Board of Directors
Alexandra Marino - President
Alexandra Marino is a library assistant and lifelong resident of Northwestern Ontario. She has Bachelors Degrees in English Literature and Education from Lakehead University, and has worked as a bookseller and in child protection before falling in love with library work. She has been a board member of NOWW since 2024 and was elected president in 2025. She writes contemporary fiction and is currently editing her first novel. When not writing or working at the library, she is an avid hiker, swimmer, and football fan. She lives with her tattoo artist husband and their two sons in Thunder Bay.
Cindy Long
Cindy Long is a freelance writer and author who enjoys speculative fiction. She brings a background in print journalism and advertising to the board of NOWW. She also serves on the board of Fair Vote Canada.
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Shaa Dickson - Member at Large S.L. Dickson writes mainly romantic suspense, romantic mystery and contemporary romance along with poems and short fun stories. Shaa is passionate about her writing with the support of her husband, Bill, and her writing buddies from NOWW & ARWA members. Shaa and Bill have lived in Manitoba, Alberta and now reside in Northwestern Ontario. Throughout the years, Shaa worked as a Youth Counsellor, until 2021. After leaving her career, she is now writing full-time. Bill and Shaa along with their poodle named Honey, enjoy outdoor activities. including canoeing, swimming, hiking in the forest, sitting on a dock listening to the call of the loons, and watching bald eagles soar in a blue sky. At the cabin on rainy days, Shaa enjoys painting on rocks with acrylic for indoor gardens. To learn more about S.L. Shaa Dickson: Visit her website at: https://sldickson.com View her author page at Amazon.ca: S.L. Dickson |
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Derek Watt - Member at Large
Derek, an aspiring writer, is a retired teacher and principal In Ontario with a great deal of his career being in Northwestern Ontario with First Nations. A graduate of York University, Derek has been involved in provincial politics. He was a Regional Councillor for the NW Regional Council of TV Ontario for 6 years and currently is a member of the Compassionate Care Committee of Thunder Bay. Derek and his wife, Frances, a local artist, reside in Thunder Bay. |
Scott Bradley - Member at Large
Scott Bradley is a Thunder Bay-based author, public historian, and museum leader. He serves as Executive Director of The Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society, where he works with staff, volunteers, partners, and community members to preserve local history and make it accessible to the public. His museum career spans more than twenty years, including sixteen years at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, with experience in exhibitions, interpretation, collections, governance, fundraising, and public programming.
Through The New Appalachian Workshop, Scott writes fantasy and biography rooted in memory, landscape, ruins, archives, and the stories communities carry forward. He is the author of The Echoes Saga, including The Cave of Past and Present, and is developing the biography A Man in the Woods. As a NOWW board member, Scott brings cultural-sector leadership, governance experience, and a lifelong commitment to storytelling, history, and creative community-building in Northwestern Ontario and beyond.
Scott Bradley is a Thunder Bay-based author, public historian, and museum leader. He serves as Executive Director of The Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society, where he works with staff, volunteers, partners, and community members to preserve local history and make it accessible to the public. His museum career spans more than twenty years, including sixteen years at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, with experience in exhibitions, interpretation, collections, governance, fundraising, and public programming.
Through The New Appalachian Workshop, Scott writes fantasy and biography rooted in memory, landscape, ruins, archives, and the stories communities carry forward. He is the author of The Echoes Saga, including The Cave of Past and Present, and is developing the biography A Man in the Woods. As a NOWW board member, Scott brings cultural-sector leadership, governance experience, and a lifelong commitment to storytelling, history, and creative community-building in Northwestern Ontario and beyond.
Support Staff
Don Parsons
Administrator
Don comes to us with a wealth of experience ideally suited to the position. He was a teacher, Vice -Principal, and Coordinator of Student Services for the Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board, He also held positions as an Education Officer for the Northern Schools Resource Alliance and was the Mental Health Project Lead for the Superior Greenstone DSB. Don comes to NOWW with strong public relations, communication, and problem solving skills, and is deft at various social media platforms.