Mary-Anne Frith

Barbara White

Mary-Anne Frith is a recently retired Occupational Health & Safety consultant specializing in WSIB claims management.  Her passion for helping others proves to be an asset to serve her community.

As the Co-Founder of Ripple of Kindness, Mary-Anne’s desire to work with other like-minded women to foster collective impactful giving for local organizations is what gives her great joy.  The impact these gifts have on local charities is filling a great need for programs and services in the region. 

Mary-Anne also serves as the chair of the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre’s Keep LifeWild campaign and sits on the RVH Foundation Board of Directors as Vice-Chair.  

She was honoured to be recognized by Barrie Today’s Community Builder Awards as the “2023 Unsung Hero for her volunteer efforts in the community to improve the lives of others and create a positive impact now and in the future”.

Mary-Anne and her husband Brent are local business owners, have 4 daughters and two amazing grandsons!  She enjoys spending time with her family, travelling, walking the Barrie waterfront and the many Simcoe County trails with her dog.


Community minded with successful fundraising and organizational skills, Barbara helped to co-found A Ripple of Kindness in 2016 so that more like minded women could come together with greater impact.

Barbara’s drive to create caring communities was a result of her international upbringing.  Her father’s corporate career with IBM took her family to a number of countries world-wide before settling in Newmarket.  Barbara graduated from Seneca College of Applied Arts & Technology with a diploma in Creative Advertising and Marketing in 1983.   Making Barrie her home in 1992, she has loved growing with her husband Jeff, their business and their three children in such a wonderful community.

Working alongside her husband since 1988 in their group of companies,  Barbara chose to focus on her community involvement beginning with volunteering at her children’s public school as Fundraising Chair and Council Member from 1997 – 2011.  Her love for knitting has enabled her to donate monies from the scarves she has made to the Heart and Stroke Foundation, RVH Foundation and Hospice Simcoe and Gilda’s Club in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017

With strengths in event planning and organization , Barbara organized Prom Night for Cancer, a third party fundraiser for the Canadian Cancer Society’s Relay for Life since 2008 raising over $ 150,000.00 and The Holiday Social for Gilda’s Club from 2011 – 2015 raising over $17,000.00 to “help keep the red door open”.
Other Community Outreach and Sponsorships that Barbara is involved with include the Barrie Food Bank, OSPCA Barrie, Gilda’s Club Simcoe Muskoka, Hospice Simcoe, Canadian Mental Health Association and the Canadian Cancer Society.

Barbara serves on the Board of Gilda’s Club Simcoe Muskoka and is currently their Chair, The Start Talking Golf Tournament Committee, Hike for Hospice Committee and is working closely with the Kempenfelt Rotary Club on the Kempenfelt Derby which will benefit Gilda’s Club.  Rotary International has recognized Barbara’s dedication to volunteerism by awarding her with the “Paul Harris Fellowship Award”.  She recently was awarded the Ontario 150 by Anne Hogarth for her contribution in Simcoe County and just received the first “Heart and Soul” award of Barrie from the Barrie Chamber of Commerce.
“Ripple your Kindness” – Barbara White

“Just as ripples spread out when a single pebble is dropped into water, the actions of individuals can have far-reaching effects.”

Dalai Lama