INSPIRE Awards Board of Directors
Antoine Elhashem, President & Board Chair
Count Klassy, Vice-President
Lucy G’ala, Board Member
Davina Hader, Board Member
Hugh O’Neill, Board Member
Cornelius K. Herelle, Board Member
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President & Board Chair, Antoine Elhashem
Vice President, Count Klassy
All Members of the Board
Nominations & Procedures Committee
Events Planning Committee
Marketing & Communications Committee
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INSPIRE Awards Team Bios
Antoine Elhashem
Antoine Elhashem, founder and president of INSPIRE Awards, had a simple idea, or more of a question: "Why don’t we do more to celebrate those who are doing amazing and inspiring work in our LGBTQ2S+ community?" From that, INSPIRE Awards was born.
Antoine has spent the last 30 years in LGBTQ2S+ media working with all the major historical local LGBTQ2S+ publications, has volunteered with numerous organizations. He is currently the publisher of some of the leading LGBTQ2S+ media platforms and host of a popular local talk show. He is incredibly passionate about community, representation, inclusion and diversity, celebrating, and lifting up people.
Count Klassy
Count Klassy is a new age hip hop artist representing Toronto as his hometown! He’s been ghostwriting for Grammy-Award winning artists for 5 years, handling their digital marketing portfolios, while simultaneously working on his own music.
Count Klassy has previously worked as a Human Rights Educator and Event Coordinator for the Student Help and Advocacy Centre located at the University of Guelph.
He is passionate about inclusivity, diversity and building new chapters in our history.
Lucy G’ala
Lucy G’ala is a Dominican born of Taino origin, a New Yorker and Torontonian. She is a mother, immigrant-youth mentor, published Architect, global traveler, queer Latinx woman, feminist, and a trailblazer changing the Architecture industry’s landscape and its perceptions.
In 2000, she was the Youngest Woman Developer in New York. Lucy founded cleanearthdesign in 2007, an interdisciplinary, sustainable Architect Led-Design Built Studio. Her designs and collaborations can be found in NYC, Mexico, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Sedona, London ON, and Toronto.
She is passionate about her Latin heritage, LGBTQ2S+ Community, Human Rights Activism, Marriage Equality, Child Education, Woman Rights, the environment and being gentle with all living things. She is a firm believer in diversity, inclusion and kindness.
Lucy moved to Canada in 2005 following her heart. Toronto welcomed her and her love. Being able to get married to a woman and have her amazing daughter Luna is one of her greatest gifts. She feels honoured to be part of the outstanding INSPIRE Awards does to celebrate, acknowledge, and give back to our amazing resilient, passionate community that works so hard to make much progress.
Hugh O’Neill
Hugh O’Neill is a valued member of the Inspire Awards team. They treasure this organization and how it represents an opportunity to organize our queer community around gratitude for each other and to celebrate our accomplishments and contributions to society.
Davina Hader
Cornelius K. Herelle
Rev. Kelly Renee
Adé Johnson
INSPIRE Awards Mailing Address
INSPIRE Awards
1691 Pickering Pkwy, Unit 205
Pickering ON L1V 5L9 Canada
Office: 416.926.9588