coordinator for the HIV and Aging program during Kate’s leave.

Previously she has been an advisory board member for the Interdisciplinary HIV Pregnancy Research Group (IHPREG), and a national board member of the Canadian Hemophilia Society HIV-Hep C Co-infection committee, CTAC Steering committees, and CANFAR. Elizabeth volunteers as a patient and family partner at Unity Health Toronto, on the Knowledge Translation working group of St. Michael’s Hospital. Elizabeth has two decades of lived experience in the HIV community as a partner of a PLWH. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Public Health, with a focus on knowledge translation as a tool for equity in health research; and the engagement of community members as knowledge brokers.

Annette Wilkins

Membership and Stakeholder Relations Officer

Annette has many years of research and program management experience in the health and not-for-profit sectors. She has expertise in fostering unique cross-sector collaborations for transformative program development. Annette has worked in population health, primary health care, and specialty care. She has been affiliated with the Realize team since 2006.

Tammy C. Yates-Rajaduray

Executive Director

Tammy joined the Realize Team in January 2013. She has worked for over twelve years in the field of program management. Prior to joining Realize, Tammy was the National Program Manager of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Trinidad & Tobago Branch Office. She has extensive experience in Gender & Development and Sexual & Reproductive Health, including HIV/AIDS, having worked previously as a Program Officer with the Secretariat of the Caribbean Regional Network of Persons Living With HIV (CRN+) and serving as Chair of the Theme Group on Gender of the United Nations System in Trinidad & Tobago. She is a graduate of Wolfson College, Cambridge University, England and the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad.