CFKA is pleased to announce the appointment of Mary Rita Holland as Seniors Isolation & Belonging Project Manager 

Funded by a generous donation from the Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul, the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area (CFKA) is embarking on a bold initiative to stimulate transformative, sustainable, systems-level change to reduce the social isolation and loneliness felt by older adults.

We are pleased to announce that Mary Rita Holland will be leading our collaborative, and community-based efforts in a new role as Seniors Isolation & Belonging (SIB) Project Manager.

A Research Associate at the Trent Centre for Aging and Society, Mary Rita is also a Teaching Adjunct at Queen’s School of Kinesiology and Health Studies and the Department of Political Studies. She has been recognized with a Champion for Mental Health award.

From 2014-2022, Mary Rita served as a City Councillor for Kingscourt-Rideau district. Her notable public roles with the City included serving as Deputy Mayor (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019), Co-chair, Mayor’s Task Force on Housing (2019-2020), and as Member, Housing and Homelessness Advisory Committee (2018-2020). She served as a director on the boards at Kingston Access Services (2018-2022), KFL&A Public Health (2016-2022) and Cataraqui Creek Conservation Authority (2021).

Prior to her various public service roles, Mary Rita was Job Developer at KEYS Job Centre and Employment Consultant at ReStart.

Mary Rita earned a Bachelor of Arts at University of New Brunswick, and a Master of Arts (History), Master of Public Administration, and PhD (Kinesiology and Health Studies) from Queen’s University.

Her doctoral thesis focused on seniors living with chronic illness and disability in rural areas of New Brunswick. Her findings were subsequently published in the international journal, Health & Place.