About the Board
Economic Development Lethbridge is an arm’s length organization, supported by the City of Lethbridge, governed by a 31-member volunteer Board of Directors and managed by a team of professionals dedicated to promoting economic prosperity in Lethbridge. EDL Board Members are drawn from a diverse cross-section of the community with the intention of best accomplishing the mandate and objectives of the organization.
As a governance Board, members are tasked with:
- setting the strategic direction for the organization through four-year business plans aligned with the municipal funding cycle
- providing direction, proactive leadership and sector-based expertise
- establishing governance policies that support the mandate of the organization
- hiring and evaluating the CEO
Meet Our Board

President
Sandra Mintz
Sandra’s career has been centred on the human services sector, very broadly across such areas as early childhood education, services for adults and children with disabilities, mental health, elder abuse, domestic violence, residential treatment, outreach services, health care, private adoption, immigrant and refugee resettlement, and adult education, in both urban and rural settings, across the private and public sectors, in both for-profit and non-profit contexts. She has been an International Accreditation Peer Reviewer and Team Leader with the renowned Council on Accreditation of Services for Children and Families Inc., based in New York, since 2006. This work has allowed Sandra to deeply study human services systems, both private and public, within and beyond Canada and North America, in communities of greatly varying sizes and demographics. Her graduate studies were in Business Administration, and as a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, Sandra has advanced training and expertise in a range of business disciplines.
Having grown up in Lethbridge, lived in Edmonton for twenty years, then returned to Lethbridge, Sandra has witnessed Lethbridge’s evolution as both a citizen, and a visitor, deeply appreciating how it compares and contrasts to a much larger Alberta urban centre. Her career in Edmonton allowed her to work closely with that city’s municipal government, police service, vast network of service agencies, and the provincial government, developing a deep understanding of many aspects of leadership and service within a growing City and Province.

Vice-Chairman
Mayor Chris Spearman
Along with 38 years of business experience, Chris Spearman devoted 18 years (1992-2010) to serving on the Holy Spirit School Board which included two terms as Board Chair. He is a founding member of the Industrial Association of Southern Alberta, established in 1983, and during that time, he has been a vocal opponent of electrical deregulation in Alberta.
Chris has also been a member of the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce since 2008 and has served on several sub-committees in that time. In addition, he served five years (2008-2013) on the University of Lethbridge Faculty of Management Advisory Committee, and since 2010, he has served as a board member for the Aboriginal Housing Society.

Past-President
Jennifer Schmidt-Rempel
Jenn Schmidt-Rempel was raised in Claresholm, Alberta. She attended the University of Lethbridge where she completed a BA in English. She went on to complete course requirements for an MA in English at the University of Regina. Jenn is the Marketing and Social Media Manager at the Lethbridge Public Library, and the former publisher and editor of Lethbridge living magazine. Jenn has a strong sense of local and regional awareness, and is a passionate representative and advocate for our city and local area, helping local community organizations as well as non-profit groups engage and connect with local residents.
She has served on non-profit boards at the local, provincial, and national level, and volunteers and works with a number of non-profit groups throughout Lethbridge. Jenn has most recently joined the community Covenant Health Board, served as an ambassador for our city as a representative of Team Lethbridge, and is the past-president of Lethbridge’s Allied Arts Council.
Agriculture/Agrifood
Christine King
Airport
Vacant
Arts, Culture & Entertainment
Amanda Berg
Chamber of Commerce
Cyndi Vos
City of Lethbridge Councillor
Rob Miyashiro
City of Lethbridge Mayor
Chris Spearman
City of Lethbridge Manager
Craig Dalton
Community & Social Services
Sandra Mintz
Construction
Evan Barr
Education
Vacant
Environment
Kathleen Sheppard
Financial & Professional Services
Terry Belisle
Health & Wellness
Melissa Smith
Hospitality & Tourism
Michelle Day
Indigenous
Katie-Jo Rabbit
Industrial & Manufacturing
Adriana Mercader
Lethbridge College
Sandra Dufresne
Lethbridge County
Klaas Vander Veen
Multicultural
Jan Gong
Nonprofit
Diana Sim
Real Estate & Development
Robert Kinniburgh
Regional Economic Development Agencies
Peter Casurella
Retail
Kevin Brees
Sector-at-Large
Vacant
Seniors
Karen Johnson
Sports/Recreation
Todd Caughlin
Supply Chain & Logistics
Brad Beerling
Technology
Chris Stasiuk
University of Lethbridge
Dr. Kerry Godfrey
Young Entrepreneur
Timothy Hachkowski
Young Professional
Ian Andrews

Did You Know?
University of Lethbridge Physics Research Team and Blue Sky Spectroscopy were part of the group behind Herschel Space Telescope's Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver Equipment (SPIRE) which has been awarded the prestigious Sir Arthur Clark Award for academic study.