Our Coaches

Stacy Mitchell

Stacy was introduced to rowing when the legendary coach, Fred Loek came to her high school to recruit for the Don Rowing Club Junior Program in 1984. She continued her rowing experience under the tutelage of John Armitage at Queen’s University and was a member of the Lightweight National team in 1994. Rowing became her passion after her first stroke – even though her first race had her sitting in a rigger for 100 m after an epic crab!

In 2007 Stacy turned her attention to coaching when she moved to Salt Spring permanently and started the Salt Spring Island Rowing Club junior program. She continued her growth as a coach through her many experiences of mentoring under Rowing Canada coaches as well as upgrading her professional education. In 2013, she obtained a Masters in Education in Sports Coaching at University of Victoria, with a focus on developing Mental Toughness in Junior rowers. In 2019, she completed the Advanced Coaching Diploma with the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sports Institute Network and received her Rowing Canada Performance Coach certification. Stacy has been a Chartered Professional coach with the NCCP since 2018. Stacy has had numerous high performance coaching experiences including;

Rowing BC 2015 Western Canada Summer Games
2017 Lead Women coach, Canada Summer Games (Winnipeg)
2019 Rowing Canada CanAmMex Men’s Sweep coach
2021 Lead Women Coach, Canada Summer Games (Niagara)
And she continues her high performance education by being a guest coach with the NexGen Rowing BC camp program.

Stacy did not limit her knowledge to on the water rowing but went deeper into the administration side of sport in Canada. To understand more about the support for rowing in 2008, she joined the Rowing BC Board as a Director. She was President of Rowing BC from 2018 to 2022, and presently sit as past president (2023/2024).

Stacy has had the privilege to be involved in all aspects of growing this sport in BC. However, when asked she is most proud of our Junior program on Salt Spring Island, which competes regularly at the Canadian Secondary School championships. The athletes Stacy has coached have won multiple medals in rowing and have gone on to compete at Canadian University level programs as well as the World Championships and even the Olympics.

Stacy is a lifelong learner and rowing is a teacher that requires her to always be better. There is never a day that she doesn’t learn alongside her rowers on and off the water. From the first time, she dipped her oar in the water, this sport has challenged her to be the best version of herself every day and build her resilience and into the leader she is today. She supports her athletes to be able to push themselves and be the best version of themselves every day in a safe and challenging environment.

Stacy enjoys Salt Spring Island with her partner, Michael, her precocious daughter, Mackenzie, and her two lovable dogs, George and Nemo. When she is not coaching at the Salt Spring Island Rowing Club or tending to Rowing BC matters, she can be found in the halls of Gulf Island Secondary School as the Vice Principal or teaching Anatomy & Physiology and Chemistry.

Success is built by taking risks and never being scared to fail.

Meghan Montgomery

Meghan Montgomery began her rowing in 2000 at the Winnipeg Rowing Club; Meghan embarked on a path that would see her rise to become a prominent figure in both national and international rowing arenas.

Despite facing the challenge of a congenital disability in her right hand, Meghan's unwavering commitment propelled her forward. Her journey took a significant turn when she qualified for the 2001 Canada Summer Games, setting the stage for a path in high-performance rowing. Under the guidance of seasoned mentors like Chuck MacDiarmid and Darcy Gillespie, Meghan honed her skills and embraced the competitive spirit of rowing. In 2004, she received the pivotal advice that would shape her future: the opportunity to qualify for Paralympic Rowing, then known as Adaptive Rowing.

Meghan's proficiency on the water allowed her to represent Canada at:

Three Paralympic Games,
Six FISA World Championships,
and one World Cup regatta.
Throughout her remarkable ten-year tenure with the national team, Meghan secured numerous accolades, including a World Cup medal, four FISA World Championship medals, and a Paralympic medal.

Off the water, Meghan is dedicated to rowing and advocating for athletes, particularly para-athletes. She was involved with the Canadian Paralympic Committee's Athlete Council for eight years. She spent six years as a board member of Rowing BC and participated in a working group aimed at enhancing junior lightweight rowing. Currently, Meghan remains an active member of the rowing community, serving as the co-chair of the Rowing Canada Accountability Committee.

She has also been keen to keep connected to the rowing community in Winnipeg, so has returned to Manitoba to coach crews there. In 2017, she took on the role of Manitoba Rowing Association assistant coach for the 2017 Western Canada Summer Games, further solidifying her commitment to nurturing talent and fostering a culture of excellence.

While working at Shawnigan Lake School for ten years, she took charge of the U19 girls' program and coached many of the athletes to podium finishes at the Canadian Secondary School Rowing Association Regatta. While at SLS, she coached the first crew to qualify for the Diamond Jubilee category at the Henley Royal Regatta (2014). As the head coach of that program, she also mentored many assistant coaches. She now teaches at Gulf Island Secondary School and coaches at the Salt Spring Island Rowing Club.