Senior award nominees named

Thirty-five names put forward for this year’s Hamilton honours

There are 35 nominees in the running for Hamilton’s 2017 Senior of the Year Awards.

The nominees, spread across nine categories, name local seniors who have “contributed to the enrichment of the social, cultural or civic life of the Hamilton community.”

Lisa Maychak, project manager of Hamilton’s age-friendly city plan, said this year’s nominees range in age from 65 to 96, are equally split among men and women, and represent communities from across the city.

The nominees vary from those working with their churches, to non profits, to leadership and committee work.

“Volunteerism drives any community,” Maychak said. “Hamilton is a leader across Canada and seniors are a big part of that.”

The nominees were named during an event at the Sackville Hill Seniors’ Recreation Centre, on Upper Wentworth Street, Thursday night. This is the first time a nominee event was held — Maychak said it was partly to thank the nominators who put a lot of work into their nominations.

The awards banquet is June 13 at Michelangelo’s Banquet Centre. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased at Sackville Hill Seniors’ Recreation Centre or at one of Hamilton’s Municipal Service Centres from now until June 6. The nominees are: Ruby Sarmiento Amog Wilfred Arndt Ben Baliat Joy Birrell Maurice Blair Jan Bondy-Chorney David Clifford Mary Lou Collett George Cseplo Walter Decker Jan Disselkoen John Gabriel Siegfried Gawlina Marjory Hall Jackie Hammond Bob Harris Mohammad Heidary Myrtle Inwood Shirley King Shirley Kitchener Eileen Laity Del Mitton Bev Mueller David Papernick June Pearce Al Putland Elsie May Scott Ruth Simmons Ron Simpson Joan Styan Trevor Thomson Jake van Mil Lillian Wherry Corinne Williams Bryan Wylie