Editor:
Hello people of the Lakes District.
After a three year break due to Covid, the Bill Konkin Citizen of the Year Award committee is pleased to announce that they are once again accepting nominations for a worthy individual or couple (but not a group) to be named as Citizen(s) of the Year.
The Covid pandemic has certainly been a challenge to us all. But in spite of these challenges and the shutting down of some of our regular community events for a couple of years, volunteers have continued to do whatever they could for the benefit of our community.
Volunteer organizers of outdoor activities kept things going so people would have something to do in the shut down period. Other organizers took on the major task of restarting after being shut down for an extended period. Some volunteers may have even started something new to help those in our community get through this difficult time.
Each time the Bill Konkin Citizen of the Year Award Committee, comprised of former recipients of the award, faces the daunting task of selecting one individual or couple from the nominations received. Nominations must be for strictly 鈥榲olunteer鈥� work.
The annual selection meeting usually has 15 to 20 members present. All nominations are opened, reviewed by the committee as a whole and followed by a secret ballot to select the recipient. Reviewing the nominations is often a humbling experience. The commitment and quality of effort freely given by volunteers in the Lakes District is amazing.
So pay attention to those in our community who freely volunteer exceptional amounts of their own time and energy for the benefit of us all. We know that most contribute without thought of reward or recognition, but it may be nice to acknowledge their efforts. Submit a nomination and let the committee know what they are doing.
To those submitting the nominations. Don鈥檛 be discouraged if your candidate didn鈥檛 get selected. It is not that we felt they weren鈥檛 worthy of the award, it is just that we could only select one. Recipients have often been nominated by more than one person and for more than one year. Continue to submit your nominations if you feel an individual or couple should be recognized for their efforts in our community. Nominators and Nominees will be kept confidential within the Committee.
Living in a small community gives us all the opportunity for meaningful participation. Look around. How many activities and facilities that make our community a better place to live wouldn鈥檛 exist if it wasn鈥檛 for volunteers? As always, the greatest reward for the volunteers is the knowledge and feeling that you have done your part.
The nomination deadline for Citizen of the Year is March 15, 2023.
On behalf of the Bill Konkin Citizen of the Year Award Committee,
Doug Campbell, Chair
