The Palladium Ballroom at the Radisson was packed with a who's who of Sudbury society Feb. 21 for the 10th annual Community Builders Awards of Excellence.
For the past decade, Northern Life has honoured the “extraordinary people who make Sudbury the inspiring place that it is,” said Michael Atkins, president of Laurentian Media, to the hundreds who gathered for the gala event.
On Feb. 21, eight new names were added to the list of 72 “remarkable people and great organizations who have made all of our lives so much richer,” added Northern Life Publisher Abbas Homayed.
“These community builders are what our community is all about,” Homayed added. “We are proud of their accomplishments and grateful for their contributions.”
Each year, Northern Life honours individuals and organizations in eight categories.
The 10th anniversary winners included:
Arts: Art Gallery of Sudbury, for being a vibrant, multifaceted centre providing unique and exciting opportunities for children and adults to engage in the arts;
Economic Development: Sudbury Area Mining Supply and Services Association (SAMSSA) for helping the mining industry diversify from its mining past and become an international supply centre, with a focus on the world stage as an opportunity base.;
The 10th anniversary Community Builders Awards of Excellence award winners are (back from left) David DiBrina, Young Leader, Thomas Merritt, Sports and Recreation, Dominic Giroux, Education, Dr. Tim Zmijowskyj, Health Care; and in front (from left) Dick DeStefano, Economic Development (on behalf of SAMSSA), John and Mary Stefura, Hall of Fame, and Karen Tait-Peacock, Arts (on behalf of the Art Gallery of Sudbury). Missing is Gerard Courtin, Environment, who was unable to attend. Photo by Marg Seregelyi.
Education: Dominic Giroux, Laurentian University president and vice-chancellor for creating a master plan that has attracted national attention, recording levels of enrolment, attracting major endowments from strategic economic partners and making Laurentian a world-class institution;
Environment: Gerard Courtin, an ecologist who was one of the pioneers in experimenting and developing techniques for stabilizing vegetation in the Sudbury region that helped the city re-green;
Health Care: Dr. Tim Zmijowskyj, for his humanity, his sense of caring for people, his genuine concern for colleagues and students and his dedication to do his part for an effective health-care system;
Sports and Recreation: Thomas Merritt, who has raised an enormous amount of funds for a program that enables teens and adults with intellectual, development, or physical challenges to be active in sport;
Young Leader: David DiBrina, a student at St. Charles College who plans to pursue a business career and this year helped the school make its single biggest contribution in history to the Sudbury Food Bank;
Hall of Fame: Mary and John Stefura, an inspiring couple, responsible for countless contributions to the city, including cultural contributions, such as the creation of the Garlic Festival, and the architectural ones, such as the design of Science North and Tom Davies Square.
Full bios of all winners and videos — created by 10-year platinum sponsor Eastlink — describing their contributions in their own words and in the words of their supporters, visit the Community Builders Awards website at http://www.cbawards.ca.
Please tune in to EastLink Channel 10 on March 4 and 7 at 8 p.m. and March 10 at 5 p.m. for the premiere documentary on the Community Builders Awards and the stories of this year's winners. The documentary will also be available on Eastlink TV Video on Demand.
