Board Members

Kelley O’Rourke was born in Montreal and earned her BA from Concordia University and a Landscape Design certificate from Guelph University. She completed her MSc in Geography, Urban and Environmental Studies at Concordia, where her thesis Grave Matters: Mapping the Untold Stories of the Saint-Colomban Cemetery helped bring the Bronze Shoes memorial to Saint-Colomban and establish it as part of the Global Irish Famine Way.

A retired Landscape Designer, she is President of the Canadian Irish Migration Preservation Network, which received the Richard Evans Award from the Quebec Anglophone Heritage Network. She also serves as a Director of the Montreal Irish Monument Park Foundation (Montreal Irish Monument), where she is part of the team developing a major Irish memorial site at the Black Rock.

Passionate about history, genealogy, and DNA profiling, she is the mother of five and grandmother of seven.

Fergus Keyes is retired after a successful career in senior management positions in the Canadian private security industry. He earned degrees from McMaster University & the DeGroote School of Business as a Chartered Director with a speciality in Board of Directors and Governance issues.

Fergus has served on a number of non-profit Boards – including as Chairman of the Centaur Theatre; Chairman of the Unified Board for 3 CHSLD including Father Dowd; St. Margaret’s and St. Andrew’s; Chairman of the Board for the Canadian Society for Industrial Security and many others. He is currently the Secretary of the Board for Alzheimer’s Montreal; a Board member for Quebec Anglo Heritage Network etc.

He was much involved in an effort to restore an old Irish cemetery at Saint-Colomban, Quebec and he has been involved in the efforts of the Montreal Irish Monument Park Foundation (Montreal Irish Monument), and the project to build a world class memorial space around the Black Rock.

Laurie McKeown holds a B.Sc. (Exercise Sc.) and a B.A. in Irish Studies from Concordia University, where she was also inducted into the Concordia Sports Hall of Fame. In addition, she holds a certificate in Photography and Post Digital Production, blending her academic and creative pursuits.

Laurie has dedicated herself to community service, including the Parent Association and Mother’s Guild of Loyola High School and the Canadian Power and Sail Squadron. She is a passionate fabric artist and the founder of Mothers for Others: a charitable initiative providing handmade quilts to children in ICUs.

Currently a member of the Board of Directors of the St. Patrick’s Society of Montreal and Executive Director of the Canadian Irish Migration Preservation Network. Her work in Irish heritage includes mapping and digitally archiving numerous historical Irish cemeteries, combining traditional documentation with modern preservation techniques.

Professionally, Laurie has worked as a RAMQ billing specialist for over 40 years.

Margo Heron has been a proud resident of Dorval since 1951. A devoted wife, mother of two, and grandmother, she is a graduate of the bilingual business program at the CND Mother House.

She served as a City of Dorval Councillor from 2005 to 2021, contributing to numerous sub-committees, and has held leadership and board roles in several community organizations, including the Canadian Irish Migration Preservation Network, Friends of the Dorval Library, West Island Citizen Advocacy, and the Musée de Dorval.

With professional experience as a legal secretary and a background in musical theatre, marketing, publicity, and event coordination, Margo remains an active volunteer, translator, church warden, and choir member, dedicated to enriching community life in Dorval.

Kate Carmichael is a descendant of early (1820s) Irish immigrants to Quebec. Her long-time fascination with history and genealogy led to her interest in the Saint-Colomban cemetery restoration project and her involvement with the CIMPN. She became a board member in 2023 and has been involved with grant writing and implementation, as well as working on updating the CIMPN website.

Kate enjoyed two distinct careers, nursing and technical communication and is now happily retired and living in the Chicago area diaspora. She received a Bachelor of Nursing degree from Evansville University in Indiana and a Master of Science degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She also earned a certificate in Technical Writing from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Katherine Diamond is a master’s student in History at Concordia University, Tiohtià:ke/Montréal. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in Public History and Irish Studies in 2025, she began studying the Irish diaspora’s participation in the American Revolution. Under the supervision of Dr. Jane McGaughey, Katherine’s thesis project will interrogate Major General Richard Montgomery’s legacy in the public memory of the American Revolutionary War.

Her intention as she grows her academic and professional careers is to foster a love for history in the general public, primarily through the development of educational programs in museums and other heritage sites.

Samara O’Gorman is an Irish-Canadian actress, writer, and singer from Montreal. She is the author of the #1 bestselling poetry collection, What If The Sun Died. A scholar of Irish studies, she is also a sought-after public speaker who engages audiences on topics such as leadership, poetry, and Irish culture.

Notably, Samara became the first-ever “Trinity Queen” reigning as Queen of the St. Patrick’s Day parades in Hudson (2019), Montreal (2023) and Chateauguay (2024). These “Queen” roles have evolved into ongoing commitments to support these Irish communities.

As a respected poet in Montreal, Samara continues to inspire others through her performances at schools, public events, and cultural ceremonies. She is excited to contribute these passions to the CIMPN as a board member and researcher on their ongoing projects. 

Debbie Howlett is originally from Montreal, but has lived in Vancouver, Halifax, Ottawa, and England. She has degrees from both Concordia University and the University of British Columbia, where she has also taught Creative Writing.

Her first book is entitled “We Could Stay Here All Night.” She is currently working on a novel.

Paul Murphy is the Founder of Vitalism Civic Innovation. He is also PhD candidate in CONNECT, Research Ireland’s Centre for Future Networks at Trinity College Dublin, Research Fellow at the Center for Excellence in Blockchain and Governance at The Digital Economist, and serves as a board member for the Association science et bien commun and the Canadian Irish Migration Preservation Network.

He was a Research Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley with the Smart Village Movement.

Jacqueline Robins is a Montreal-based wordsmith with a passion for writing, editing, and research. She has always had a love of learning and is a self-professed hibernophile.

Jacqueline has written and edited professionally for both online and print publications, and she is honoured to be a part of the newsletter editorial and website team for CIMPN.

Dr. Linda Fitzgibbon holds a PhD in Oral History from Concordia University Montreal and an MA in History from Carleton University in Ottawa.

A native of Cork City, Ireland, she emigrated to Canada in 1986, living on Fogo Island, NF, Corner Brook, NF, and Ottawa, Ontario. Her personal experience as an Irish emigrant in Canada inspired her academic history and research interests.

She founded the Irish Women’s Network of Ontario in 2012. Her current research continues to explore and promote Irish heritage in Canada and to support CIMPN’s mission to create a network of groups and individuals with similar goals.

.Jacques Archambault has 40 years experience in managing organizations (NFPO) in Québec and Ontario including 20 years in the preservation of natural and cultural heritage sector for organizations owning heritage site and buildings.
During his career, Jacques worked also for more than 20 years programs and projects development as well as in fundraising (major events or fundraising campaign).

Jacques has a Bachelor’s degree in Recreology (Leisure and Culture) from UQTR. He also completed different universities programs (2e cycle) such as: Master’s degree in Project Management (UQAM) and a Master’s degree in the Preservation of Built heritage (UdMtl).

He is one of the descendants of the Irish family Winter.