Linda Stroude says her role as chief financial officer at Starlight Canada is a “dream job.”
For Linda Stroude, BComm 96, GrDip 97, there’s no such thing as a typical workday. Her role as chief financial officer (CFO) at Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada requires that she constantly juggle tasks such as preparing presentations for the board of directors, creating the fiscal year budget, managing the evaluation process for the organization’s 16-person team and overseeing the acceptance of toy donations for the seriously ill children they support.
In between, she might even be found ripping around at high speed in an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) with a pile of screeching kids as part of Starlight’s Motomax program.
“My role as CFO is very diverse,” Stroude says with a laugh.
“I've driven through mud, where it’s flying up the sides and in through the roof of the ATV. It’s fun and empowering for the kids to be outside doing something that they wouldn't normally do. A lot of them haven't had those opportunities.”
Starlight Canada’s mission is to bring distraction, relief and fun to sick kids and their families, providing hospital and home-based programs to nearly 2,000 families across Canada.
Stroude says her involvement is both professional and personal. Her family, including son Tre who passed in 2018, benefitted from Starlight Canada’s programming.
“When Tre was born, everything kind of broke loose. ‘What do you mean he's disabled?’ ‘What do you mean we have to be in the hospital all the time?’ There was a lot of uncertainty and a lot of questions,” she recalls.
“Starlight Canada was part of my family way before I became an employee here, so I know how important our programs are and what the parents need, what we can offer them.”
Starlight Canada provided toys, games, activities and community throughout Tre’s life. Today, Stroude is committed to giving back by ensuring that all the non-profit’s funds directly support families in need.
“Most companies work hard to put more money into investors’ pockets. Our vision is very different here: every dollar that comes in, we need to spend on a child.”
‘I found a way to make it work’
A graduate of Concordia’s accountancy program, Stroude chose to continue working at a mid-sized firm while Tre received treatments, fitting in tasks between appointments.
“A lot of people thought I was nuts, because I was getting four hours of non-consecutive sleep every night for 12 years. People said, ‘I don't know how you're functioning.’ I just told them, ‘This is what I want to do. I have two other healthy children; I want to take care of them.’
“My career is also super important to me. This is what I went to school for, what Concordia prepared me for. I found a way to make it work.”
Then, a transformative experience inspired Stroude to transition to the non-profit sector. She and a former colleague signed up to participate in The Drop Zone, an Easter Seals fundraiser in which participants rappel 16 stories down the side of a building to raise money that sends disabled children to summer camp.
In the end, the colleagues exceeded their fundraising goal. For Stroude, the excitement went beyond conquering heights.
“It was just such a proud moment. Knowing that I was sending children like my son to summer camp really moved me.”
A month later, Stroude stumbled across her dream job.
“I came home from work, and I was so, so tired, not wanting to move from the kitchen table,” she recounts. “I ended up browsing job boards. I wasn't even looking for a new role, but I found one really close to home. I ran downstairs saying, ‘Oh, my god, Starlight Canada is looking for a CFO!’”
With the encouragement of her husband — a fellow alumnus whom she met during Concordia frosh week 25 years ago — Stroude applied for and got the job.
“It was the best career move I could have made,” she says.
“I love what we do, what we represent. At Starlight Canada, it's not just about Mom, or the kids — it's about everyone. The entire family needs a break from thinking about what's going to happen in the hospital. We want to be there for them.”
These days, Stroude is focused on a donor drive to meet the needs of hospitals that have requested Starlight’s programming. She says she considers herself lucky to have a career that is aligned with her passion. She encourages new graduates to seize any chance they get to work in an environment that reflects their values.
“Take that opportunity because that makes all the difference in the world,” she explains.
“I'm blessed. I get up in the morning and I'm ready to go — like ‘Let's do this.’”