CACFT/ACTCF Elections 2025 

Four (4) Candidate Biographies in Alphabetical Order

for Three (3) Positions on the CACFT/ACTCF Board of Directors

Only RMFTs and Associate Members can vote for these members.

Corrie Elliott, MA MMFT, Associate – Ontario

I am a Registered Psychotherapist and Marriage and Family therapy associate. I have worked in private practice since 2019 working with individuals, couples, families and children. I have training in a wide range of counselling modalities including EMDR, EFT, narrative and play therapy among others. I am passionate about my work as a therapist and enjoy learning and growing in the profession. As much as I love working in therapy, the job can also be very isolating. Therapy often involves working independently; caring for others without checking on yourself. A value of mine as a therapist is to build and maintain a community of other therapists and mental health workers to support my own mental health. My community supports my mental health and my continuous growth and learning. The opportunity to join the board of the CACFT would allow myself to expand my village of therapists and to be involved, learn grow and offer others the support and resources I have been given as a new therapist. It is a goal of mine to be there for new therapists, the way senior therapists were there for me as I was coming up in this work. 

Bonnie Lee, PhD, RMFT-S – Alberta

Bonnie Lee is a full Professor in Health Sciences at the University of Lethbridge. Combining clinical insights with rigorous research, she developed the evidence-based, systemic Congruence Couple Therapy (CCT) reframing addiction as an intergenerational relationship issue with a spotlight on the couple unit. In 2023, CCT received a Distinguished Initiative award from the Health Quality Council of Alberta. For her international leadership in addiction treatment, Bonnie was appointed Board of Governors Research Chair in Healthy Futures (2016–2019).

Bonnie serves on the three editorial boards of peer-reviewed scientific journals and is Director of Knowledge Exchange board member of the interdisciplinary International Society for the Comparative Study of Civilizations. A keynote speaker and an AAMFT Expert Speaker, she has chaired international conferences and held seven academic appointments in the USA, Asia and Europe.

In 2023, Bonnie founded the Couple and Family Counselling Studies Graduate Certificate Program. She curates the Trauma, Relationship and Addiction group in CACFT, now with nearly 100 subscribers.

Outside of work, watercolours, gardening and dog walks help her unwind. Bonnie would be honoured to apply her creativity and experience on CACFT’s Board to strengthen our organization and those we serve in these challenging times.

Bilkis Nahar, MMFT, RMFT – Manitoba 

I have been born in Bangladesh in a war situation. At the age of two I have experienced the highest genocide in the world, where three million people were killed in only nine months in 1971; I was in India for a year as refugee. 

I have walked a long path to reach that final destination. As a graduate of Psychology, my first job was to support underprivileged women and children; after a year, I joined in journalism and worked for a decade before moving to Canada.   

It was scuffle to live in a patriarchal society as a vocal woman; to escape the struggle and explore avantgarde feelings and energy, I moved in here, completed my MMFT degree. 

I believe that people are in charge of their own wellbeing; reminding them their power and resiliency are a substantial part of creating connections which helps to prepare the land for change. The healing process is to experience the clients’ experiences and encourage the journey toward goals. 

I am a single mother of an adult child. I love camping, swimming and hiking. Listening to classical music, reading, watching movies and working out are in my daily self-care and amusement routine. 

Monica Sesma-Vazquez, PhD, RSW, RMFT-SM (She/Her) – Alberta 

Monica is a social constructionist-oriented family therapist, educator, supervisor, and researcher. She is an Assistant Professor and the Academic Coordinator of the Couple and Family Therapy Program at the Faculty of Social Work, University of Calgary. Monica is a therapist and supervisor at the Eastside Community Mental Health Services and the Calgary Family Therapy Centre. Her therapeutic and research interests focus on relational and systemic work with immigrants, refugees, and newcomers. Monica is a Board member of the CACFT, American Family Therapy Academy (AFTA), and Family Process. At the CACFT, Monica is a committee member of the Ethics, Research, and Accreditation Task Force. Monica loves to spend time with her family in the Rocky Mountains and visit Mexico, her home country. She feels honoured and grateful to serve as a Board member for CACFT.