Board of Directors
Jamie Webb, President (he/him)
Jamie Webb is a third generation Victorian whose grandfather sailed in the famed clipper Thermopylae in the 1890’s. In 1988 Jamie completed a four-year apprenticeship in Rigging and Sailmaking and later a BComm in entrepreneurial management at Royal Roads University.
He has served previously on the boards of the MMBC Society and Foundation, Navy League of Canada, and Beacon Hill Little League. Jamie was a founding Director of the Victoria Tall Ships Society and was very involved in the 2005 Tall Ship festival in Victoria. In 2010 Jamie helped found the Victoria Classic Boat Society to ensure the long-term viability of the Classic Boat Festival. Jamie recently served on the Victoria Foundation’s community engagement committee which annually distributes more than $3 million in grants to non-profit organizations
Jamie and his wife Chantal owned and operated the Flag Shop, a downtown retail and manufacturing business, for 14 years. Over the years Jamie has initiated many fundraising events for the MMBC, his favourite being the long-running Massive Marine Garage Sale.
For the last 20 years he has worked for the Royal Canadian Navy and is currently their Senior Protocol Officer. Jamie has been a naval reserve officer and instructor with the Sea Cadet programme since 1983.
Wendy Moreton, Vice President (she/her)
I am originally from Vancouver, but have called Victoria home since 1996. My educational background includes diplomas in Marketing (BCIT 1980), Interior Design (Pacific Design Academy 1997) and I have held a license in Residential Real Estate from the Sauder School of Business since 2000. I worked in the wholesale grocery industry and was a partner in a cabinet manufacturing company while in Vancouver, and I have worked as a residential realtor for the past 21 years in Victoria. I have an extensive background in volunteering and with non-profit entities, including 14 years with the Victoria Real Estate Board, with 6 years on the board as a director and officer. I had leadership, governance and media training during that time, and chaired various committees, including Community Relations, Professional Standards and Professional Development. I also worked more than 10 years on the organizing committee for the Victoria Classic Boat Festival. I was a member of the group that formed a society to carry on when the VREB and Black Press sponsorship ended, and I wore many hats during my time on the festival committee and society board. I am currently serving on the board of the Victoria Jazz Society, and volunteering with Victoria Hospice.
Timothy H. Rendell, CPA CA, Treasurer (he/him)
Tim Rendell brings over 45 years of experience in general management and financial management in both the for-profit and not-for-profit sectors in BC and Alberta.
His not for profit experience includes serving as Executive Director of Early Music Vancouver, General Manager of one of Canada’s major symphony orchestras, President of a major international music competition, and Interim CEO for The David Suzuki Foundation.
His community service work includes serving as a member of Board of Directors of The Foundation for the Victoria Symphony, member of the Board of Directors of Early Music Vancouver, and a committee member for two major Community Foundations. In 2003, Tim was awarded a Distinguished Service Award by the Institute of Chartered Accounts of Alberta for his community work in the cultural sector.
After qualifying as a Chartered Accountant and working in public practice in Vancouver and Edmonton, he has served in senior management roles in manufacturing, banking, commercial real estate, and the legal services industry. He also served as Principal of Allegro Management Services, providing contract management services in the Greater Vancouver area.
Tim now resides with his family in Victoria where he is active as CFO and member of the Board of Directors of an Alberta based company listed on the TSX-V, and continues to volunteer with several community-based organizations.
Robert Abernethy, Director (he/him)
Robert Abernethy is the owner/operator of Abernethy and Gaudin Boatbuilders, in Brentwood Bay, BC. He was born in England, then immigrated to Canada as a child. While working in the family clockmaking business, he discovered a love for working with wood. He pursued his passion at Sheridan College studying Fine Woodworking and Furniture Design, before attending the Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding. For several years Robert continued to learn the art of boatbuilding with builder and naval architect, Paul Gartside.
By 1999, along with Jean Gaudin, he launched Abernethy and Gaudin Boatbuilders. Today they operate a successful boat building and restoration business, with seven employees. They’ve received local and international awards over the years, including the International Classic Boat Award for top restored sailing vessel over 40-feet.
Robert has contributed to the preservation of classic boats through lectures and serving as both committee member and judge of the Classic Boat Festival since 2010. As a husband and father of two, he enjoys cruising the local waters of Vancouver Island, sharing his passion for the water.
Clay Evans, Director (he/him)
Clay Evans is a Past Chair of the Maritime Museum of B.C. who served with the Canadian Coast Guard for over 35 years, primarily in search and rescue along the British Columbia coast – during which time he was the Commanding Officer of the historic Bamfield Lifeboat Station for 17 years – where he organized an international maritime historical symposium to coincide with the station’s centenary in 2008.
Clay is also a maritime historian specializing in the international history of lifesaving at sea and has several publications to his credit including Rescue at Sea; An International History of Coastal Life-saving, Rescue Craft & Organizations published by the U.S. Naval Institute Press in 2003 and numerous articles in Canadian and international journals and magazines. He holds a history degree from the University of Victoria and a Masters degree in Maritime Law from the University of Wales, Cardiff.
Clay continues to work in the commercial marine sector both with the Pacific Pilotage Authority and as a professional consultant while continuing to support the preservation of our collective maritime heritage and in particular a more stable future for the Maritime Museum of British Columbia.
When not out exploring the B.C. Coast, Clay and his wife Gail, live and work in Victoria, B.C.
Angus Matthews, Director (he/him)
Angus recently retired from a business career divided equally between the entrepreneurial and charitable sectors. Eleven years in management with the Oak Bay Marine Group shaped his early career. He later became General Manager of the largest theme park in Canada followed by 13 years as Director of Development and Administration at Pearson College in Metchosin. Angus was the founding Executive Director of the award-winning Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre in Sidney leading fundraising, construction, marketing and operations. He directed a series of successful fundraising campaigns for Pearson College, the Ocean Discovery Centre, and Camosun College. Angus and Sandy Matthews are avid sailors and supporters of maritime heritage. They owned the SV Dorothy from 1974 to 1983, a decade before she became part of the museum’s collection.
Raya MacKenzie, Director (she/her)
Born and bred in Victoria, Raya grew up in the constant, comforting presence of the ocean. Her family were more beach-combers than sailors, but some of her most treasured early memories involve hunting for sand dollars and sea glass, hoping to glimpse an orca or a mermaid in the distance.
Raya has always been captivated by stories, both fact and fiction. Raya could spend many lifetimes in museums and libraries. Her passion for the narrative arts led her to study English Literature and History. After completing her undergraduate degree in these subjects, she had little idea what practical use she could be put to. At that time, teaching positions were scarce. Fortunately, Raya had been working part-time at a law firm doing clerical work. This connection prompted her to pursue a career as a lawyer. Raya practices (quite happily) in Wills and Estates, Real Estate, and Corporate Law.
And yet in the nooks and crannies of her mind, Raya’s youthful interests continued to beckon. Raya is excited to be a part of the Maritime Museum Board of Directors, answering the call of the sea and all its stories to be told!
Captain William Noon, Director (he/him)
Recently retired after a 38-year career in the Canadian Coast Guard, a career with many significant highlights, including Salvage of cruise ship “Clipper Adventurer” in Canadian Arctic, and as Master of CCGS Sir Wilfrid Laurier in the searches and subsequent discovery of the Franklin expedition ships Erebus and Terror.
He presently chairs the Victoria Classic Boat festival after 35 years of involvement with the festival. He is a long-standing member and past skipper of the Thermopylae Club of Victoria, named after the famous China clipper.
A 40-year member of the MMBC, having served previously six years on the board of trustees. He is one of the latest MMBC beaver medal recipients for his contribution to maritime heritage on the BC Coast.
His ongoing commitment to our heritage is the ongoing 20-year project of restoring and cruising aboard the 75-year-old mission boat Messenger III featured at Classic Boat shows for near to 40 years.
He now wishes to focus his time helping put the MMBC on an long-term course for the future.
Jelena Putnik, Director (she/her)
Jelena’s love of the sea and maritime history of the West Coast started in her youth. She learned to sail and navigate as a Sea Cadet, honing her skills on the Salish Sea and the fjords of Desolation Sound.
While completing her degree in Canadian Studies, Jelena spent her summers working aboard the 92’ wooden schooner Maple Leaf, journeying the waters from Vancouver, BC to Juneau, Alaska. These journeys, often in partnership with indigenous and non-indigenous coastal communities, opened her eyes to the history, richness, resilience and diverse-yet-often-similar maritime experiences of coastal people. Today Jelena shares her love of sailing with her daughters and partner, and is a proud member of Fairwinds Sailing Association, BC’s oldest sailing co-operative.
Jelena’s professional career has spanned areas of health regulation, social services and housing. She has 20+ years experience in program/project management, stakeholder engagement and community building, and currently works in Regional Housing at the Capital Regional District. As a volunteer she has served on various boards, most recently as Chair of the Victoria Compost Education Centre as well as Queerly Victoria arts collective.
If not sailing or volunteering, Jelena can be found growing food and flowers in her garden or organizing local fundraising music and food events.
Nusi (Ian) Reid, Director
Nusi (Ian) Reid has grown up on the central coast of British Columbia, in the community of Waglisla, where he is an integral part of the Heiltsuk First Nation. Nusi is an accomplished artist in multiple mediums and is also a professional mariner, presently working as a rescue specialist in the Canadian Coast Guard at the Bella Bella Coast Guard Station. Nusi continues a long ancestral line of those who have lived by and on the sea, including his grandfather, Captain Gordon Reid, one of the first indigenous licensed ship’s masters on the west coast.