Shawn Wood, CD
Executive Director
Shawn provides leadership, direction and guidance for the CARM Board of Directors, membership, as well as the CARM team. Shawn has retired from the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in 2020 after completing 24+ years of service to his country. As a member of the CAF, Shawn was employed as an Infantrymen, Supply Technician and leader who dealt with supervising soldiers and civilians, human resources, supply chain management, planning, contracts, procurement and finance including budget/business planning. Shawn was also a trusted advisor to senior leadership as the harassment advisor, ethics coordinator and workplace safety advisor. Shawn has had the opportunity during the final 10 years of his military career to advise directorate level positions within the federal government on a daily basis. Shawn has been able to transfer those skills into his role as Executive Director in dealing with Municipal, Provincial and Federal governments. Over the past 5 years, Shawn has been influential in advocating for the construction Industry, building partnerships with partner associations and increasing the awareness of CARM. In his off time, Shawn is the Vice Chair for the Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum in Brandon, recently stepped down as the Chair for the Brandon Career Symposium, but remains on their Board of Directors and is a key member of the “Grow Brandon” group. Shawn has been married for 33 years to his wife Lee Ann, they have two children, a son in-law and a grandson. When not volunteering Shawn spends him time on the acreage tending to their garden and raising livestock.
Robyn Sayese
Member Services Administrator
Robyn joined CARM in June of 2023. She is our first line of contact when a member calls, e-mails, or drops by the office. Sayese enjoys her role at CARM and learning about the industry. She did not get her start in the construction industry but in retail and service. Sayese was born and raised in St. John's, NL where she attended Memorial University and also worked her way up to General Manager of an independently owned Irving gas station and convenience store. She was in this role when she met her now husband Luke. Luke is from The Pas, MB but lived in Brandon and attended Brandon University. He moved to Newfoundland to be with her once he graduated and they were eventually married. After a few years in NL together they decided to move to the mainland.
Sayese took her experience in management and crossed over to the service industry as the Bar Manager at The Dock on Princess, a locally owned restaurant and pub here in Brandon. She worked at The Dock for about 5 years gaining experience and friendships with her co-workers and patrons. When the opportunity to work at CARM came she dove in head first with a willingness to learn and expand her knowledge base. Sayese especially loves the work-life balance CARM has brought to her life, allowing her to spend more quality time with her husband and fur babies, Quinzel, Jinx, and Fritz.
Kara Morrice
PlanPoint Director
Kara joined CARM in March 2019 as the member services administrator but then moved into the role as PlanPoint Director in the Spring of 2023. Morrice says she enjoys working with the public and interacting with CARM members and she always looks forward to helping plan all of the yearly events for the association. Born and raised in Brandon, Morrice graduated from Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School with a double certificate in Commercial Arts. After completing high school, she enrolled in the Media Production program (now known as Interactive Media Arts program) at Assiniboine Community College in Brandon.
Following that, she spent almost 20 years at the Brandon Sun newspaper working in a number of different positions and departments. Morrice, whose last position at the Sun was graphic designer/supervisor, considers herself very knowledgeable about the print and web advertising industry. During her last few years at the Sun, Morrice served as assistant secretary-treasurer on the executive board for Local 191 of the Unifor union. Prior to joining CARM, Morrice worked for about a year-and-a-half as an insurance broker at Ficek Insurance in Brandon, where she sold auto, home and commercial insurance. Morrice belongs to the Summit Toastmasters Brandon Club 5678. She joined Toastmasters to improve her public speaking skills, which she says is beneficial to her position at CARM. Morrice is the mother of Téa, 27, and Trai, 25 and has three fur babies, Molly, Teddy and Charlie.
