Deputy Chief Paul Burnett

Deputy Chief Paul Burnett was initially hired by the Gloucester Police Department in 1992, over the course of his 31 years he fulfilled a variety of supervisory roles and worked in a variety of units throughout the organization including the Traffic Section, the Collision Reconstruction Unit, the Professional Development Centre as a Use of Force Instructor, and the Tactical Team as both an operator and the Unit Commander. In addition, he has worked as an Investigator in the Professional Standard Unit and supervised the Community Policing Centre’s in the city’s east end.

In his previous role as a Duty Inspector, Deputy Chief Burnett oversaw Frontline Operations and was responsible for providing Incident Command for major events and high-risk operations, including demonstrations, major crime scenes, SIU investigations, tactical and search and rescue operations. He led the design, development and implementation of the organization’s first multi-year Strategic Equity Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan. He fostered collaborative leadership across the organization and developed a strategy to build capacity in relation to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

As Deputy Chief he oversees the Community Policing Command, which includes the Frontline Policing Directorate, Specialized Policing Directorate, and the Neighbourhood Policing Directorate. This Command provides proactive and reactive public safety services in partnership with key stakeholders and the many diverse communities in Ottawa.

Deputy Chief Burnett was a member of the 2008 Olympic Security Team that provided personal security as the Olympic flame made its way across the province. He also attended the Vancouver Olympics and was deployed as a Bomb Technician. He spent a year Instructing at the Jordan International Police Training Center (JIPTC) in Amman, Jordan where he was the lead instructor in charge of the Improvised Explosive Device Training Centre responsible for training police recruits, as a result he was awarded the JIPTC medal.

Deputy Chief Burnett earned his Bachelor of Social Science degree from Ottawa University and is currently an Instructor at the Canadian Police College on the Critical Incident Commanders course.

Sahra Ali

Sahra is the Director of Financial Services at Universities Canada, a charitable organization advocating on behalf of university presidents for higher education, research and innovation. Sahra manages and oversees the annual financial cycle, including budgeting and year-end responsibilities, mitigates key elements of risks and compliance, monitors investment activities and develops and maintains financial and operational controls. She serves as the chair of Universities Canada's retirement plan committee and is also a member of the organization’s senior management committee.

She also serves as a Board member of the Women's History Project in hopes of promoting the role, achievements and contributions of women in Canadian history.

Sahra has been a supporter of the Somali Hope Foundation; she has been volunteering since 2019, where she helped the Executive Director with proposal writing. She continues to maintain communication with the SHF, and participates at the various events held by this foundation.

Sahra holds a bachelor of commerce with an option finance from the University of Ottawa and is a Chartered Professional Accountant.

Ibrahim (Abe) Hussein

Ibrahim (Abe) Hussein has supported the Somali Hope Foundation since returning to Ottawa seven years ago from his studies in the US; he became more actively involved with the organization in 2016 after working with Co-Founder, Justice of the Peace Mahamud Elmi. At the time, Mahamud was an Ottawa Police Sergeant and Abe was facilitating a community mentorship program for at-risk Somali Youth here in Ottawa. Despite his biology background, Abe has spent over a decade in construction educating youth apprentices, working as a tradesman, and is more recently developing Health and Safety systems for bourgeoning developers in Ontario. Still, his passion remains elevating his community. Team sports are a close second! Abe is honoured to jump into the co-host seat at this year’s gala.

Abdirizak Abdi

Abdirizak is a business owner and executive in the Ottawa area with 10+ years of experience in the finance sector. He is a CPA and CA with a love for business & adding value to society through opportunity.