With this warm weather, it's as if we've bypassed spring right into summer and the same came be said for the month of April, which seems to have been swept away along with the recent rain. In other words, it's been a very busy time here at the Regional Association of West Quebecers with never a dull moment.
Our staff and board of directors are very excited about hosting our 1st Annual West Quebecers Awards Banquet to honour outstanding contributions made in the English-speaking community of West Quebec. The awards will be given out at an inaugural banquet Friday June 11th at Camp Fortune in Chelsea following our 2004 Community Consultation and Annual General Meeting for RAWQ members on the same day.
Our guest speaker at the awards banquet will be Arctic explorer Richard Weber of Chelsea, who also happens to be the winner of the 2004 West Quebecers J.D. Coulson Award for Outstanding Achievement. In 1995, Richard and his partner, Mikhail (Misha) Malakhov, were the first persons ever to complete the journey to the North Pole and back with no outside assistance. Since then, he has continued to lead expeditions to the geographic North Pole and to remote areas of the High Arctic so I'm sure he'll have plenty of interesting stories to tell about his adventures. The name of Richard Weber easily fits into the illustrious list of recipients for this prestigious Award.
After careful consideration of many worthy nominees, our Awards Selection committee decided that the very first Graham Greig Award for Outstanding Community Service should go to Aletha Wilson of Vinton for her lifetime of dedicated work as a volunteer in the community of Shawville.
The recipient of the first Award for Outstanding Leadership is Norma Walmsley of Wakefield for her leadership in mobilizing the community of Wakefield to rebuild the historic covered bridge after arson claimed the original. You can see a full list of the West Quebecers award winners by logging onto our website at www.westquebecers.com and then clicking on Celebrating Outstanding West Quebecers. From there you'll also find a form to reserve a seat to the awards banquet. Hope to see you there!
June 11th will truly be a banner day for our association. The day begins with our annual Community Consultation, which will feature the West Quebec Post's editor Fred Ryan as Guest Speaker. From noon to four in the afternoon, members of the Outaouais community representing various sectors, including education, health and social services, arts and culture, economic development and business, youth, politics and community organizations will meet with our staff and board to share information so we can all better understand and serve the English-speaking community of West Quebec.
Then, just before the awards banquet, we'll hold our 2004 Annual General Meeting for our members. Nominations will be held to fill the eight vacant board positions. The nomination committee is still seeking individuals interested in making a two-year commitment to join our board of directors, where it’s been said that one can get the best perspective in the region of what this community is all about.
During the AGM, our acting president John Trent will be acclaimed as the West Quebecers President. You can read his platform for the 2004-2005 year on our website's home page under the Activities and Events section.
While you're browsing the RAWQ website, you'll notice it's a lot more user-friendly and efficient now, after extensive revamping. The look of the site hasn't changed much, but it's now a lot easier to navigate and our key features and services are easier to find.
You'll also see the spring edition of our Cultural eBulletin thanks to the diligent work of our editors Noel and Ilse-Marie Gates. We regularly update the eBulletin, so if you know of anything happening in West Quebec's arts and culture scene that you think would be of interest to English-speaking residents in the Outaouais, let us know so we can include it. You can email the information directly to the Gates at ngates@sympatico.ca.
As RAWQ's Communications and Community Liaison officer, I'd love to hear from you in person, so please feel free to visit me anytime at the RAWQ offices, located in Aylmer at 53, rue Principale. You can also phone our office at (819) 682-9602, toll free at (877) 733-0177 or email me directly at clco@magma.ca.
With the month of May already half over and many events and activities on the horizon, you can be sure life at the West Quebecers' office will continue with never a dull moment.