Meet the 2021 SCA Canada Chapter Committee
SCA members in Canada cast their ballots in the 2021 elections to select their new leadership.
Today, we are pleased to welcome the SCA Canada Chapter’s new committee:
National Coordinator: Sam Le
Education Coordinator: Michelle Ocfemia
Community Coordinator: Hai Nguyen
Marketing Coordinator: Alison Ensworth
Competitions Coordinator: Alex Lee
Communications Coordinator: Ibrar ul Haq
Voting took place only for the Education Coordinator position. All other coordinator positions were uncontested— with only one nominee per position— and therefore there no voting was necessary for those positions.
Special thanks to all nominees who put their name forward in this election and thanks to SCA members for their commitment to the SCA Canada Chapter. We urge the community to please continue to support the committee in their upcoming two-year term.
We wish the new committee every success with the continued development of the local coffee community. As a reminder, you can learn more about the roles and responsibilities of each position.
Contact the SCA Canda Chapter at hello@scacanada.coffee
Meet the SCA Canada Chapter Committee
Sam Le
National Coordinator
Working within the Specialty coffee industry for over 10 years, Sam Le is the Head of Business Operations and Strategy at Pilot Coffee Roasters. She was the Events Coordinator for the Canadian Chapter from 2017 to 2019 where she led in organizing over 10 regional and national competitions combined. She takes a human-centric approach to create efficiencies within the organization's operations - something she is passionate about if given the opportunity to lead the next cohort of Coordinators for SCA Canada.
Michelle Ocfemia
Education Coordinator
Michelle (she/her/hers) has been in coffee for about 5 years now and started her specialty coffee journey at Pilot Coffee Roasters in Tkaronto. She has taken on the roles of barista, supervisor and now coffee ambassador. In participating in SCA competitions, she has found so much meaning in learning from the community behind it and would love to contribute to the education coordinator role in the next chapter.
Michelle has a passion for learning about intersectional theory and sustainability and sharing how they are intertwined with each other in the coffee supply chain. She hopes to make education in the Canadian coffee community more accessible while elevating voices and perspectives of professionals in the industry.
Hai Nguyen
Community Coordinator
I believe specialty coffee is difficult, complicated but extremely interesting. With 15 years’ experience working in marketing and advertising as a strategic planner, now is the time for me to be my true self by transferring my creativity and energy into coffee. As a roaster, a barista, and a community coordinator, I would love to work on the long-term goal of erasing the border between coffee beans and people to increase the value of the entre chain.
Alison Ensworth
Marketing Coordinator
A lover of craft and the community it creates, Alison has worked in the specialty coffee industry since her first barista job in 2007. What began as a means to fund her Communications and Publishing degrees became the main source of inspiration, the place where she uses those skills the most. She worked for five years as Marketing Coordinator at Espressotec, a prominent coffee equipment retailer in Vancouver, where her greatest thrill was hosting a range of events, from classes for budding baristas to latte art throwdowns, the BC Regional Aeropress Championships, and the Strong Coffee Future Champions Barista Bootcamp. She also helped organize the inaugural Beanstock Coffee Festival, and served as a technical judge at the Canadian Barista Championship Western Qualifiers in 2018.
These days, Alison continues to help brands in the coffee industry tell their story and connect with fellow coffee-lovers through photography, social media, email marketing, copywriting, and a bit of graphic design on a freelance basis. She's keener than ever for events to resume and hopes to play an even greater role in the Canadian coffee scene.
Alex Lee
Competitions Coordinator
I believe in the importance of the competitions for the Canadian specialty coffee industry. Competitions are our ways of discussing our best practices, discussing our values as coffee professionals, and showcasing our passion to our consumers. I hope to prepare and propose win-win situations for our sponsors and the SCA Canada organization. With support of our chapter’s volunteers and guidance, I am looking forward to focusing on supporting our competitors through clear communications, competition-focused resources, and balancing immediate / long term goals for our chapter.