Our Team

 
SteveConnolly
Steve
Connolly
Steve Connolly

Steve entered the Life Insurance Industry July 1983, as a Sun Life Advisor, following a 21 year career in the field of education. In 1998, he founded Connolly Financial Group in partnership with his son, Shayne. The focus of the Connolly Group is to concentrate on business and professional insurance, estate planning and working closely with client legal and accounting advisors. Steve achieved Lifetime Membership in Million Dollar Round Table in 1999 following 10 consecutive years of production at this level. Steve is the first advisor on PEI to receive the Certified Senior Advisor (C.S.A.) designation – newly named C.P.C.A. (Certified Professional Consultant on Aging). In 2010, Steve was inducted into the Sun Life Hall of Fame which is a significant recognition and highest accomplishment in our industry.

Steve suffered a serious heart attack in November 2007. Complications created several near death experiences for him. As a grateful survivor, he has documented his journey through heart disease and has presented his story to Advocis, P.E.I., The Maritime Heart Center, Sun Life Financial Strategic Partners and Heart and Stroke Foundation of P.E.I. He was invited to speak to the World Conference on Critical Illness Insurance in Montreal in April 2009, but had to decline for scheduling reasons.

Married to Marguerite Mossey, son Shayne, daughters Kellie and Tracey have blessed their family with 6 of the very best grandchildren on this planet.

contact:

(902) 892-4885

ShayneConnolly
Shayne
Connolly
Shayne Connolly

Shayne, a Certified Health Insurance Specialist, specializes in Individual and Corporate Life Insurance and Estate Planning at Connolly Group as well as Employee Benefit consulting.

He has been active in his industry having served for a number of years on the provincial executive of the Financial Advisors Association of Canada, Advocis, and was the President from 2005 through to 2008.

He is the current chair of the Advocis Atlantic School, a Continuing Education school held annually for advisors from across Canada.
In the community, Shayne is a current board member with Basketball PEI, the Colonel Gray Education Foundation and the Colonel Gray Safe Grad committee and volunteers annually for the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Foundation and supports numerous local charities.

A graduate of Acadia University, Shayne and his wife Lynn reside in Charlottetown and have two children, Matt and Rylee.

 

contact:

(902) 892-3779 Direct
(902) 940-3444 Mobile

HughPaton
Hugh
Paton
Hugh Paton

A Dalhousie University Commerce and Law graduate, Hugh began his human resources career in 1992 as a pension legal consultant, and later moved to Toronto to pursue group benefits consulting experience with the national firm MorneauSobeco. In 1998 he relocated to Prince Edward Island as a senior group benefits consultant and regional manager for Johnson Incorporated.

In 2001 he moved ‘in-house’ to consult for Bell Aliant where, as Senior Benefits and Compensation Consultant, his responsibilities included compensation design, group benefits design, administration, communication, financial management and union negotiation, as well as pandemic planning. Hugh has led the design and implementation of a new flexible benefits program for Bell Aliant’s 9,000 employees, replacing a complex platform of previous plans.

Bell Aliant is an example of the numerous very large, multi-employer plans he has worked with. Others include a 3,000 employee Ontario employer who he helped move to a new third-party administrator (TPA) and an innovative benefits administration platform.

As a lawyer, Hugh has a strong knowledge of legal and tax issues affecting benefits plans. He is also a past member of the Canadian Pension and Benefits Institute and World at Work Society of Certified Professionals. He serves his community on several charitable committees and boards.

Hugh is a regional and national presenter in the benefits industry, including:

• Arete HR Inc.’s Group Insurance Advisor Conference 2018 (Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto)
• Mapol’s Private Payer Pulse Conferences in Toronto and Montreal 2010-14
• CPBI National Forum, Vancouver 2011
• Rx&D (Brand Drugs) Private Payer Sub Committee, Toronto, 2010
• Third Party Administrators’ Association of Canada, Halifax, 2010
• Co-chair, Medavie Blue Cross Client Advisory Council, 2006-9

contact:

Direct: (902) 894-5256
Cell: (902) 393-5256

JulieArsenault
Julie
Arsenault
Julie Arsenault

Julie, our Group Benefits & Human Resource Manager, joined our team in December 2005 as an administrative assistant, after graduating from CompuCollege.
Within a year, she added group administration to her tasks and the rest is history. She recently graduated from Holland College in May 2018 with her Human Resource Management diploma, which she obtained while working full-time and balancing a full-time course load. Along with the group benefit administration, she can also assist with your Human Resource inquiries.

Her friendly disposition, outgoing personality and knowledge in group benefits administration help keep our group benefit plans running smoothly.
She looks forward to assisting you with all your group insurance needs including complex claims, premium quotes, billing issues, employee enrollment, plan administrator/employee benefit sessions and everything else that comes along with having a group benefit package. She is a liaison with all our Group Insurers, including the Chamber of Commerce Group Insurance Plan.

Julie resides with her family in Stratford.

contact:

(902) 892-6999

JanetWilkins
Janet
Wilkins
Janet Wilkins

Janet joined our team in April 2014 and is our Individual Insurance Case Manager. She moved from England to Prince Edward Island in 2007; since moving to the Island she has worked in the insurance world with a well-established maritime company before joining Connolly Group.

While living in England, Janet worked for a multinational banking organization as a Financial Advisor and Customer Manager. Janet has worked in the financial services field her whole career and is known for being detail-oriented, and taking pride in delivering excellent customer service.

At Connolly Group, Janet oversees the new and in-force individual insurance business, as well as Group Retirement Savings Plans. She holds a current PEI Life License and looks forward to assisting you with any administration requirements relating to new and existing individual business.

In 2012, Janet became a Canadian Citizen, and now lives in Pleasant Grove with her husband Gordon, their son Matthew, and their cats Sophie and Lexi.

contact:

(902) 892-4003

TimGairns
Tim
Gairns
Tim Gairns

Tim joined the Connolly Group team in January, 2012. After graduating from the University of Prince Edward Island in 2007 with a Bachelor’s of Business Administration, Tim worked on the administration side of the financial world with a global financial firm.

As an Associate Advisor here at Connolly Group, Tim specializes in individual life and living benefits, as well as small firm group benefit packages.

He lives with his wife Colleen, daughter Felicity, and son Parker in Charlottetown.

He has also completed the Certified Employee Benefit Specialist (CEBS), through Dalhousie University and the International Society of Employee Benefit Plans as of June of 2018, making him one of a select few individuals on PEI to have the designation.

 

contact:

(902) 894-7788

RichardSnow
Richard
Snow
Richard Snow

Richard Snow has been looking after our in-house accounting needs since 2001. He has been working in Accounting and Bookkeeping for over 40 years and finds the work constantly evolving, challenging and rewarding.

Richard has a Bachelor of Commerce degree with a major in Financial Accounting from Mount Allison University and is continually updating and expanding his knowledge and skills. He has been part of the Simply Accounting/Sage 50 consultancy program since 2003 and maintains an up-to-date status as a Sage 50 Certified Consultant.

He has experience in a wide variety of medium and small sized organizations, where he has been involved in new client analysis and set-up; maintaining clients’ regular bookkeeping, accounting and systems analysis needs; and preparation of year end financial statements, personal and corporate income tax returns. He keeps up-to-date on industry software as well as standards in analysis and reporting.

Richard is a member of the PEI Writers Guild. He has one published story, Kennebecasis, a childhood memoir, published in Snow Softly Falling, Acorn Press, 2015. Kennebecasis is part of a work in progress about the open roads of his life.

Richard and his wife Wendy live in the century-old farmhouse that she grew up in, on the outskirts of Summerside. Richard enjoys the whole cycle of growth and renewal, from planting, watering and weeding; to harvesting, seed-saving, and preserving.

“From the front window of our living room, past the twin chestnut trees that frame our home, I can see four silent windmills rotating lazily against the backdrop of Malpeque Bay. Behind us, we look out on a flower garden filled with the yearly promise of lilies, glads, lavender, and tulips; nestled in the shade of lilac bushes and linden and maple trees. Across our yard, in the shade of a wildflower meadow, our organic vegetable garden rewards us with heirloom tomatoes, beans, peas, peppers, onions, garlic, carrots, parsnips and cucumbers, and a dozen varieties of herbs. Our lives are rooted in the soil, in the air, and the sea that surrounds us.”

 

contact:

(902) 892-5433 ext. 229

CathyDesroches
Cathy
Desroches
Cathy Desroches

Cathy joined the Connolly Team in May 2023 as a Benefits Administrator. Cathy was born and raised in Charlottetown and attended Holland College and UPEI. Cathy comes to us with a strong background in business and customer service. As the Executive Housekeeper at the Delta Prince Edward Hotel for more than 20 years, she led a large and diverse team where she displayed an unwavering commitment to excellence.

Cathy has been recognized nationally by Marriott Hotels for her excellence in delivering guest experiences. She is process-driven and has strong organizational skills and attention to detail. These skills along with her customer service focus make her a great fit for the Connolly Team.

Outside of her professional life, Cathy lives in Hunter River with her husband Jason; they have two daughters Victoria and Emily and their dog Max. She enjoys gardening, baking and spending time with her family and loves all things Halloween.

 

contact:

(902) 367-0219 Direct

RonaldaFord
Ronalda
Ford
Ronalda Ford

Ronnie joined our team in August 2023 as an Administrative Assistant. She moved from Alberta to Prince Edward Island in June 2023 and brings with her over ten years of administrative experience.

Ronnie was born and raised in Saskatchewan and moved to Alberta in 2000 after graduating from Marca College. While living in northern Alberta, Ronnie acquired her red seal journeyman certificate as a hair stylist, then changed careers to be an oilfield medic before transitioning into the administrative role at an accounting firm where she worked until she moved to PEI.

At Connolly Group, Ronnie will be your first point of contact for phone calls or in office meetings and she will be assisting Janet with individual insurance business.

 

contact:

(902) 892-5433 Direct

We have had the pleasure of working with the Connolly Group for over 10 years and have always found their staff to have their client’s best interests at heart and supportive of all of our insurance needs.  

– Bruce Macdonald,

Former CFO of Sport PEI