A health care executive, triathlete and mother of two from Bolton is poised to be the Dufferin-Caledon Liberal candidate in the next provincial election.

Lori Holloway’s nomination is expected to occur at a riding association meeting scheduled for July 14. She joins Green Party candidate Rob Strang and Joe Pereira of the NDP in challenging incumbent Tory MPP Sylvia Jones.

Ms. Holloway is Chief Operating Officer of the Ontario Community Support Association (OCSA), which represents 25,000 health-care professionals and 100,000 volunteers in more than 400 community based health-care agencies across Ontario.

She is also the founding director of the 3,600-member Personal Support Network of Ontario, the only provincewide network of personal support workers in the province.

The OCSA has worked with other health-care organizations, the academic community, hospitals, unions and multiple government ministries in problem solving and to shape new trends in community health care for Ontarians.

Last year, OCSA member agencies provided more than 2.5 million hours of service such as Alzheimer support, attendant services, community nursing, meal delivery, personal support, supportive housing, brain injury rehab, transportation, adult day programs, emergency response systems, seniors services, and more.

While a newcomer to politics, Ms. Holloway has an extensive background in communications.

Beginning her professional career as a public relations and marketing consultant, she provided project management, publicity and coordination for five years at both agency and client-side organizations, including The Walt Disney Company.

“Having a person with this expertise would be a real coup for the riding,” said Steve McCormick, a communications director with the provincial Liberal party.

Ms. Holloway has an undergraduate degree in Physical Education from Memorial University in Newfoundland, a certificate in Volunteer Management from Humber College in Toronto, has conducted graduate studies in gerontology, age-related healthcare, palliative care, counselling, and mental health (also at Humber College), and has undertook numerous professional development courses in association and operational management.

Her educational awards include the Seniors Mental Health Service Award from Humber College in 2005, the Raoul Wallenberg Award for Humanitarianism in 2004 and the Paton College Crest Award at Memorial University in 1997.

A transplanted Newfoundlander who has lived in Bolton for 10 years, the mother of two young boys is described as an avid runner and triathlete, a crisis support volunteer, and a film buff who has been known to use her vacation time to moonlight as part of the public relations team at TIFF, the Toronto International Film Festival.