About Us
What We Do
Project Emmanuel is a 6-month residency program in the Greater Toronto Area for young adults arriving from foreign countries. Together with our program partners, we offer a structured program including communal living, spirituality classes, and volunteering opportunities with local charities.
Who We Are
Project Emmanuel is a multicultural settlement organization for young newcomers to Canada. Through living and sharing work together we hope to nurture resilience and grit that newcomers need to thrive in their new country.
Our Team
Board of Directors
Dr. Benjamin Ngai
is staff physician in Internal Medicine at William Osler Health System, Etobicoke General Hospital, a community hospital in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. After finishing his bachelor’s degree at Harvard University (1991), he obtained his doctor of medicine at the University of Toronto (1995), then finished General Internal Medicine residency at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. Dr. Ngai was an active member of North Toronto Chinese Baptist Church and served on its executive board from 2018 to 2021. Dr. Ngai also serves on the board of directors of Music for Every Child, a youth-led charity dedicated to raising awareness and support for children with intellectual disabilities through music.
Ms. Kitty Kwan
is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA-CA) with specialization in Canadian Income Taxes, and a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts (BA Hons.) and a Masters of Accounting (MAcc) degree from the University of Waterloo. She has over 20 years of experience in finance and taxation of Canadian businesses. Kitty currently works at SAS Institute (Canada) Inc. as the Director of Tax, Treasury & Financial Systems. An innovative thinker, Kitty has transformed the business operations by emphasizing a value-based approach to support the fast-growing company in a constantly evolving high tech industry.
Ms. Esther Ng
has been a music teacher for more than 20 years at her own music studio. She studied computer and music in the University of Waterloo. Music has been her life’s passion. She is an RCM Advanced Specialist, Music for Young Children Certified teacher, and an active musician. Among her leading roles in communities, she has helped direct a COOP school (Mississauga Christian Homeschool Association) with 150 students for 8 years. Currently, she is serving as the conductor of The Neighborhood Choir and the Grace Melodia Choir. Furthermore, she is also an active board member of Mississauga Southern Chinese Baptist Church.
Ms. Kristina Beifuss
is a Psychotherapist and an OCT. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Science degree from University of Toronto, a Bachelor of Education degree from University of Ottawa, a Master of Divinity degree from Tyndale University and a Master’s degree in clinical counselling. She has over 16 years experience as an elementary and high school teacher where she has developed insight into the particular challenges faced by adolescents, and the ability to help them navigate difficulties. She is the owner of Wintergreen Counselling Services in Cambridge Ontario.
Dr. Bohdan Laluck
is a staff attending at Toronto Western Hospital (part of the University Health Network), a downtown teaching hospital. He completed an Honours Bachelor degree at the University of Toronto (U of T) (1993) and then obtained his medical degree from Queen’s University (1997). Postgraduate training was done in General Internal Medicine at the University of Toronto followed by a Masters of Education (Health Professional Education) at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) which led to an appointment as a Professor of Medicine at the U of T. Other qualifications include a diploma as a programming analyst / internet developer, as well as certificates in web design and iOS programming. Dr. Laluck is also active in the Ukrainian community as a volunteer through Ukrainian scouts (Plast) where he was a cub scout director for 5 years, lead counsellor for the cub scout summer camp and currently serves on the board executive. He has also helped coach boys’ and girls’ soccer as well as boys’ baseball at the recreational level.
Mr. Darcy Maccallum
Honorary Board Member
(consultant) is the CEO of Social Enterprise of Canada. He has over 16 years experience as an executive in the social sector. A visionary leader, Darcy helps organizations, programs and partnerships hone in on a clear sense of purpose, mission and collective vision. He has been involved in successfully navigating the startup of many new programs, pilot projects and large collaborative partnerships. Darcy holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Australian Institute of Business and a Master of Divinity (MDiv) from Trinity International University.
Team Members
Program Administrator: Barb Mainguy
Admissions Director: David Ma
Admissions Officer: Dana Butorina
Student Life Director: Jennifer Bryant
Assistant Director, Student Life: Natalie Kwan
Residence Directors: Ghislaine Etoki and Diana Kravchenko
Social Director: Louise Soucy
Communications Director: Esther Ng
Mentorship Director: Sam Talasila
Transportation Coordinator: Alice Ngai
Our Story
By the end of 2022, Project Emmanuel has helped 39 young adults from both Ukraine and Hong Kong settle in Canada. Many have since moved out, often with friends they formed here and successfully found jobs in multi-national companies.
Our Supporters
