ABOUT

Ainsleah is a renter, artist, community advocate & nonprofit coordinator with experience in nonprofit governance, tenant advocacy, and improving access to essential services. She brings lived experience, strong community relationships, and a collaborative, solutions-focused approach to addressing housing affordability, food security, poverty reduction, and community well-being in Nelson.

Born in Nelson and raised on the North Shore, Ainsleah spent fifteen years living, studying, and working elsewhere, primarily in Vancouver. After a “renoviction” forced her from her East Vancouver apartment, she returned home to Nelson in the fall of 2020 to be with and support her family during the pandemic.

Her own experience with housing insecurity, along with seeing how many longtime residents struggled to find housing they could afford in Nelson, inspired her to run for City Council in the 2022 municipal election. That experience deepened her understanding of municipal government and strengthened her commitment to serving her community.

Ainsleah later joined the Nelson Community Food Centre, which is part of the national organization Right to Food Canada as a Food Access Coordinator, where she managed several programs. She now works as the Community Chef & Kitchen Coordinator, serving people from across the community, including many who face financial, housing, & accessibility barriers. Her work gives her a direct understanding of gaps in local services and the challenges people face when they need essential support.

Ainsleah developed the Gathering Table, a weekly community meal that brings people together through nourishing food & meaningful connection, while supporting food literacy & education and reflecting Nelson’s growing cultural diversity. She also manages budgets, purchasing, and inventory across several food access programs and has improved systems to make those programs more efficient and accessible. She has built strong relationships with local farmers, suppliers, and donors, helping secure reliable access to healthy, locally produced food.

Ainsleah has co-facilitated tenant-rights workshops with the Nelson Tenants Union and serves on the Board of Directors of Nelson CARES Society, one of Nelson’s largest nonprofit organizations. As Secretary of the Executive Committee, she contributes to governance and strategic planning across a range of areas, including affordable and supportive housing, harm reduction, and community well-being.

In 2023, she volunteered on the Board of Directors of the West Kootenay Watershed Collaborative, reflecting her commitment to protecting the natural world and finding ways for communities to live in greater harmony with nature. In July 2026, Nelson City Council appointed her to a one-year term on the Nelson Housing Committee.

Outside of her community work, Ainsleah enjoys music, art, movies, books, being in nature, and singing – sometimes in a band and other times whenever The Royal hosts Gay Karaoke Night. In August 2026, she launched her own catering company, beginning with a successful wedding celebration for a local couple.

Above all, Ainsleah treasures her partner Eric, her friends and family, and her hometown. She shares a rented home in Nelson’s High Street neighbourhood with three roommates and two cats, where she tends a small but beautiful rooftop garden.