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Our Teams
Learn more about our PAIL Network Team
Michelle La Fontaine is the Program Manager of Pregnancy and Infant Loss (PAIL) Network. Michelle benefitted from peer support provided by PAIL Network to her and her family after the loss of their twins in 2005. Michelle is devoted to helping families get the support and resources they need to learn how to incorporate the loss of a baby into their lives in order to find hope. She was instrumental in the development and advocacy around the passing of Bill 141: Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness, Research and Care Act, 2015 and is forever grateful to Mike Colle for this legislation.
Michelle enjoys any opportunities to spend time with family, friends, and a good book.
Amy Muhr
Amy Muhr is the Volunteer Resource and Support Coordinator for PAIL Network. Amy brings more than 13 years of experience working with volunteers in various capacities to her current role of coordinating over 100 peer support volunteers across Ontario. She is devoted to fostering a supportive program for all volunteers who share their heart and time with families who are grieving the loss of their pregnancy or the death of their baby. Amy enjoys a rural life on a lake and painting.
Stacey Radford
Stacey Radford is the Referrals Coordinator for PAIL Network. In this role, Stacey introduces families who have experienced pregnancy and infant loss to the PAIL Network’s Family Support Program, and helps to get families connected with peer support offered by PAIL Network’s trained volunteers.
Stacey has experience working in municipal government in the social services sector which has allowed her to connect with vulnerable people in a way that is respectful and collaborative, in order to best understand how the program can meet their needs.
Suzie O’Regan
As the Special Projects Coordinator, Suzie oversees a wide range of initiatives, including PAIL Network’s commemorative events, volunteer onboarding and engagement events, and Compassionate Care Workshops. She also works behind the scenes to develop internal processes and database training for staff and peer-volunteers.
Before joining PAIL Network in 2017, Suzie spent over 12 years working as a teacher and program coordinator in the not-for-profit sector supporting children living with serious illness and their families. She has had the privilege to teach in Toronto, and internationally in Jamaica, South Korea, and Australia. She has recently completed her Certificate in Children’s Grief and Bereavement at the SickKids Centre for Community Mental Health, and is passionate about building inclusive spaces and providing opportunities for people to grieve and be supported by community.
When she isn’t working, Suzie can likely be found exploring ravines and forests with her family, cooking traditional Lebanese food, or painting in her garden.
Megan Fockler
Megan Fockler works as the Education Coordinator for PAIL Network where she leads the team that provides workshops to professionals around Ontario about the provision of skilled and compassionate care to families who experience the loss of a pregnancy or death of their baby. She also supports the development of resources for families and professionals and conducts research aimed to understand and improve the care experience of families when they interact with the healthcare system. Her interest in working with bereaved families began on the Labour and Delivery floor where she worked as a nurse with families around the time of their babies’ deaths. It was with these families and babies that she learned how professionals can make a positive difference with the care they provide, and she carries these lessons with her when she teaches workshops. Always honoured to listen to families’ ideas for improving bereavement care, Megan is committed to supporting these conversations and supporting professionals to provide skilled and compassionate care.
When not in the Education Coordinator role, Megan works as an Advanced Practice Nurse in the DAN Women and Babies Program at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. She is also an Adjunct Lecturer at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto and a Practice-Based Researcher at the Sunnybrook Research Institute. Megan holds a HBSc and BScN from the University of Toronto and a MPH from the University of Waterloo.
When not at work, you can find Megan spending time with family, working to perfect her baking skills, and avoiding being the person needed to BBQ anything.
Joanna Diindiisikwe Simmons (Burt)
Joanna is an Ojibwe artist from Lindsay Ontario. Joanna is a professional opera singer and is a graduate of the Glenn Gould School of Music (Glenn Gould) of the Royal Conservatory. Joanna is keeping her ties in theatre by providing artistic direction to the small indie Toronto opera company, Loose Tea Music Theatre.
As the Special Projects Coordinator, she is leading the creation of programs alongside the PAIL Network team to provide pregnancy and infant loss support to Indigenous peoples both urban and rural across Ontario, education to health care professionals, and will support awareness and advocacy through events that will include traditional approaches to grief, bereavement, and finding hope.
Joanna looks forward to contributing to a better future for Indigenous peoples and is excited for the evolution and advancement of Indigenous engagement within the arts in Canada.
Loralee McInroy
Loralee became a volunteer with the PAIL Network in 2015, where she began facilitating her local circle of support. In 2018, she joined the PAIL Network staff as the South Eastern Regional Representative. Most recently, she has taken on the role of Family Support Coordinator, where she finds fulfillment in helping families navigate their loss. When she’s not assisting families, she enjoys going on adventures with her husband and two living children.
Noelle Miley
Noelle is the part-time Administrative Assistant for the Pail Network. Noelle has over 15 years of administrative experience, and is always willing to help out wherever she can. She is very excited to be a part of such a supportive organization, and work with great people. When not in the office, Noelle enjoys spending time with her family.
Brandon Drouilliard
Brandon was first introduced to the PAIL Network in February 2019 shortly after his daughter Hannah’s neonatal death. After participating in peer support groups, Brandon began volunteering as a family panelist sharing his lived experience as the non-birthing parent. In the fall of 2021, Brandon then transitioned into his new role as a PAIL Educator, where he has had the privilege of traveling the province facilitating Compassionate Care Workshops. In 2024 Brandon began supporting the Education Team in the coordination and planning of educational workshops.
Brandon lives in the Peterborough area with his wife Sarah, their 2nd child Olivia, and their Morkie, Stella. When not advocating for bereaved parents, Brandon spends his time working as a school custodian in the Durham region, getting outdoors with Sarah, Olivia and Stella, watching sports, and listening to podcasts.
Learn more about our PAIL Educators
Meghan Donohue
Meghan Donohue has been a facilitator for PAIL since 2013. She is also currently a Clinical Educator in the Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. She moved into this role in 2011 after spending 10 years as a bedside nurse caring for sick and premature infants. Meghan obtained her BScN from Queen’s University in 2000, her CNeoN(c) in 2018 and her MN from Athabasca University in 2020. Her key areas of clinical interest are resuscitation and care of the acutely ill neonate as well as perinatal palliative care and bereavement.
Sony Singh
Sony has recently joined PAIL Network as an Educator but her connection to PAIL started many years ago. Her journey to PAIL started back in January 2015, when after the the loss of her daughter Maahi who was born still she was encouraged to reach out to PAIL Network. She joined the peer support groups which was a key resource for her and her family to cope with the loss of her daughter and is grateful for the compassion, care, and comfort she received. Sony is grateful to be able to share her story with others about her loss, in hopes to educate Health Care professionals on how best they can support bereaved parents during this time.
When not in the Educator role, Sony is an Integrated Care Manager in the Not for Profit Community sector. In her spare time, she loves to spend time with her family, traveling and whipping up new recipes. She has a creative side to her and loves to try new home diy projects.
Amy Robert
Brandon Drouillard
Devi Joy Krieger, IBCLC
She/her
While new to the team at PAIL, Devi has been entrenched in the work of supporting families through the cycle of fertility, pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period for many years. Currently employed as a policy analyst at the Association of Ontario Midwives, Devi has her foundation as a board certified Lactation Consultant and as a Registered midwife for 12 years. She had the great honour and privilege of sharing in all the joys and sorrows that present in this transitional, transformatory, and precious stage of life. In her role as PAIL educator, her intention is to share evidence-based, compassionate care frameworks to other healthcare providers to ensure that families experience care, community, connection, and empowerment through their most difficult moments. Positive encounters with the health care system during times of grief can have profound impacts on individuals and communities. Devi is committed to grounding this work in justice, bodily autonomy, consent, harm reduction, and mutual accountability.
Devi holds a BA from the University of Toronto in Social/Cultural Anthropology, a BSc in Midwifery from Toronto Metropolitan University, and most recently, she has completed her IBCLC credentials.
Devi lives in Toronto with her partner and two children. Outside of working hours, you can catch her grabbing an espresso, singing karaoke, swimming, watching documentaries, hiking, or tasting new foods.
Laura Crich
Laura is a registered nurse from Ottawa, Ontario working in both obstetrics and emergency medicine. She is a certified Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE). In 2020, Laura completed her Master of Health Sciences at the University of Ottawa and her thesis research explored Syrian refugee women’s sexual and reproductive health experiences in Ontario. Other areas of research she engaged in was mental health access for those experiencing intimate partner violence.
While working in the emergency department Laura experienced the challenges families face when they present with an early pregnancy loss and saw the barriers to them receiving compassionate care. In 2021, she decided to create a working group to improve processes for early pregnancy loss patients in emergency departments. Through this project Laura got involved with the PAIL Network who were an incredible support. After implementing changes at The Ottawa Hospital, Laura realized that there was a greater need in Ontario for this work. As a PAIL Network Educator, Laura and her project partner Jenn Burkhart, are working on designing tools that create more space for families to receive compassionate care in emergency departments when they experience an early pregnancy loss.
Laura is a proud intersectional feminist and passionate about bringing women’s health issues to the forefront. When she is not working, Laura is spending time in her gardens or rock climbing.
Jennifer Burkhart
During her 11 years as an emergency nurse, Jenn has had the honour and privilege of supporting many families experiencing early pregnancy loss in the emergency department. Walking alongside these families made her aware of the gaps in care for patients and families, and the lack of resources and tools for professionals in this area. This led her to study bereavement support for families experiencing early pregnancy loss during her Master of Nursing degree, and ever since, she has worked to implement process changes in the emergency department to help staff be more knowledgeable and compassionate, and improve early pregnancy loss care for families. Jenn hopes that as a PAIL Network educator, she can stand in the gap, by listening to and learning from patients and families, and sharing that knowledge and experience with other professionals, with the ultimate goal of supporting and empowering families in their journey of loss.
Jenn is a Registered Nurse, having obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Alberta in 2013, and a Master of Nursing degree with a Nurse Educator focus from the University of Victoria in 2022.
When she’s not working, Jenn can probably be found outside, puttering in her garden or wandering in the forest with her family and her fluffy dog.
Learn more about our Regional Representatives
Jennifer Jamieson
Jennifer’s connection with PAIL Network began in 2013 when she joined the community as a bereaved parent. She used the services for two years before going through facilitator training to lead PAIL Network’s Hamilton Circle Of Support Group. Jennifer proudly watched PAIL grow from the ‘little organization that could’ back in those days transform into the larger network of support as we know it to be today. In that transition, Jennifer was given the opportunity to take on a Regional Representative Role where she is honoured to support PAIL Network’s Volunteers who truly are the cornerstone of this organization.
Kim Breau
Kim has been involved with PAIL since August of 2016. Initially, Kim came for support in July 2016 after the loss of her son Joseph. Prior to losing Joseph, between 2006 – 2010 Kim suffered 3 miscarriages and leaned heavily on her family and friends to survive. While she had incredible support, she wished she had found PAIL sooner, as the support from someone who had a similar lived experience was a welcomed comfort. Kim had learned that so many assume the loss of her son was much harder than her miscarriages, and it wasn’t. To Kim, the losses were different, but equally hard, and support really helped in healing.
Kim started speaking at Compassionate Care Workshops and then in 2018 she completed the PAIL Peer Support Volunteer training to be a facilitator for a Circles of Support group. It was her way to honour her angel babies and support other parents on a difficult journey through a loss at any stage. Kim looks forward to supporting PAIL Network volunteers and continuing to support families.
Beth Lewis
Beth is the mother of four children, two young-adult daughters, and two sons, Jacob, and Nolan, who both died at birth. Her experience of pregnancy and infant loss has informed her desire to offer support to the PAIL Network, and families who have suffered such losses. These experiences were some of the loneliest moments in her life, and the ability to offer compassion, support and healing to others who know that lonely place has been a driving factor in her pursuit of volunteering as well as further education. Beth has offered support through one-on-one phone support, loss specific online facilitation and mixed loss groups.
Beth’s losses and subsequent grief started her on a journey of healing that saw her achieve her Masters in Counselling Psychology. She appreciates the privilege of working primarily with maternal mental health and perinatal loss in private practice. Along with supporting PAIL Online volunteers and those in her region, Beth keeps busy with her private practice, her beloved daughters, husband, and pets. She enjoys providing support as a Regional Representative for PAIL volunteers, and the families who benefit from this essential support.
Melissa Rooney
Melissa’s son Charlie was born still in 2007. In 2021 Melissa looked for opportunities to support other families with similar loss experiences and found PAIL Network. When Charlie died, Melissa didn’t know about PAIL Network and she knew of no one that had suffered a loss similar to hers. Melissa has offered both phone support and online support and has found this volunteer experience to be healing for herself.
She looks forward to her role as a Regional Representative for PAIL volunteers in Northern Ontario and continuing support for families.
Alison Sinclair
After experiencing multiple early losses, Alison became involved with PAIL in 2019 as a peer phone support volunteer. Over the years, she has found meaning in her losses through sharing her story to help others through what can be a very isolating experience. She is looking forward to helping support both families and fellow volunteers through the Regional Representative role.