Nominations are open for an annual award that has marked the start of Silver City Days for 63 years.
Previous: Citizen on the Year Marisa Jimenez
Previous: Citizen of the Year Margie Crawford
Since 1957 the Fraternal Order of the Knights of Columbus has recognized ongoing community service of a person or persons as Trail-Warfield Citizen of the Year, and presented the honour in May as a launch to the City of Trail celebrations.
The accolade is important to the community because it recognizes those who give hours of their time without receiving anything in return, says Brian Volpatti.
“It’s all about the volunteers,” he told the Trail Times. “There are so many volunteers in Trail and Warfield and some of them are visible, but many stay behind-the-scenes and do just as much work. They spend a lot of time helping others.”
Nomination packages can be picked up at several locations around Trail and Warfield. Those include the municipal offices, the Trail Riverfront Centre, Kootenay Savings on Cedar Avenue, and several Trail churches.
The award isn’t specific to an age group. Moreover, nominations may be submitted by any resident of Trail or Warfield, or by an organization that serves at least one of the two municipalities.
“We try to cover all of our bases,” Volpatti said. “They don’t have to be retirees or older people. It can be a young person as well, there are many young people who do a lot of good work in the area.”
The deadline for submissions is Thursday, April 9, at noon.
This year’s recipient will be recognized in a public ceremony on Tuesday, May 5, at 7 p.m. in the gym of St. Michael’s Catholic School.
For more information on the nomination process, contact Brian Volpatti at 250.364.1445.
Hundreds of people packed the gym last year to congratulate award recipient Marisa Jimenez. After decades of selfless dedication to seniors and other local causes, Marisa was chosen as the Trail-Warfield Citizen of the Year.
Choosing a recipient in April coincides with National Volunteer Week in Canada, which runs April 15 to April 21. The event celebrates the millions of volunteers from coast-to-coast whose contributions help keep Canadian communities vibrant, inclusive, and resilient.
Silver City Days 2020 will run over five days, from May 6 to May 10.
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