It was a pleasure to read your stories of the good folks of Lynn Valley who were nominated for this year’s Good Neighbour Award. You can read some of the top stories in the “Notable Neighbours” category of our Front Porch blog, here – they are happy reading for this time of year!
We are not going to announce the winner of this year’s Good Neighbour, drawn from among these entries. Not yet, anyway – that special presentation will take place down at Lynn Valley Village at about 7 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 22, just before community carolling with Lynn Valley United Church singers kicks in. (There’s super entertainment both Saturday and Sunday – check out the schedule here, but be sure to come down for the grand finale on Sunday night!)
In the meantime, though, we’d like to make brief mention of a few other great neighbourhood contributors, who have been recently recognized in other contexts than our annual Good Neighbour Award.
“Mortgage Dave” and Bob McCormack, just two of Lynn Valley’s very good neighbours.
We’d first like to say a big thank you to Dave Bruynesteyn, who is the hard-working mastermind behind the Christmas in Lynn Valley event, now in its third year. There are innumerable tasks to be done to make a decorated Christmas tree forest come alive in our village square, as well as the light-up and wrap-up events, and Dave is the organizing force behind it all. We know he has help from other fine folks in the Lynn Valley Community Association, but from searching out tree sponsors to carting off the heavy concrete tree stands once Christmas is over, Dave is in the thick of it all. Thanks so much, Dave, for lighting up Lynn Valley!
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We’re also happy to pass on word that longtime community volunteer and Lynn Valley native Bob McCormack was awarded the Jeff Ehlert Award by the North Shore Disability Resource Centre (the award is named for the first executive director of the NSRDC).
Each year the Board requests submission from the members and employees as well as the community. The Board then selects the volunteer who best demonstrates the values of service, support and community. This year the award was presented to Bob, who works tirelessly to support NSDRC’s cause of “working for a community for all.”
Bob’s dedication to the community isn’t news to LynnValleyLife; we featured him in a ‘Notable Neighbour’ profile in our first year – have a look and learn more about this fine fellow!
Bob has volunteered for a huge number of local non-profits, including North Shore Neighbourhood House, North Shore Recreation Commission, North Shore Arts & Cultural Commission, Silver Harbour Senior Centre, Mollie Nye House, the Lynn Valley Seniors Association, and the Lynn Valley Community Association.
Highlights for Bob include being the co-chair of Valleyfest (the district-wide celebrations that took place in LV Village during the 2010 Winter Olympics) and being an Olympic torchbearer at Lynn Canyon Park.
Congratulations Bob, and many thanks for the immense benefits you have brought to all of us in your community.
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Finally, in response to a community request, we would like to take a moment during our Good Neighbour campaign to honour Mike Cregan, a Lynn Valley Elementary School teacher who passed away suddenly two months into the school year.
“Every time I saw Mike he was always upbeat and friendly, and seemed to have lots of energy for all the kids. He always had something positive to say and was always encouraging them on,” said local resident Bill Newman.
We were so sorry to learn of Mr. Cregan’s death, and know his loss was felt tremendously at the school.
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We are fortunate to live and to work in a community filled with good neighbours such as these – and many, many more we have yet to hear about! Please come out and share some Christmas spirit with us on Sunday evening in Lynn Valley Village, and help cheer on the Good Neighbour Award recipient for 2013!
