Volunteers are the backbone of every community charitably giving of their time and talents so others can enjoy the benefits of their generosity — our unsung heroes. This year’s list of Stittsville volunteer nominees is no exception.
The honorary nominees were piped in by Stittsville’s official bagpiper Jordan McConnell, followed by Sophia Pierce beautifully singing ‘O Canada’. Trisha Owens, of CTV Morning News and Stittsville resident, was the Master of Ceremonies.
In all, there are six categories for which awards were presented. The selection committee (Caitlin Bauer, Kim Bonin, Terry Christopher, Mandy Hambly, Lisa Landry, Anjali Patil, Phil Sweetnam, Keith Tauro, Murilo Torres, Chelsea Walton) had a difficult task. The nominees were as follows:
- Stittsville’s Volunteer Group of the Year — Families First Community Cancer Support; The Bell Warriors Football Club
- Business of the Year — Kanata-Stittsville Community Voice; Pointe of Grace Dance Company; The Sweet Room Bakery Boutique
- Teacher of the Year — Nicole Charest; Curtis MacNeil
- Youth of the Year — Jessica Hemstead
- Senior Citizen of the Year — Eldon Fox; Barry Gray
- The Roger Griffiths Memorial Citizen of the Year — Michelle Carroll; Barry Gray; Tanya Hein; Alexia Jimenez; Dave Lee; Theresa Qadri
The Senior Citizen of the Year was awarded to Barry Gray. Barry is a retired photo journalist and editor residing in Stittsville.
The Youth of the Year was awarded to Jessica Hemstead. Jessica is a tenth grade student at Paul-Desmarais Secondary School in Stittsville.
The Teacher of the Year was awarded to Curtis MacNeil. Curtis has been teaching at Sacred Heart Catholic High School since opening twenty years ago.
The Business of the Year was awarded to The Sweet Room (Owner Renee Saunders). As an Ottawa-Carleton Lifeskills partner, The Sweet Room has had a major impact on the community.
The Volunteer Group of the Year was awarded to Families First Community Cancer Support. Created by Fringewood residents and their friends, this group originated from a washer tournament held in Fringewood since 2010.
Below is a slide show of all the nominees receiving their awarded certificates, and other attendees.
Congrats to all of the award recipients! Stittsville is fortunate to have these extraordinary people in our community — all are champions.