Meet the 2023/24 Board of Directors

The Board of Directors are all volunteers who oversee all aspects of Club life and The Learning Tree School. It is a group of people dedicated to the advancement of the WAC’s ideals and mission.

Anja Hirt, President

Oversees and promotes the welfare and goals of the club

Anja grew up near Dresden in East Germany, but has also lived in the U.S., Canada, Hungary and Poland. Before becoming a mom she was a Project Manager and worked on various global transformation projects for international companies.

She relocated to Lausanne, Switzerland in 2009 for work reasons and there she met her husband Francois. Since 2016 they have been living in Zurich Oberland together with their 2 daughters, Vivien (5) and Nadine (11). From day 1 they have all been enjoying the various activities and events and at the WAC. Anja loves the unique international community of the WAC and appreciates the creative, educational and fun classes for her children!

She has always enjoyed volunteering on the WAC Board. She was Business Chairperson for 2 years and Secretary for 1 year before taking on the President position in April 2022. With the fantastic Board team, the Chairs and countless volunteers, she is confident that 2023/2024 will be another exciting year at the WAC!

Contact Anja

Karin Weidner, Vice President
Liaises with the school and works closely with the President

Karin is from Germany and received her PhD in chemistry from the University of Bern. She lived in Barcelona, San Diego and Tokyo, where she worked as researcher for University/pharmaceutical company. Since spring 2018, she is living in Uster with her husband and two children. 

She became a member of the WAC when her daughter started preschool, in 2019. In the meanwhile, Karin has served multiple terms as a Board member at the WAC: first in marketing and currently as the Vice President.

Karin’s children are now at complete ease with English despite having two non-native speakers as parents; they enjoy being part of the WAC community and can even hold independent conversations when on holidays overseas.

Contact Karin

Tosyn Thomas, Treasurer
Oversees Bookkeeper, WAC accounts and all outgoing payments.

 Tosyn Thomas moved from Essex UK to Switzerland in 2014. Before relocating to Switzerland, she worked as a corporate tax specialist with finance and IT background for 15 years within several industries in the UK. She is currently the chief officer in charge of the home management team at Thomas household, which comprises of 4 beautiful children and a loving husband.
She has been a member of the WAC since she moved to Switzerland and all her kids have attended and are still attending different classes at the WAC, which they really enjoy for both its educational and social aspects.
Tosyn enjoys being part of the WAC's community, and is always happy to volunteer. She has volunteered previously as the Events chairperson and is now currently serving on the board as the Treasurer alongside 6 other wonderful ladies.
Tosyn says that being part of the WAC aided her family's settling down process in Switzerland.

Contact Tosyn

Dionne Brown, Business Chairperson
The main point of contact for businesses which operate at the WAC

They are an international family of 3, originally from the UK, in London and Poland. After many years of working in the City of London as an European Commercial Real Estate Manager inside the Mining Industry, Dionne came to Switzerland in 2018 as a trailing spouse. After the initial settling in period of moving to a new country with a small child, she found the WAC after doing a Google search and is very happy that she did. In their free time they enjoy bike riding, exploring the different cantons and socializing with other families. Dionne’s husband enjoys snowboarding and she is yet to try this with their daughter. She is excited to join the team to create fun and exciting events for all.

Contact Dionne

Events Chairperson - VACANT

Organizes events throughout the year

Abla abd El-Hakim, Marketing Chairperson
Oversees all marketing activities, including publications, website and advertising.

Abla is a Canadian Egyptian who grew up in Montreal. She earned her Bachelor of Civil Engineering from Concordia University and worked on high-profile construction projects in multinational construction companies for ten years before becoming a stay-at-home mom.

In 2022, Abla moved to Switzerland with her family and rediscovered her passion for painting, crocheting and hiking. Back in Montreal, she enjoyed volunteering with children as well as auctioning and donating her artwork for charity events. Abla wants to continue her volunteer work in Switzerland to have a positive impact on others, learn from her life experiences and make friends.

Contact Abla

Yick Han Cheung, Secretary

Manages all documentation, policies and procedures. Records minutes of all meetings.

Yick Han Cheung is a Dutch-born Chinese and has been living in Uster for almost 8 years together with her husband Karl and son Matthias. Before they moved to Switzerland she was working as a pension specialist and studying Actuary. 

Since two years her son is attending English lessons at the WAC with immense joy. Outside of family life and after moving to Uster she has become an avid reader. Having been a stay-at-home mum/ housewife and participating in the parents’ council of her son’s school, she is ready for a new challenge and was looking for a much needed focus aside from the family. She is happy to support WAC as the new secretary and is looking forward to making more friends and the new experiences.

Contact: Yick Han

WAC Committee Members

We still need volunteers to assist our work!

Interested?  Contact us!