Celebrating Nova Scotian Volunteers

Volunteers who give their time, promote community initiatives and offer support all year long were honoured today, Sept. 20, during a virtual ceremony for the 47th annual Provincial Volunteer Awards.

“I am delighted and honoured to participate in this important event where we recognize and thank the outstanding volunteers in Nova Scotia,” said Lt.-Gov. Arthur J. LeBlanc. “Despite the pandemic challenges our citizens have faced over the last 18 months, I was greatly impressed that people found different and innovative ways to continue to help the less fortunate. I salute not just those who have been recognized with awards at the ceremony, but all volunteers who give of their time.”

This year, 62 representative awards were given in addition to three speciality awards: the Youth Volunteer Award, the Family Volunteer Award and the Nova Scotia Strong Award.

“Volunteers play an important role in our thriving and healthy communities,” said Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage Minister Pat Dunn. “These annual awards are our way of saying thank you to the many exceptional Nova Scotians of all ages who lift the lives of others, provide inspiration and contribute to vibrancy in our communities.”

For details about the award winners, visit: https://novascotia.ca/nonprofitsector/provincialvolunteerawards

Quotes:

“It is an honour for our team and for our community to be the recipient of this prestigious award. As members of an immigrant community, we are all so grateful for the tremendous support that we have received from the Canadian society since our arrival in Canada. We wanted to reciprocate this help by contributing to the society as well.”

– Mitra Naseh, Nova Scotia Strong Award recipient, on behalf of fellow recipients Atousa Costandi and Soheila Hashemi

“If I want to help people, the best thing to do is volunteer. I enjoy all my volunteer work and I love helping others.”

– Karema Alarabi, Youth Volunteer Award recipient

Quick Facts:

• each municipality and Mi’kmaq community selects a representative volunteer or volunteers to receive the Provincial Volunteer Award
• speciality award recipients are chosen by an independent selection panel
• non-profit organizations in Nova Scotia directly contribute $1 billion in gross domestic product (GDP) to the economy

Additional Resources:

Provincial Volunteer Awards: https://novascotia.ca/nonprofitsector/provincialvolunteerawards

Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/NOVASCOTIACULTURE

Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NS_CCTH