OCNA - Ontario Community Newspapers Association

Ontario Junior Citizen of the Year Awards

BURLINGTON – The final recipients of the 2007 Ontario Junior Citizen of the Year Awards represent a wonderful cross section of Ontario’s youth who are committed to bettering themselves and their communities through their selfless acts of service. Their stories are extremely inspiring and demonstrate leadership and compassion for others.

Rick Shaver, President of the Ontario Community Newspapers Association (OCNA), is proud to be a part of the Junior Citizens Awards. “These young people are our leaders of tomorrow. They exemplify the traits we all aspire to and have the ability to inspire and motivate those around them. As community newspapers, we are thrilled to be able to recognize their achievements at this level.”

The Ontario Junior Citizen of the Year Awards are run through the 324 member newspapers of OCNA with the support of our sponsor TD Canada Trust. Nominations of eligible youth are received each fall through member community newspapers committed to recognizing outstanding youth who are making a difference in their communities. A panel of volunteer judges must unanimously decide on the final recipients.

This year there were 120 nominees from across Ontario, who were recognized with certificates of recognition by their local community newspaper. The 12 final recipients will be honoured at a ceremony in Toronto this Spring.

Below is a synopsis for each finalist. Please note that all recipients are equal and are presented in alphabetical order:

Recipients

Margaret Atkinson, 8 and Lilly Lynch, 8, London: Little people and big ideas – that’s Margaret and Lilly. They learned about the poor in Africa from a friend and soon started selling their drawings for a dime to raise money. They challenged their classmates to donate money to buy a goat for a Sudanese family for Christmas. It quickly became a project for the entire school and they raised enough money for 210 goats - $6,300. The project has continued this year and has grown to include mosquito nets and is now a school tradition.

Nazim Bhimani, 14, Milton: This community-minded individual is dedicated to bridging the gap between the hearing and deaf world. Being deaf doesn’t stop him from achieving what he sets out to accomplish. Nazim writes and recites his own rap poetry concerning poverty, peace, deafness and family. When he learned the E.C. Drury School for the Deaf Grade 8 class trip to Quebec City lacked funding, he earned $3,200 to add to the amount earned by the school, which allowed the entire class to participate in the trip. He is also captain of the Junior Volunteer Corp at his Mosque and helps the elderly in his community.

Daniel Francavilla, 17, Brampton: Daniel has been involved in countless volunteer initiatives at school, his church and local community for many years. He also started his own organization called ACCESS Charity and has raised more than $20,000 which has been sent to Honduras, Colombia, and Dominican Republic to purchase education supplies and to fund schools.

Ashleigh Gisel, 10, Welland: Her belief that no person or child should go to bed hungry led Ashleigh to hold two huge garage sales to raise money for food for Open Arms Mission. Ashley also sent letters to the principals and visited all the schools in Welland to encourage the students to bring non-perishable goods for the mission. She challenged the kids that if everyone did something to help someone less fortunate, then a lot would get done. Her food drive raised a truck full of food.

Sophia Gran-Ruaz, 15, Mississauga: Too young to volunteer, Sophia created her own charity Snug-as-a-Bug, Kids Helping Kids in 2004 and has kept it going strong since. To date, more than 4,000 women and children entering shelters in Mississauga and Brampton have received thoughtful and hand-picked gift packages to help ease them with the transition. This motivated and socially-conscious girl has been able to coordinate the charity and enlist countless volunteers to help with fundraising, packaging and delivery.

Julie Harmgardt, 17, Oakville: Aside from her multitude of school and community projects, one of Julie’s biggest accomplishments is author and publisher of her own book – Killbear, Thanks for the Memories, a benefit book for Killbear Provincial Park. Money raised is donated to the park to further park initiatives, such as the building of a shelter. To gather material for her book Julie interviewed Killbear campers in person, convincing them of the importance of her project and getting them to share their Killbear experiences. She’s already working on a second book for the park’s 50th anniversary.

Lee Martin, 17, Barrie: Mental Illness is not a subject that is widely discussed. It takes a strong person to stand up and speak out about this topic, especially to your teenage peers. Lee knew sharing her experiences could help others, and she was right. With a small Dare to Dream Foundation grant, she formed Stop the Silence and has been speaking at high schools about how mental illness has affected her life and ways to overcome it. This teenager is also involved in advocacy and working with young people with different disabilities.

Alexa Maxwell, 17, Sioux Lookout: This young lady is a respected voice for the youth of her community. She volunteers three nights a week to operate the Sioux Lookout Youth Centre. She is part of the Anti Racism Committee and organizes fundraising events to support their cause as well as to raise awareness. Her hard work and determination motivates others to get involved. She is a natural leader with an exuberance for life.

Kieran McFarlane, 6, Cobourg: This youngster has developed a keen sense of community at an early age. The last few years he has had friends donate supplies for the Animal Shelter and toys for kids in the hospital, and has invited recipients to talk about the importance of the donations. When he entered school, Kieran became aware of what activities the school engages in to make the community a better place and he continues to participate in these events such as the Terry Fox Run and the Giving Tree at Christmas.. Kieran believes that little kids can do “good things” too.

Alexandre Petroski, 9, Lavigne: Alexandre does not believe children should die from cancer. After losing his cousin to brain cancer in May, he began a quest that has touched the community of West Nipissing. Through presentations at schools, going door to door, making phone calls, sending e-mails and gaining the support of local media, this youngster wants to help find a cure. He raised more than $6,300 in a two week period alone by shaving his head.

Anthony Protomanni, 13, Woodbridge: Anthony is a positive role model for young people of all abilities. As an Ambassador for Friends of We Care, he speaks to various groups to raise awareness as well as funds to send physically disabled kids to summer camp. He plays many sports, helps younger athletes, and is an awarded athlete in hockey and wheelchair racing through Cruiser Sports and the Ontario Paralympic Games.

Coletyn Thompson, 12, Tillsonburg: Coletyn learned how to be a clown this year so he could help make kids laugh at the Children’s Hospital of Western Ontario, despite receiving chemo and radiation to fight his own cancer. He has raised money for the hospital by selling popsicles and popcorn at school, and raised more than $2,000 over the Christmas holidays by offering horse and carriage rides in downtown Tillsonburg. His actions are an inspiration to those around him.

Our Sponsors

Our goal to recognize outstanding young people in communities across Ontario would not be possible without the generous support of our sponsors. Our gratitude to them all.

Primary Sponsor

TD CanadaTrust Logo

www.tdcanadatrust.com

Patron Sponsors

James Publishing Company	McLaren Press Graphics Ltd
Performance Printing.	Sun Media
Temiskaming Printing Co Ltd.	WEBCO Publishers (Bowes Publishers Limited)
York Region Printing