Waterloo Region Indigenous group terminates founder after allegations of missing grant money

Founder terminated over missing money Gizzaagi’in Healing’s board of directors say the groups’ founder has been terminated after grant money went missing. Jeff Pickel reports.

The board of directors of a healing centre for Indigenous youth has terminated the group’s founder, Sheena Merling, after allegations of money mismanagement.

In 2022, the group was approved for $145,000 in grant funding from the Region of Waterloo through its Upstream Fund and Community Capacity Fund. But the board of directors with Gizzaagi’in Healing claims it doesn’t know where the money went or if it was spent.

In a statement to CTV News, the board of directors said:

“The money from the Upstream Grant was released to the founder for Gizaagi’in Healing in her name as there was no business bank account open,” the board said. “The board requested time after time, through verbal, written, and being served by a lawyer to have the money transferred and get copies of all the bank statements.”

The board said it still has not received any money, bank statements or equipment purchased with the money from the grant.

“As a board, we collectively decided the responsible thing to do for the organization would be to terminate the employment of the founder,” it said.

It is unclear how much money is missing.

CTV News reached out to Merling but has not heard back.

REGION RESPONDS 

The board confirms they reached out the Region of Waterloo about the situation.

CTV News asked the Region of Waterloo about its process when handing over money for grants and if it allowed the money to be deposited in a personal bank account.

“The Region of Waterloo provides funding to many community organizations through contractual agreements,” the region said in a statement. “Each agreement follows corporate policy to ensure fiduciary accountability and value for community. The region will continue to work to ensure the outcomes of funding are delivered as per its contracts. It would be inappropriate to comment on the human resources matters of any external agency.”

In a subsequent statement, the region said it did not transfer money to the founder, it used a third party.

"The region has a contract with Brown and Fleming (commonly known as Qualia Counselling Services), a reputable local agency. Brown and Fleming is responsible for the distribution of funding and the associated outcomes, in accordance with its contract with the region," it said.

Qualia Counselling Services did not offer specifics about the transaction, but said in a statement: "We hold ourselves to the utmost financial standards of practice. All of our financial transactions are monitored, recorded and accounted for daily. We have strict financial practices and reconcile our financial obligations and statements monthly. We work with highly reputable accountants."

Waterloo regional police said so far no criminal complaint has been filed.

Gizaagi’in Healing’s website said that despite the current issues, they plan to continue as an organization.