Staff

Raine Laurent-Eugène is the Founder, CEO, and Chair of the Jessie My Love Foundation, a Canadian nonprofit committed to creating safe, sustainable futures for Black and Indigenous women and their families. Rooted in lived experience and driven by structural awareness, Raine’s leadership is both visionary and deeply practical. She brings over a decade of experience in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), working with institutions such as the Ontario Association of Art Galleries, CAMH, Museum of Inuit Art, and the City of Mississauga.

Under her direction, Jessie My Love Foundation offers free housing, transitional employment, childcare, and regenerative farming opportunities designed to foster long-term independence and emotional safety. Raine holds an Honours degree from the University of Toronto and is completing a second in Communications at York University.

Her work is not rooted in charity, it’s a strategic blueprint for justice. She believes in creating systems that honour ancestral wisdom while protecting future generations, especially those historically excluded from safety, ownership, and power.

Raine continues to build Jessie My Love as both sanctuary and structure, a place where healing meets self-determination, and where Black and Indigenous women don’t just survive, but thrive.

Elizabeth Underhill is a curator, arts programmer, and museum educator committed to building inclusive, community-driven cultural spaces. She currently works for the City of Mississauga, where she develops public programs and cultural initiatives that foster local engagement, historical awareness, and lifelong learning. With over a decade of experience in the visual arts and cultural sector, Elizabeth has developed a reputation for thoughtful, interdisciplinary programming and collaborative curatorial practice.

Prior to her role in Mississauga, Elizabeth worked with Oakville Galleries, where she contributed to exhibitions and educational programs that bridged local relevance with international perspectives. She has curated exhibitions at institutions such as Xpace Cultural Centre and the Art Gallery of Mississauga, championing emerging artists and underrepresented voices in contemporary art. Her curatorial work often explores themes of identity, place, and social change, and she has collaborated with artists working across disciplines including installation, performance, and socially engaged practice.

Elizabeth is currently pursuing a Master of Museum Education at the University of British Columbia, where her research focuses on equity, learning, and participatory approaches in museum spaces. She holds a BA in Art History from the University of Toronto and continues to draw on her academic background to inform her work at the intersection of education, curation, and public engagement.

A strong advocate for cultural access and creative dialogue, Elizabeth brings a deep care for community storytelling, the power of visual culture, and the evolving role of museums in public life.

Ifraax Aden is a Somali-Canadian multidisciplinary artist weaving writing, film, and archival practice into portals of memory and healing. Her work centers Black queer resistance, tracing its echoes across digital landscapes and ancestral timelines. She’s deeply committed to food justice as a way to build a more equitable and connected world.  She’s dedicated to advancing the work of Jessie My Love Foundation and support for Black & Indigenous women and families, recognizing these as foundational to long-term healing and autonomy. 

Jessie Eugene is a highly respected Registered Nurse with over four decades of experience in mental health and seniors’ care. Since earning her nursing diploma from Humber College in 1983 and her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Ryerson University in 1998, Jessie has built a distinguished career defined by clinical leadership, education, and innovation.

Her tenure at Trillium Health Partners – Mississauga Hospital spans more than 30 years, during which she served as Clinical Leader for both the Seniors Mental Health Inpatient Unit and the Adult Mental Health Unit. In these roles, she oversaw daily operations, mentored nursing teams, and championed best practices in patient centred care, particularly in dementia and behavioural management.

An accomplished educator, Jessie has trained countless nurses and inter-professional staff in areas such as the Gentle Persuasive Approach (GPA), Crisis Prevention Intervention, and the Resident Assessment Instrument – Mental Health (RAI-MH). She has also led award-winning initiatives that advanced non-pharmacological approaches to dementia care, including the integration of music therapy to minimize responsive behaviours.

Jessie’s professional excellence has been recognized with multiple honours, including the Trillium Health Partners Nursing Award (2016) and the Award for Implementation of Non-Pharmacological Techniques in Dementia Care (2018). She holds certifications in psychiatric mental health nursing, GPA coaching, P.I.E.C.E.S., cognitive behavioural therapy, and more.

Passionate about both the science and humanity of nursing, Jessie is committed to fostering compassionate, evidence-based care that enhances quality of life for patients and families. Outside of work, she enjoys gardening, classical films, opera, and traveling.