Region acknowledges exemplary citizens in Waterloo Region (1)

Waterloo Region – At Regional Council, several individuals were recognized for their dedicated and tireless contributions that make a real difference in Waterloo Region.

“We are very fortunate to have citizens in our community who give so much of their time to the community in which we live,” said Ken Seiling, Regional Chair. “It is with great pride that we acknowledge the following citizens and their contributions at Regional Council tonight.”

Patricia Wagner, recipient of the Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Lifetime Achievement, is a strong heritage advocate within the community and has devoted much of her spare time and energy to heritage preservation and heritage awareness in the City of Kitchener and the Region of Waterloo. Pat has also been a Doors Open volunteer for nine years, Vice Chair of the Friends of the Governor’s House and Gaol, a vital member of the Region’s Heritage Planning Advisory Committee and Heritage Bridge Recognition Program, a member of Friends of Joseph Schneider Haus, a member of the Friends of Doon Heritage Crossroads and an executive member of the North Waterloo Branch of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario, a member of the Waterloo Historical Society, Heritage Canada and of the Waterloo Regional Heritage Foundation. In addition to supporting community heritage initiatives Pat served on the Kitchener Public Library Foundation for many years.

Resurrection Catholic Secondary School, represented by Jim Stickland, Principal; Chris Aldworth, Teacher; and 23 students represented by Kellee Snider and Laura Stern, are recipients of the Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Youth from the Ontario Heritage Trust for their involvement in the Waterloo Wellington Children’s Groundwater Festival. Each year the groundwater festival aims to educate more than 4,000 students in grades two to five about the importance of water in their daily lives. The week-long festival requires the help of more than 500 volunteers to deliver this message. Since 1998, the students at Resurrection Catholic Secondary School have volunteered at the water festival. Mr. Aldworth and a group of high school students help animate the 40 hands-on, interactive learning centres. The students take their role seriously and spend a great deal of time and effort preparing for the festival. They challenge the children to consider the importance of water to themselves as individuals and to society at large. Their efforts teach the children to respect and conserve our valuable water resources, so they can in-turn become the water stewa4rds of the future.

Peter Gray, recipient of the Ontario Heritage Trust Certificate of Lifetime Achievement Award for the Children’s Water Education Council and the Waterloo Wellington Children’s Groundwater Festival. Peter firmly believes that education is the first step in making positive changes within a local watershed. Peter’s knowledge of hydrology and commitment to educating youth has been instrumental in designing activities for local water festivals for youth. Through his leadership more than 8,000 volunteers have helped to educate more than 65,000 students about the importance of protecting our groundwater. Peter has dedicated countless hours to educational programming over the last 20 years. His vision, commitment and passion have been instrumental to the success of the local Waterloo Wellington Children’s Groundwater Festival and the Children’s Water Education Council.

Kelly Smith, recipient of the Ontario Heritage Trust Certificate of Achievement Award for the Friends of the Waterloo Region Museum. As a long-time member of the Friends of Waterloo Region Museum Kelly has been and remains a dedicated and active volunteer in this organization and has helped it to grow and mature as a supportive organization and community voice for the museum. She has dedicated countless hours to the museum over the last decade. Under her leadership, the Friends support and promote the value of the museum’s hundreds of volunteers; they fundraise to support museum projects, help to enhance the museum’s educational mission, serve as community stakeholders, advocating on behalf of the museum, and enhance the museum’s presence in the community. Her vision, commitment and passion have been instrumental to the success of the Friends of the Waterloo Region Museum and the museum itself.

Ariel Walker, recipient of the 2013 Ontario Senior of the Year Award for Waterloo Region for her contributions to Sunnyside Seniors’ Services and the Fabulous Finds Gift Shop. Ariel has been the Coordinator of the volunteer-run “Fabulous Finds Gift Shop” at Sunnyside Seniors’ Services. She has contributed over 3,000 volunteer hours to buying, pricing and displaying items in the gift shop. The gift shop has a reputation for its wonderful and unique gift items and Ariel is in large part the reason for this. All of the proceeds benefit the Sunnyside residents and clients.

The Ontario Heritage Trust's Heritage Community Recognition Program celebrates volunteer achievements in preserving, protecting and promoting local heritage. Since 1996, the Trust has worked with communities across the province to recognize 3,200 volunteers for their contributions to conserving built, cultural and natural heritage. The Lieutenant Governor's Ontario Heritage Award for Lifetime Achievement is program that recognizes volunteers for contributions to heritage conservation over a period of 25 years or more.

The Ontario Senior of the Year Award gives each municipality in Ontario the opportunity to honour one outstanding local Ontarian who after the age of 65 has enriched the social, cultural or civic life of his or her community.

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For more information, please contact:

Deborah Young, Coordinator of Volunteer Services, 519-575-4500 ext. 3569, DeYoung@regionofwaterloo.ca