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We are open for tours Wednesday through Sunday. Purchase tickets when you arrive. 

Leading the Castle in modern times

The Craigdarroch Castle Historical Museum Society is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors: Directors are elected by the membership at the Annual General Meeting and serve for a term of 3 years at a time to a maximum of two terms. The Board of Directors is fiscally responsible for The Castle Society and makes policy decisions.

OUR CURRENT BOARD IS:

PAULA CAREY

Paula has an Undergraduate Science Degree from University of Toronto and a 20 year career in industry and government. For many years she has channeled her passion and energy into supporting those who are vulnerable “at the edge” and need small, immediate, and unconditional assistance to remain educated, safe and in control of their lives.

Paula is a former Member of United Way Greater Victoria Individual Giving Cabinet, and personally raised over $100,000 since 2013. She is currently a Member of Community Cabinet with focus on Navy Sails and BC211.ca and personally supports Dance Victoria, Victoria Conservatory of Music, Craigdarroch Castle, Kidsport British Columbia, Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and the Royal Museum of British Columbia.

She lives in Victoria, is happily married for 38 years and has 2 grown children.

MOIRA DANN

Moira Dann is a journalist by trade (stints with both CBC and the Globe and Mail) and a history enthusiast by inclination (to earn an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from King’s in 2016, she wrote a book about the Mothers of Confederation).

She currently works as Communications Manager at the James Bay Community Project and has written a book about Craigdarroch to be published by Touchwood Editions in 2021.

Moira served six years previously on the Craigdarroch board 2013-19

PATRICIA FOSTER

Over the past 30 years, Patricia has been helping clients buy or sell their homes, and prior to that she was a top level recruiter.

Patricia has been a fully licensed realtor in Victoria for 14 years. Prior to entering the real estate industry as a licensed realtor she was a personnel recruiter recruiting and training teachers for schools in both Japan and Canada. As a recruiter she was responsible for developing plans and executing on plans to attract the best candidates to teach at over 500 schools.

Patricia graduated university with Bachelor degree in economics (with Honours) and has been actively involved in the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. She is the proud mother of three adult children and is a member of Women’s United.

COLLEEN HOGGARTH

Colleen has been in the accounting and bookkeeping industry for over 25 years, working in both public accounting and private industry. Her experience has ranged from being a corporate accountant for a large publicly traded real estate company to working with a small family run business with shareholders located throughout North America. Upon moving to Victoria BC from Peterborough ON she purchased a small book of bookkeeping and tax clients. After successfully growing the business from a one-person operation to a team of ten over the past ten years Colleen was ready for her next major challenge. She is now a sought after consultant for small business and works with other bookkeepers and accountants to sell their practice.

Colleen is a Certified Professional Bookkeeper. She is considered a visionary in the bookkeeping industry and has received many civic, professional and business awards throughout her career.

Colleen has two grown children and lives in Victoria with her husband Andy. In her free time, she can be found in Winnipeg spending time with her granddaughter!

KEVAN KING

Kevan enjoyed 30 years as in-house legal counsel at public corporations in Calgary, Alberta, 25 of those years as a senior executive in the role of General Counsel. Kevan is a graduate of the University of Calgary Faculty of Lawand was admitted to the Alberta bar in 1981. Kevan retired as Senior Vice President, General Counsel in October 2017 upon completion of the acquisition of Veresen by Pembina Pipeline Corporation.

Kevan has extensive legal and executive experience in the broad range of matters encountered by a public company, including corporate governance, regulatory, compliance, securities, finance, mergers and acquisitions,and human resources.

Kevan has served as a board and committee member of a number of public and private corporations, industry and professional organizations, a private school society and condo boards. As well, Kevan served as campaign coordinator for a United Way campaign for several years, and in other United Way capacities.

Kevan and his wife, Nancy Bell, have maintained a residence in the Victoria area since 2012, and moved to Victoria as full time residents in April 2018.

STEPHEN LYONS

Stephen is returning to Craigdarroch Castle having served as director and treasurer of the Society from 2014 to 2020. He currently serves on the boards of directors of the Victoria Heritage Foundation, established by the City of Victoria to administer grants for owners of heritage-designated homes, and Gasket Games Corp., a video game studio in Vancouver.

Stephen is the founder and managing director of Lyons Law Corporation, which opened as a full-service law firm in downtown Victoria in 2018. A software developer for 20 years before he became a lawyer, Stephen earned a
Bachelor of Arts in Classical Studies (Honours) and History and a Master of Arts in Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology from the University of British Columbia, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Victoria.

JULIE MURTHA

Julie Murtha spent her working career in the media business, holding senior positions at National Post, the Toronto Star and LexisNexis. A graduate of Queen’s University in Kingston with a masters degree in Industrial Relations, Julie began her career in the executive training program of Thomson Newspapers Canada. She took a break from media to launch her own small business, The Boutique Caterer, after graduating from a culinary arts program at George Brown College in Toronto.

After retiring from the Toronto Star, Julie and her husband moved to Victoria, a wonderful basecamp for the hiking and travelling they enjoy. Julie currently volunteers at The Mustard Seed.

NANCY REASON

Nancy is a retired teacher, lawyer, and legal education director and manager. Originally from Toronto, she obtained her B.A., M.A., and B.Ed. from the University of Toronto. She attended Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1986.

Nancy has taught students in a variety of settings, including high school (English and Theatre Arts), Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology (various legal subjects), and the Banco de España in Madrid (English as a second language).
She was the Director of Education at Ladner Downs (now Borden Ladner Gervais LLP) in Vancouver and The Advocates’ Society in Toronto. As the Manager of Continuing Professional Development for the Law Society of Ontario, she oversaw the development and production of more than 100 programs and publications for lawyers and paralegals per year, scripted and produced online programs on ethics and professional responsibility for licensing candidates, and created a variety of self-study resources, including case studies on ethics.

After obtaining her Osgoode Certificate in Elder Law from Osgoode Professional Development in 2017, she worked for Pro Bono Ontario, providing legal advice and services to Ontario residents on the Free Legal Advice Hotline as well to patients of Sinai Health.

Nancy recently celebrated her 42nd wedding anniversary and has two daughters, three grandchildren, and one senior Brittany.

KELLY SOMOGYI

Kelly grew up on the family farm in Saskatchewan, then completed architectural training and development in Regina. His work there included schools, the Mosaic stadium, museums and theatres. He has gone on to start his own Architectural Design Studio, where a focus of the company engages in restoration that infuses historic buildings with modern functionality while preserving architectural history. For him, historical preservation has profound value. It reminds us of the longer timeline that stands before the present day.

Technically oriented and creatively minded, he is an architectural technologist who loves getting into the story and history of a building. In Victoria, he has worked with the restoration of the Francis Rattenbury Coach & Boat Houses. Kelly moved from the prairies to the coast with his long-term partner, both having a fascination with buildings, design, and history, together they create spaces designed to inspire and look to be a part of preserving the history of design that defines our region.

Our newest Board member sees Craigdarroch Castle as a landmark with a global audience. He plans to bring awareness locally, provincially, and nationally to our past knowing where we come from and remembering we are part of a larger story

Castle
Dunsmuirs

MEET THE DUNSMUIRS

Robert and Joan Dunsmuir had two sons, eight daughters and plenty of exploits. The Castle weaves a fascinating tale of this intriguing family – their achievements, their relationships and even their quirks.

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Dunsmuirs

ABOUT THE CASTLE

Built by coal baron Robert Dunsmuir during the reign of Queen Victoria and now a National Historic Site, Craigdarroch Castle has been meticulously restored, giving visitors a glimpse of privileged life in the 1890s.

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Dunsmuirs

PLAN YOUR VISIT

We are open for tours Wednesday through Sunday from 10:00am – 4:00pm (closed Monday & Tuesday), (Please note that we are closed December 25th, 26th, and January 1st.)

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