Who We Are
Vill Van Der Merwe
President
president@trails4tomorrow.ca
Vill’s love and sense of adventure started at a young age growing up in the Kalahari desert of South Africa. Much of his childhood was spent running around barefoot looking for rocks and critters, fishing off the west coast and learning to drive in old Land Cruisers. After moving to Canada in 1998, his first off-road adventures were on snowmobiles in Newfoundland and ATV’s in the Crowsnest pass area of Alberta. As an Adult Vill grew to love spending time in the backcountry and doing ski mountaineering, backpacking and scrambling. After high school he obtained a private pilot’s license but his love for the outdoors lead him to obtain a degree in Geology from the University of Calgary. Vill spent 10 years working in the oil and gas industry as a petroleum geologist. His love for photography and growing interests in off-roading/ overlanding however made him want to do something different. Today Vill is an owner and Sales and Marketing Director at KRAVE Automotive in Calgary. In his free time Vill enjoys off-roading and camping with his family.
Vill has been managing the social media networks for T4T for the past 3 years. He is passionate about ensuring we have sustainable trails for future generations and is often seen as a leader in the off-road community. He believes strongly that this is possible through education and meaningful consultation with all stakeholders. For 2024 he has taken on the role of President and is excited to lead the organization while undergoing some major changes.
“Whatever you do, do it with purpose and don’t forget to enjoy the process”
Jason Brown
Vice President
vice.president@trails4tomorrow.ca
Jason was born and raised in Central BC on a Texas Longhorn Ranch. His childhood consisted of playing in the mud, lakes and rivers surrounded by the copious amounts of raw nature. Jason’s love for the outdoors and appreciation of its beauty is boundless and his relationship with anything on wheels is built into his DNA. Moving his young family to Alberta over 20 years ago added to his appreciation of Alberta’s landscape. Education about trail maintenance and keeping trails open for all Albertans propelled Jason’s desire to become acquainted with Trails 4 Tomorrow, and he has been a supporter of the message ever since. Family connection to the outdoor lifestyle also motivated Jason to co-create the Alberta Outdoor Adventure Expo (AOAE). He was recently voted in to become Vice President and is very excited to be part of this team!
Jason Comin
Treasurer
treasurer@trails4tomorrow.ca
Jason was born in the Crowsnest Pass and has spent many hours exploring trails in the York Creek, Castle and Adanac areas with his Dad in a 3rd generation Ford Bronco and his Uncle in a jacked-up 2nd generation Chevrolet Blazer. Now over 30 years later, he's working a desk job in the Alberta prairies with the mountains in the distance calling him to return. Jason appreciates exploring the trails from his youth and others along the Rockies with his wife, children and anyone else who will hop in his Jeep. He is currently serving on the Board as Treasurer in hopes that he will be able to assist in preserving access to the trails he grew up on and many others for future generations.
Trevor Cawston
Secretary
secretary@trails4tomorrow.ca
Trevor is returning for his second year the role of Secretary for Trails 4 Tomorrow. He’s passionate about keeping trails open and is excited to be working towards this goal. He has been a lifelong 4X4 user, starting at a young age driving his dad's old hunting truck through the fields away from the duck blinds. He always had ATV's growing up, and spent his weekends exploring public and private land east of Calgary. As an outdoor enthusiast, Trevor spends most weekends camping with his family either out of an RV or out of their 4runner. Living in Calgary he is usually running trails out in McClean Creek or Ghost.
Lloyd Kortbeek
Project Manager
project.manager@trails4tomorrow.ca
Lloyd was born and raised in Alberta and is a believer in adventure. Whether that comes from the seat of a car, a boat, a bike, the back of a horse or just his two feet, he has taken on a raft of adventures throughout this great country and around the world. A great believer in the Tread Lightly concepts to ensure the beautiful vistas and country too few of us go out to enjoy, are maintained in a safe and sustainable manner so that others can experience and enjoy it as well. Lloyd has been wheeling since he bought his first FJ40 back in 1986 and was drawn to T4T through his love of vintage Toyota Land Cruisers combined with those great adventures. He is hoping to contribute his planning and professional skills to ensure everyone gets to experience the same adventures, learn about this great land and help maintain it for future generations.
Abri Slabbert
External Relations
external.relations@trails4tomorrow.ca
Abri’s passion for adventure and the outdoors began growing up in South Africa, where weekends were often spent exploring backroads, camping, and learning to appreciate the freedom of remote places. From an early age he developed a fascination with vehicles, travel, and the outdoors — interests that would later evolve into a lifelong passion for overlanding and community building.
After moving to Canada, Abri quickly embraced the rugged landscapes of Alberta and Western Canada. Whether exploring mountain trails, remote forestry roads, or camping deep in the backcountry, he found a strong connection between adventure, responsible land use, and the people who share those experiences. His passion for overlanding grew through years of travel, trail exploration, and building vehicles designed to take people further into the outdoors with confidence and purpose.
Today Abri is the owner of Gear4Overland, a company focused on equipping and educating the overlanding community through quality products, technical knowledge, and real-world experience. He is committed to building stronger communities around adventure travel while encouraging others to explore responsibly and leave the outdoors better than they found it.
In his free time, Abri enjoys exploring remote destinations with family and friends, vehicle-based travel, camping, and continuously seeking new adventures off the beaten path.
Brad Haws
Volunteer Coordinator
I would consider myself an adventurous spirit who loves to travel and be out in nature. I'm originally from Vancouver and Kelowna, BC. My dad worked for Chrysler, and I was spoiled with my first car being a new Jeep TJ in 1995. I always loved the freedom of going off-road and taking the top and doors off. I especially love the jungle, and I dream of driving my Jeep to Central America or even driving the whole Pan American highway, camping and exploring each country along the way. I also love hiking and yoga. When I discovered T4T, I wanted to sign up right away to contribute to the organization, learn new things, and meet some like-minded people who are
passionate about the outdoors.
Lauren Johnson
Social Media
Born and raised in Calgary, Lauren has been privileged enough to have the foothills and Rocky Mountains as her backyard, and growing up so close has spent a ton of weekends in the Ghost or Maclean areas.
Hiking on two feet turned into dirt biking on two wheels, then quadding on four wheels, and naturally evolved into 4x4. Buying and building Toyotas has led her to likeminded people, avid offroad trail users, and Trails 4 Tomorrow.
Now as a mom of two daughters, teaching them about sustainability and the impact we all have on the environment are motivating factors to join T4T. Lauren is excited for the opportunity to help maintain trails and keep access open for her daughters to continue to enjoy in the future.
“If you’re not muddy, you’re not having fun”
Dylan Johnson
Website & Tech Coordinator
Dylan was born in Winnipeg but grew up just outside of Calgary. Spending the summers in Northern Saskatchewan, he became fond of the outdoors and adventure the wilderness can offer. After starting with KRAVE Automotive in 2019, Dylan began to explore the trail systems within Alberta and developed an appreciation for all the province has to offer. 6 years later he is now the E-Commerce Manager for KRAVE and has joined the Trails 4 Tomorrow board as the website and tech coordinator.
Leave things better than you found it has always been an integral part of Dylan’s motivation to join Trails 4 Tomorrow and he believes we can keep our trail systems open for generations to come.
Jamey Harper
Trail Rep - Central Alberta
Hi, I’m Jamey. I live west of Rocky Mountain House, work in Calgary, spend my free time turning wrenches and exploring crown land. I like jeeps, quads, hunting, fishing, camping, hiking and building stuff. I love the crown land to the west and want to help everyone have a more enjoyable experience out there.