Volunteer of the Year Wendy Doucet (Photo Credit: Grande Prairie Volunteer Services Bureau)

By Shane Clausing

Community

Annual community volunteer awards handed out

Dec 10, 2020 | 5:00 AM

The City of Grande Prairie and the Grande Prairie Volunteer Services Bureau have handed out their annual volunteer awards for 2020.

The City unveiled the winner of the George Repka and Bill Bowes Awards, while the Volunteer Services Bureau announced their Volunteer of the Year, Outstanding Citizens in the Community, and the Leaders of Tomorrow Awards.

The Leaders of Tomorrow and Outstanding Citizens in the Community Awards ceremony was initially planned for March but was postponed because of the first wave of COVID-19.

Because of the COVID-19 restrictions, this year’s ceremony took place on Zoom.

While the awards couldn’t be handed out in person this year, Carol-Ann Pasemko, the Executive Director for the Volunteer Services Bureau, says she is happy people in the community were able to be recognized for their tireless work.

“Some of these people are absolutely amazing and I’m just in awe with the things that they do. I’m so appreciative because it does make a huge difference in the community and the lifestyle of people.”

Pasemko adds that especially this year, volunteers around the city had to get creative in order to help.

“Volunteering has changed this year. The numbers are down in our organizations and agencies for volunteers. Part of that is simply the physical distancing thing. We’ve seen an uptick in virtual volunteering. People are helping their organizations with their Facebook pages and their websites.”

As for who won the awards, Wendy Doucet took home the 2020 Volunteer of the Year Award.

The Volunteer Services Bureau says Doucet’s contributions across several organizations have made a significant impact in the community, but none more so than her efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 to local seniors and the elderly.

During the Easter and Thanksgiving holidays, she delivered 300 meals to independent seniors’ homes in the area.

The Corporate Volunteer of the Year Award was given to the Grassroots Realty Group.

It won based on a company-wide policy that fosters volunteering and encourages staff to be actively engaged in promoting volunteerism, philanthropy, and giving back.

Yuri Smith and Morgan maclean accept the 2020 Corporate volunteer of the year award (Photo: GPVSB)

This year’s 2020 Outstanding Citizens in the Community awards went to the following:

• Lori Brough
• Angie Crerar
• Taj Johnson
• Sharon McLean
• Tom Pura
• Karen Rosvold
• Tyla Savard
• Jessica Schoepp

The 2020 Leaders of Tomorrow Award went to:

• Rosie Plante
• Akisa Mukaga
• Quinn Best
• Zac Jinkling
• Natasha Manahan
• Mark Tagal
• Shaen Gignac
• Nikolas Slade

The City gave its George Repka Outstanding Achievement Award to Fletcher Bootle and Vikki Ross.

Both have volunteered in the community for decades.

The Stitch Club of Grande Prairie was named the recipient of the Bill Bowes Volunteer Organization of the Year award.

The group donated 4,547 different clothing items to those in need throughout 2020.