Award Year: 2022

Dr. Vivian Tsang advocates for a world with equitable access to healthcare. Through her charity, the HOPE Initiative Foundation, Dr. Tsang has developed a platform for youth to get involved in community service that helps reduce stigma and healthcare barriers for vulnerable citizens in BC. Her creation of HOPE has engaged and trained over 3,000 BC youth eager to be changemakers who can make a difference. Dr. Tsang leverages these experiences to inspire others by speaking on topics from educational reform to stigmatization and the opioid overdose, to over 40,000 youth across Canada.

Prior to the municipal election, Dr. Tsang sat on the City of Vancouver’s Child Family and Youth Committee. She was chosen to Chair the Faculty of Medicine’s Policy Development Committee in 2018, developing a policy paper to advocate for increased resources for youth mental health to the provincial government. During the pandemic, Dr. Tsang also co-founded the BC COVID-19 Medical Student Response Team, a group that eventually expanded throughout Western Canada to mobilize thousands of medical students to assist with contact tracing, contactless delivery of medications for seniors, and the COVID-19 vaccination rollout.

 

In the field of child and family services for Indigenous youth and families on Vancouver Island, Sqwulutsultun William (Bill) Yoachim is a transformative leader. Having dealt with trauma in his own life, Bill understands the importance of providing an environment required for children and their families to overcome barriers. At Kwu’mut Lelum Child and Family Services, Bill has been the Executive Director for 16 years, and under his leadership, the agency has helped children and families in nine First Nations as well as urban centres. This has involved the development of cutting-edge programs and policies that are informed by Big House Teachings which ensure all First Nations youth be cared for and served.

In the fall of 2021, Bill, in collaboration with the nine Kwu’mut Lelum First Nations, officially launched the Kw’umut Lelum Community Foundation. The Foundation provides a mechanism capable of attracting and distributing charitable and philanthropic resources to youth. This new, First Nations owned and controlled community foundation, provides a self-determining charitable approach to support programs, generate ideas, and invest in community creativity, while encouraging engagement, entrepreneurship, and social and economic prosperity for youth, families, elders and their communities.

Anthony (Tony) and Nancy Yurkovich are pillars of Richmond’s philanthropic community. True community champions, they consistently continue to step up and encourage others to consider how everyone might contribute to building a better community. In addition to being strong advocates for medical causes, including mental health, home care and end of life care, Tony and Nancy support local and international projects through their membership in the Rotary Club of Richmond.

One of their achievements is the establishment of the first, free-standing community hospice in Richmond, Rotary Hospice House which opened its doors in 2005. They are steadfast supporters of Pathways Clubhouse in Richmond and in 2006, made a landmark gift to VGH for a new medical library giving patients greater access to medical information. In 2012 they provided start-up funding for VGH’s award-winning pilot program to successfully transition patients to home. The Yurkovichs have supported agriculture and food sustainability programs at the University of British Columbia and made the single largest donation in Richmond Hospital’s history to construct a much-needed new Acute Care Tower.

A passionate advocate for people living with complex mental health concerns, trauma, substance use disorders, and experiencing homelessness, Baylie McKnight fills an unmet need for support in a vulnerable population. She began her community service work at age 16 as a youth speaker, focusing on substance use education in schools in 2005. She carried on as a volunteer outreach worker on the streets of Victoria at night for four years. In 2012, Baylie co-founded the Borderline Personality Disorder Society (BPD) of British Columbia, a transformative and innovative charity supporting people living with BPD and their loved ones.

Baylie has worked in various organizations in different capacities, including outreach, non-profits, and health authorities for over 15 years. She is an incomparable resource for those in her field as she has lived experience as well as education to back up her many skills. Baylie recently completed her Master of Clinical Social Work at the University of British Columbia-Okanagan so that she could continue to serve and advocate for others. In addition, she is comprehensively trained in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and is undergoing an intensive three-year program to become a Somatic Experiencing trauma practitioner. Baylie is currently developing and implementing an affordable DBT multi-skills group and starting a private practice in counselling.

One of Canada’s original naturalists, Jim Good has been developing Goodsir Nature Park located just north of Prince George for the past 30 years. A designated Canadian Botanical Conservatory, Goodsir offers 160 acres of plant exploration highlighting a national collection of species. Jim purchased the land with the intent to create a space where his passion for nature and botany could be shared with all. He collected the specimens himself, driving across Canada sourcing tree, plant, flower, and other native botanical species. This enormous effort has resulted in Goodsir serving as an educational hub in his community and one of the most remarkable and beautiful botanical parks in the world.

Devoted to conservation issues, Jim single-handedly built Goodsir as a hobby nature park and funded it in addition to raising a family on a modest salary. A naturalist museum is part of the Goodsir experience, and it includes another of Jim’s passions, a collection of over 35,000 records for the public to enjoy. Jim provides all these cultural services to his community at no cost and gives freely of his time to guide individuals through both the park and the museum.