Executive Team

Deirdre Freiheit

President & Chief Executive Officer

Deirdre Freiheit is President & CEO of Shepherds of Good Hope and Shepherds of Good Hope Foundation. SGH is a dynamic, innovative organization that cares for the needs of adults experiencing homelessness and who live with mental health challenges, substance use disorders and trauma. SGH operates a large homeless shelter, soup kitchen, and five supportive housing residences.

Deirdre has been a leader in the not-for-profit sector for almost 30 years, having previously been Executive Director of the Health Charities Coalition of Canada and CEO of the Canadian Lung Association. She is a former member of the Institute Advisory Board for Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, a lay reviewer on the Heart & Stroke Foundation research grant review panels and is a passionate advocate for marginalized populations. Deirdre is a graduate of Atlantic Business College in New Brunswick.

Stephen Bartolo

Senior Vice President

As Senior Vice President, Stephen has the ability to spearhead innovative programming and services at Shepherds of Good Hope. A natural relationship-builder, he has been instrumental in developing and nurturing partnerships which have helped shape Shepherds of Good Hope into the leading community organization and social agency that it is today.

Stephen is a member of the Board of Directors for Ottawa Inner City Health as well as a member of its Executive Committee. He has been with Shepherds of Good Hope since 2002. He holds an eMBA with a specialization in innovation and post-graduate certificates in risk and program management.

Lindy Rosko

Vice President of People and Culture

As Vice President, People and Culture, Lindy brings expertise in collective bargaining, labour relations, recruitment/retention, policy development, on-boarding, and orientation. Lindy has more than a decade of experience at Shepherds of Good Hope, most recently as the Director of Human Resources. She cares passionately about Shepherds of Good Hope’s staff and clients, as well as the work Shepherds of Good Hope does in the community.

David Gourlay

Vice President of Shepherds of Good Hope Foundation

David’s career is characterized by a passion for people, relationships and building the community he was born, raised and lives in – Ottawa. David had a 10+ year in the private sector following a first 15-year career in the Government of Canada and the City of Ottawa. David’s commitment to community is important to him and he has served on the Board of Directors for the Ottawa Public Library, the Ottawa Community Housing Foundation and is currently a Director at the Ottawa Sport Council. David established the Ottawa Champions Baseball Club and proudly co-founded the Miracle League of Ottawa to provide children with special needs a fully accessible and inclusive baseball facility in Orleans.

In June 2009, David received an Ottawa Business Journal “40Under40” Award and in 2014, David became a Member of the Order of Ottawa as recognized by Mayor Watson for his contributions to the local community. David lives in Kanata with his wife Danielle and their two children.

Keith Lau

Director of Risk, IT and Business Operations

Keith is responsible for steering Shepherds of Good Hope’s data management, information technology and the implementation of a number of organization-wide initiatives in strategic planning and risk management. Before joining Shepherds of Good Hope, Keith has studied homelessness and housing issues in Toronto and Hong Kong. Keith joined Shepherds of Good Hope in 2007 and continues to apply his studies in political economy into his daily work.