From My Bottom Step

From the City of London website:

Each year, many active members of the London community are nominated in nine specific categories, as a means of recognizing the diversity of philanthropic work taking place in The Forest City. The nomination process is handled through the City of London’s Advisory Committees with established criteria in place. Once a winner in each category is determined, the recipients are honoured at the first City Council meeting of the New Year. Following is the roster of this year’s honourees.

Darlene Pratt (Arts): Darlene Pratt is passionate about pottery, and for the past eight years, she has demonstrated her passion in several ways – particularly as a driving force for the new London Clay Art Centre in Old East Village. Through Darlene’s leadership, the London Potters Guild is successfully transforming an 1890s Victorian building into a state-of-the-art facility. Every project needs a champion, and thanks to Darlene’s vision, mentorship, planning, tenacity and collaboration, this new Centre will enrich the lives of Londoners, reinvigorate Old East Village, and provide a creative space for people of all ages and walks of life to learn about clay and deepen their understanding of the arts. This new facility is also the only member-owned community ceramic arts centre in Canada.

Joyce Mitchell (Diversity and Race Relations): As part of the Middlesex Housing Corporation staff team for 23 years, Joyce Mitchell has worked tirelessly to create an inclusive environment for Londoners of all ages and backgrounds. Joyce is also an active volunteer with many community organizations, including the London Interfaith Refugee Sponsorship Alliance, the Refugee Committee at St. James Westminster Church and the Stephen Lewis Foundation. Whether distributing clothing and food to needy families, applying her HR skills to assist people encountering challenge with race relations, employment equity and women’s issues, or coordinating news conferences and presentations, Joyce is a stalwart supporter of London’s diversity.

Maryanne Macdonald (Environment): Recognizing our fragile environment as one of the world’s key issues, Maryanne MacDonald is successfully changing people’s behaviour – from the ground up. Maryanne believes we must all strive for a Waste Free life, if our world is to continue to sustain us with clean air, water and land. As a Board member for TREA (Thames Region Ecological Association) and an active participant on the City‘s Strengthening Neighbourhoods Task Force, Maryanne is creating a more livable and sustainable community. Through her proactive efforts to green London’s largest festivals, convert people to reusable shopping bags, and eliminate one-time use disposables, Maryanne is a shining example of one who acts for the good of our next generation, and motivates others to do the same.

Jennifer Grainger (Heritage): As a longstanding Executive member of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario, London Branch, and the London and Middlesex Historical Society, Jennifer Grainger is an enthusiastic champion for heritage. Among her many contributions, Jennifer oversees a contingent of tour guides for the annual Geranium Heritage House Tour, coordinates Branch and Society newsletters, takes minutes at meetings, and is currently indexing and editing a chronology of significant London events, which will be published shortly. Jennifer has also supported very important local history archives, by collecting valuable information on many area communities, which no longer exist, or editing lengthy volumes on the history of Delaware and Westminster Townships, or producing her latest tome entitled Vanished Villages of Elgin.

Charlene Lazenby (Housing): Enroute to serving today as General Manager of the Unity Project’s emergency shelter and transitional housing facility, Charlene Lazenby has worn several hats. Charlene was just in her early 20’s when the Unity Project spurred her to action, yet her wisdom has always exceeded her age. Over the past five years, Charlene has served as activist, advocate, program developer, strategic planner and creative leader of this effective charitable service, which provides safe and secure housing for London’s most vulnerable citizens. In fact, Charlene has worked so tirelessly with government, labour, business, students and other sectors to bring the Unity Project from its tenuous start to today’s strength – it is now touted as the most successful program of its kind in the province.

Sister Margo Ritchie (Humanitarianism): Sister Margo Ritchie believes in community. Through her dedication and service as Congregational Leader of the Sisters of St. Joseph, Sister Margo cares about her neighbours, her city, her country and the global community. Like other inspirational leaders, Sister Margo approaches her humanitarian work from a position of inclusive love, and endeavours to lift up humanity to its highest potential, by demonstrating compassion for all. She is devoted to social justice, and is an advocate for change in economic systems that exclude or exploit humanity. Sister Margo is committed to improving the human condition, and is a true beacon of peace, always humble and gracious, as she provides encouragement and hope, sometimes even in the face of hopelessness.

Kathy Lewis (Persons with Disabilities): With hopes for a barrier-free quality of life for all London citizens, Kathy Lewis has vigorously advocated for those with disabilities for more than a decade. As a founding member of the City’s Accessibility Advisory Committee in 2000, Kathy has actively blazed a trail for removing all London barriers, by fortifying this Committee to be a major player liaising with City Council and organizations and agencies across the community. No job was ever too big for Kathy, as she launched projects, participated in outreach efforts, organized the Michael Lewis Symposium at King’s University College, and most recently, served as a Committee delegate to the Access Ontario Conference. Kathy has also sought affordable housing for all, aided persons with mental illnesses, and continues to speak out for those who cannot do so themselves.

Alison Farough (Safety and Crime Prevention): Alison Farough believes in proactive measures to protect our youth. Motivated by her personal observation of far too many toboggan-related accidents causing head injuries in our children, Alison established the London-based ‘Protect Your Noggin on Your Toboggan’. Through this helmet-safety organization, Alison spreads news about helmet safety for all youth sports in the London area. Alison’s passion also quickly spread to the national front, as Canadians from coast to coast began to identify with the importance of helmet-safety. Alison’s ‘Protect Your Noggin’ messaging is now regularly found on radio and television, in schools, on community bulletin boards and in health and safety articles. Indeed, Alison’s passion has made London a safer place to live, learn and play.

Ray Takahashi (Sports): Over the past 25 years, Ray Takahashi has been the face of both Western Varsity Wrestling and the London-Western Wrestling Club. As a former Olympian, Ray’s legacy of teamwork and sportsmanship lives in the hearts and minds of hundreds of athletes. Ray’s sports knowledge and passion for wrestling are far-reaching, and he has been recognized provincially, nationally and internationally. Most recently, Ray led his London-Western Wrestling Club to one of its most successful seasons, as two of his Men’s Division teams won national medals, his Junior Women’s team earned the provincial title and almost 20 players earned individual national titles and medals, and went on to represent Canada in thrilling competition on the global wrestling front.