Hilary Becker
Guest SpeakerMy name is Hilary Becker and I was born May 6th 1992. I was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis the following October, six months later, at Sick Kids Hospital. The same hospital where Dr. Lap-Chee Tsui first discovered the gene mutation that causes Cystic Fibrosis, just three years prior to my diagnosis.
My parents were told my life expectancy was 27, if I was able to make it through the first year of life. Here we are 30 years later and I am healthy. This is largely a result of the advocacy and fight my family and I have been on for the last 30 years. A fight to get access to the best medical therapies in the world.
That being said, I haven’t always been healthy. I had a swift decline in my health in my late-20’s that was halted in its tracks once I received the new gene modifier, Trikafta. The first of its kind - a transformational drug that has the potential to treat up to 90% of patients with Cystic Fibrosis.
I gained access to Trikafta in January 2022, three years after the first patient in US received treatment. This life changing drug has given me a new perspective on life. Since then I’ve built my own business and a really incredibly life for myself, all while continuing to fight for the day when CF is finally cured.
Jay Nadler
Jay joined the insurance industry in 2002 following the diagnosis of his wife’s brain tumor (when she was just 29 years old). From this experience, Jay’s mission became: Helping others avoid the financial stresses that come from illness & injury.
Jay has had many careers. Prior to entering the insurance world, he was an elementary school teacher. Jay’s business background also includes: managing retail stores and movie theatres, working with a circus where he flew on the flying trapeze, driving courier trucks & limousines, running the commercial sales department for MEC, and he spent many years selling enterprise level IT systems and support services. For a few years, Jay was even the Culligan Man.
Jay’s business background enables him to understand many types of business. As a result, Jay has become more like a business consultant. He helps his clients develop reasons and goals for their benefit-plans. He also helps them understand the associated HR responsibilities and liabilities.
In 2017 Jay opened Naviguide. Before Naviguide, Jay owned Marathon Benefits, right here in Calgary.
Jay is a co-founder of National Group Benefits Meeting (NGBM). NGBM is a free platform dedicated to helping group benefit brokers become better advisors.
In 2024, Jay was selected as a top 20 Advisor in Canada by Benefits Pension Monitor Magazine.
In his spare time, Jay is very physically active. In the summer, you’ll find him on the trails in and around Cumberland BC, either running or mountain biking. You might also find him kayaking or riding his motorcycle. In winter, he can be spotted on skis up on Mount Washington.
Dave Patriarche
Mainstay Insurance BrokerageDave Patriarche founded Mainstay Insurance Brokerage in 1996 as a one-person shop specializing in providing employee benefits to small and mid-sized businesses in the Greater Toronto Area.
Dave is a strong believer in continuing education and recognized the need for the group insurance industry to broaden its efforts in this area. In 2003 he started a small networking group, which evolved into regular breakfast meetings across the GTA, then into regular educational seminars beginning in 2009.
Dave is recognized as a leader in the group benefits industry, an accomplished speaker at industry events and a contributor to various industry publications. He mentors and acts as an informal resource to benefit brokers, participates in industry think tank groups as well as panels such as; the Benefits Advisors’ Drug Plan Outlook, the Canadian Leadership Council on Drug Plan Partnerships.
Dave spends his spare time with his family and also enjoys taking groups sailing on Lake Ontario, the Caribbean and Mediterranean seas and has even crossed the Atlantic ocean in 2019.
Jason Watt
Business Career CollegeJason Watt is a full-time instructor at Business Career College, and before this he served in the Canadian Armed Forces. He has taught at the Pearson Peacekeeping Centre and the Canadian Forces Peace Support Training Centre. Jason has also served overseas on four operations with the Canadian Armed Forces. He is the principal author of the course texts in the BCC financial planning curriculum.
Jason is active in his community and serves on the boards of the South Alberta Light Horse Regimental Association, McLeod Community League, and two committees of the Financial Planning Association of Canada. He provides volunteer financial coaching services to program participants at the Centre to End all Sexual Exploitation and the Norwood Child and Family Resource Centre. He is working to bring a pro bono financial planning model to Canada.