Award Year: 2022

Dr. Tracey Thorne is a dedicated leader of the Gabriola Chapter of the Rural and Remote Division of Family Practice. Dr. Thorne pushed for rural communities, and their healthcare providers, to get the support they needed during the pandemic. She was instrumental in creating a position for a Mental Health and Substance Use Nurse and a social worker, both of whom are now embedded in the community of Gabriola Island. Embracing the range and needs of family practice medicine, Dr. Thorne also partnered with a local service agency to create a palliative care program on Gabriola Island and initiated a community-based organization, the Gabriola Health and Wellness Collaborative.

Dr. Thorne has also served the Youth Wellness Clinic in Nanaimo and was on the Advisory Board for the Adult Mental Health and Substance Use Spread Network with the Nanaimo Division of Family Practice. In 2019, she was awarded a BC College of Family Physicians’ Social Determinants of Health grant to develop the Mama Mood program, a facilitated counselling and support group for mothers on Gabriola Island.

Wayne White has contributed to the quality of life and protection of the environment in the Comox Valley for more than 40 years. Exceptional at building partnerships, Wayne gets people involved while fostering positive action. In addition to his work in environmental monitoring, Wayne served on the Comox District School Board for six years and was a founding director of the Tribune Bay Outdoor Education Society on Hornby Island. He also helped form the Tsolum River Task Force in 1995, an early multi-stakeholder effort to develop a plan to remediate the mine site.

Wayne was a founding director of the Tsolum River Restoration Society in 1998 and has served as its president since 2012 ensuring that the society’s mitigation efforts remain effective. A volunteer for the Courtenay and District Fish and Game Protective Association (CDFGPA) for over 10 years, Wayne serves as chair of the Conservation Committee and sits as CDFGPA’s representative on the Comox Lake Water Protection Group. Wayne’s recent achievements include negotiating land and water use agreements and constructing a freshwater fish hatchery at Comox Lake.

Anders Ourom began serving BC’s climbing and mountaineering community while a student at the University of British Columbia and remains actively engaged to this day. As a young volunteer, he led training trips and taught rock climbing at Squamish and elsewhere. He has continued this with the BC Mountaineering Club, which he has been active in for over 50 years. Anders’ efforts introduced many people to rock climbing and mountaineering, and he has been a mentor to many climbers. An expert rock climber, his 1980 guidebook to rock climbing at Squamish systematized and collected all the information available to that point.

A founder and long-time president of the Climbers’ Access Society of BC, Anders was one of those instrumental in persuading the provincial government to create Stawamus Chief Provincial Park in 1995 and Skaha Bluffs Provincial Park in 2010. A founding member of the Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival in 1997, Anders has been involved as a volunteer, director, and strategic adviser. Anders was an early member of Mountain Equipment Co-operative. He started as a volunteer at its tiny first store, then served nine years as a director, including three years as chair.

As a high school student and a second-generation Canadian, David is passionate about making his community more inclusive and equitable for all. In 2017, he founded The Global Spotlight Foundation, an international student initiative that transforms youth into changemakers through stories and mentorship. Since then, David has led numerous community projects, including human libraries, conferences, and town halls. He has proudly delivered three TEDx talks and represented Canada through the Human Rights Conference in Copenhagen, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the 2019 Vimy Pilgrimage Award and as a Yale Young Global Scholar.

Last year, David was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to provide policy advice to the Government of Canada through his Youth Council. As one of its leaders, David successfully advocated for the national conversion therapy ban and for increased funding for marginalized communities in the federal budget. Today, David is studying on a scholarship at Lester B. Pearson United World College of the Pacific, before heading to the University of British Columbia this fall.

For over four decades Suresh Kurl has connected with his fellow British Columbians through his articles and essays on culture, equality, justice, and faith. These pieces have appeared in the Vancouver Sun, Province, Huffington Post, Georgia Straight, Richmond News, Link Newspaper, and Darpan, Mehfil, Aaj magazines amongst others. His energy and drive have contributed to improved understanding and dialogue, in the areas of citizenship, multiculturalism, race relations, and interfaith harmony.

A community builder, Suresh presents in forums where he shares his unique and rich experiences and challenges his audiences to adopt oneness rather than otherness. Until recently he was an active member of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, and he remains a regular contributor to and participant in the annual Raise Your Hands Against Racism event. At 81, Suresh is a member of the Special Committee on Reforming the Police Act, assembled July 2020.

Chin uook Kim is a hero in the Korean Canadian community. A true success story of immigrating to Canada (1969) and starting a business, Mr. Kim is a committed, strong advocate and role model in his community. In 2014, he received an award from the President of the Republic of Korea for being one of the outstanding Korean leaders in the Greater Vancouver area. He resurrected the Korean Society of BC for Fraternity and Culture (KSBC), a non-profit organization servicing over 80,000 Koreans living in Metro Vancouver. In 2018 he formed and chaired the Emergency Measure Committee to maintain the KSBC when the organization’s leadership was in peril, and his efforts had the KSBC functioning again by 2019 as a community strength.

After successfully leading this role, Mr. Kim continued his service as Vice President of KSBC further demonstrating his dedication. He also served as the Korean Senior Society chairman in 2014 and 2015, developing educational programs for Korean Canadian seniors. Mr. Kim’s constancy and leadership has earned the respect and gratitude of community members and encouraged the next generation to step up and volunteer for the KSBC.

As an artist, co-creating art is at the core of what Carmen Rosen strives to achieve through her work at the Still Moon Arts Society. When Carmen moved to the Renfrew Collingwood neighbourhood in Vancouver, she discovered a hidden treasure, the Renfrew Ravine, a remnant woodland with a small section of Still Creek running through it. Carmen joined the neglected ravine clean-up crew and was inspired by its natural beauty to create an event to recognize its value. Still Moon Arts Society was born and the Moon Festival began.

Noting the community demographics, Carmen took the Asian Mid-Autumn Moon festival for inspiration initiating the creative integration of community, arts and environment. Her engagement strategy included youth and seniors, the cultures around her, community organizations and schools. In 2017, Carmen published What Comes to Light; Stories of Still Creek Lost and Found. Motivated by the health of the ravine, Carmen sought out environmental partners such as the Evergreen Foundation, BCIT Rivers Institute, Environmental Youth Alliance, and City of Vancouver Planning. Carmen’s leadership has inspired youth and residents to participate in the removal of invasive species, plant native trees, monitor water quality and continue clean-up efforts.

For over 40 years Kamal Sharma has been involved in the entertainment business, bringing together South Asian communities. He identified a need in the local population to help bridge the gap between South Asian entertainers, entertainment news and the fast-growing new immigrant population in the lower mainland. He provided a platform to engage with BC youth and nurtured their appreciation for the culture and talent from India. From hosting TV shows, to renting and selling Bollywood movies to presenting sold out concerts to thousands of people, Kamal has remained true to his roots and shared his love of South Asian culture, entertainers, music, and Bollywood stars.

Through his work, Kamal has helped thousands of people stay abreast of the latest entertainment out of Bollywood. With his experience behind him, Kamal founded KVP Entertainers & KVP Heritage, whose goal is to revive arts presentations from South Asia in BC. Kamal and KVP Heritage have sponsored many community events and fundraisers, supported young people as well as up and coming future stars.

The city of Coquitlam and the strength of the community is indebted to the commitment of volunteers like Robert (Bob) Tanaka. Bob has sat on many local boards, notably the Coquitlam Public Library and the Coquitlam Foundation and shared his skill set as an accountant to further the goals of the organizations he serves. In these roles Bob held various positions, including Treasurer, applying his expertise to steer the financial well-being of the boards while demonstrating the importance of engagement and what it can accomplish.

Bob has also lent his leadership skills to more regionally based organizations such as the Domestic Abuse Services Society, the Crossroads Hospice Society and Foundation and the Tozenji Japanese Culture Centre. In his many volunteer endeavours, three things remain constant to Bob’s volunteerism: his willingness to serve, the effectiveness of that service, and the good will he creates as part of that service.

Charissa Tonnesen began working in Tumbler Ridge in 2000, after graduating from the University of British Columbia (UBC) as a pharmacist. She made Tumbler Ridge her home seven years later, remaining a beacon of hope and community devotion through tough economic times. Charissa has served on numerous board committees, including the Tumbler Ridge Museum and its UNESCO Global Geopark, and the Community Arts Council. An accomplished singer and guitarist, Charissa has been a member of the community choir for many years. She supports local youth through her involvement with the annual TR Junior Idol competition, hosted by the Arts Council, and the Northern Rockies Karate-do. Charissa is a karate champion and encourages youth to achieve their best in sport as well.

In 2019 she took over the running of Flatbed Loops for the Wolverine Nordic and Mountain Society. Her commitment to teaching is evident through her voluntary work as preceptor for UBC Pharmacy students. Many such students have passed through her Tumbler Ridge pharmacy and experienced the challenges and rewards of being a rural pharmacist.