Meet the Team

  • Carley Leboldus

    RN BScN

    Provincial Program Manager

    Carley discovered her passion for pediatrics while volunteering in Ghana, where she developed a deep commitment to supporting children and their families. In 2008, she joined Resource Ability as a community staff nurse serving families across the Interior of B.C., before moving into a leadership role as Nursing Supervisor. Her management career advanced further in 2018 when she became Program Manager, guiding Resource Ability’s growth into the Fraser Health Region, Greater Vancouver, and Vancouver Island. Carley brings a broad clinical background that includes surgical nursing (adult and pediatric), public health, gerontology, private consulting and education clinics, as well as experience as a nursing school educator and clinical instructor.

  • Shawna Swayze

    RN BScN

    Nursing Supervisor – Interior

    Shawna graduated from the University of British Columbia Okanagan in 2009. Her love of children grew through working in a daycare and helping to teach kids Tae Kwon Do. Shawna began working with Resource Ability in 2009 as a staff nurse and has worked with a number of families in the community since then. She also has experience working on a medical floor. She was hired as the Nursing Supervisor in July 2018.

  • Tara Grayson

    RN BScN

    Regional Manager – East Fraser

    Tara graduated from Kwantlen Polytechnic University (then Kwantlen University College) with distinction in 2006. She discovered her passion working with children and families during her University practicums in public health and at BC Children’s hospital. She’s worked with children and their families in various communities in the lower mainland for the past 12 years. Tara also brings with her experience in surgical, oncology and home health nursing. As the Resource Ability team has continued to expand into the Lower Mainland, Tara was hired to become part of the team in the Spring of 2019 as the Regional Manager/Nursing Supervisor for the Lower Mainland.

  • Mercedes Gelech

    RN BScN

    Regional Manager – West Fraser

    Mercedes is a Registered Nurse with over 20 years of experience spanning pediatrics, adolescent, and women’s health in both the U.S. and Canada. Her career includes work in acute hospital units such as hematology/oncology, bone marrow transplant, medical-surgical, postpartum, and sexual health, as well as community clinics and home care. She has specialized in supporting children and youth with medical complexity, notably as a Nurse Clinician with B.C. Children’s Hospital’s Complex Care Program, where she guided families through triage, symptom management, and care coordination. Certified in sexual and reproductive health, Mercedes also brings expertise in harm reduction, trauma-informed practice, and mentoring teams, always emphasizing compassionate, family-centered, and culturally safe care.

  • Alexis Wright

    RN BScN

    Regional Manager/Nursing Supervisor – North

    Alexis graduated from the University of Northern British Columbia in 2019. She began working with children as a teenager, coaching gymnastics, and this led her to becoming a pediatric nurse. She began working in pediatric respite with Resource Ability shortly after graduating. She has also spent time working in oncology, as well as clinical instructing nursing students during their pediatric clinical rotations. She was hired into the Regional Manager/Nursing Supervisor role for the north in August 2024.

  • Erika Richard

    RN BScN

    Regional Manager/Nursing Supervisor – Vancouver Island

    Erika graduated from the University of Victoria Nursing Program in 2009. Erika has been working with children since the age of 11 beginning with babysitting and afterschool care, then teaching horseback riding lessons and refereeing soccer throughout her teenage years. Becoming a nurse and ultimately working in pediatrics was a natural progression. Erika has also gained valuable nursing experience as Nurse Leader in area’s such as Acute Care, Respiratory, Oncology, Renal, and GI. Erika also has experience as a clinical instructor for the UVic Nursing Program, in infection control, and as part of the COVID-19 Pandemic Response Team. Erika began working on the NSS program in the community in 2015, and we are now excited to have her as part of our management team.

  • Jason Brescacin

    RN

    Nursing Clinical Practice Leader – BC

    Jason has spent 20 of his 24 nursing years working in Neonatal Intensive Care. Working at Foothills Calgary, St Boniface Winnipeg, and at Kelowna General. He has held positions as Clinical Resource Nurse, Neonatal Resuscitation instructor and Regional Instructor Trainer, as well as Acute Care of At Risk Newborns instructor. Jason began working in pediatric respite with Resource Ability in 2017 as a natural extension of his career caring for babies and their families. He joined the management team working in the role of Clinical Practice Leader Dec. 2019.