RYIA

2010 Recipients

Lifetime Awardee - Zeke O'Connor

At the 11th Annual Awards Gala, on January 29, 2010, over 300 guests applauded Lifetime Achievement Awardee Zeke O'Connor, Founder-Executive Director of the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation of Canada. The Foundation aids the Sherpa people of the Solu Khumbu area of Nepal.

In addition, Zeke is Chairman of King Mahendra Trust of Nature Conservation Canada, a Governor of Canada Sports Hall of Fame, Governor of Variety Clubs of Ontario, Past President of the Sports Federation of Canada, member of the National Advisory Board of the Canadian Special Olympics and a Founder of the Nepal Special Olympics.

Student under 18 Years - Sophia Maria Gran-Ruaz

Frustrated that she was too young to volunteer, Sophia started her own charity when she was 11 years old called “Snug as a Bug, Kids Helping Kids”. The purpose was to provide care packages to children and teens staying in local shelters. The packages provided children with comfort during a difficult time.

The charity began slowly but Sophia never wavered. To date 10,000 children and teens in 9 shelters across the GTA have received a package. Sophia is now working on her sixth year and will be making 3,000 more care packages to be delivered in February, 2010.

The charity is a full time job, and requires Sophia to solicit donations from over 60 companies, organize thousands of items into age and gender appropriate categories and then plan and organize a packing day where over 50 volunteers come to pack what she had organized over the previous 12 months.

She has been told that she is an inspiration and although she does not meet the children who benefit from her packages, the many letters of gratitude from the shelters speak volumes of her works’ impact. When asked, Sophia has said that she plans to continue her charity for as long as companies continue to donate, and if they should stop, she plans to start something else.

Student under 25 Years - Olga Lesau

Olga Lesau attends York University majoring in International Business Administration. At The Etobicoke School of the Arts she sat as President of the charity club and approached numerous organizations about collaborating on a fund raising initiative to build an elementary school in the Masai Mara region of Kenya through Free the Children, a charity founded by children’s rights activist Craig Kielburger.

With Lakeshore Arts, a not for profit arts charity, the idea of “Art4Hope” was born in the fall of 2007. A ticketed and timed art show & sale allowed participants with $50 to walk away with original artwork by over 80 mystery artists from 5 local high schools. Under the guidance of Program Director, Kathleen Burke, Olga took on a leadership role which involved 6 months of planning all aspects of this successful event that raised over $3,000 in one hour.

Her volunteerism includes: Vice President of Student Council at The Etobicoke School of the Arts; Youth Coordinator of the Art4Hope Benefit Show & Sale; Youth Ambassador of the UNESCO Youth Advisory Group; 5th World Congress Youth Advisory Board, Founder of “Etudiants Francophones” at York U; President of “Cards Without Borders”; Clan Leader - 4th World Youth Congress 2008. In Olga’s own words: “There is no boundary to human capacity”. She understands the impact that the smallest act of generosity can have on another and how far reaching the impact can be.

Individual - Dominic Kahn

Dominic Kahn has been rowing for 33 years and coaching for 24. He is a 2-time National Champion and has coached on Canada’s National Rowing Team. He is currently the Head Coach for Bayside Rowing Club and Ryerson University. Some of his former athletes have won Olympic and World Championship medals.

Because rowing was only available to children attending private schools in Toronto, he decided to do something about it. At the age of 27, he founded Bayside Rowing Club in 1993. In 1994, Dominic launched a new rowing program for youth at-risk: where inner city school kids had a chance to get out of the city, practice and compete in a rowing league - all for free.

Over the last 16 years, more than 5,000 Toronto kids have come through this program. And most notably several of these inner-city youth have gone on to graduate from elite schools like Princeton, Harvard and Yale.

In 2009, Dominic re-launched the program as the “Eric the Red Rowing League for Kids” with a new style of boat and coaching techniques. In this inaugural year, over 550 kids participated from Regent Park, Flemingdon Park, Crescent Town, St. James Town and Parkdale. He plans to launch this program across Canada and the United States over the next 5 years.

Business - The Toronto Argonauts Foundation

The Toronto Argonauts are the oldest professional sports franchise in North America and are the proud winners of 15 Grey Cup championships. While many people recognize the Argonauts as Toronto’s franchise in the Canadian Football League, this business organization has also done much to give back to the community, particularly through its programs targeted at youth, which have been very successful.

The Argos Foundation was created by the Argonauts to help youth in our city. In August 2005, the Foundation launched the “Stop the Violence” campaign in response to increased gun violence in the GTA and beyond.

But the Argos did not stop with just one program. The Foundation unveiled “Huddling Up Against Bullying”, “Leveling the Playing Field” programs and a “Youth Mentorship” program, which is specifically designed for incarcerated youth. The team visits 60 schools and 35,000 students in the GTA a year and since inception, the Argos have spoken to over a ¼ million students. The youth mentorship program is highly regarded. Team members visit incarcerated youth in youth detention centres. Most programs like this usually have a rate of recidivism between 60 to 80%, but the Argos’ program has seen a higher success rate with only a 25% rate of recidivism.

Community - ProAction Cops and Kids

At ProAction Cops & Kids, we believe that establishing a positive relationship between cops and kids at risk will strengthen our community today and for the future. By funding programs that bring local cops and kids together, we help create an environment of mutual understanding and respect. ProAction Cops & Kids is the largest private funder of Toronto Police programs for youth at risk. There are chapters in Durham Region and Hamilton.

Since 1991: ProAction has funded nearly 1,000 programs with over $4,000,000. Over 300,000 youth have participated in the programs run by more than 6,000 Toronto Police Officers. Officers who donate their time nurturing these relationships and programs can be found camping on weekends with ProAction kids, playing ball on local courts with teams of at-risk youth and spearheading after school activities designed to keep kids engaged, optimistic and motivated.

To qualify for ProAction funding, officer-initiated programs must involve both youth and officers and they must promote improved relationships between police officers and at-risk youth. When these criteria are met, a program or project can be implemented, ensuring that we are making important steps to guide youth to a brighter future.

2009 recipients

YOUTH UNDER 18 – MICHAEL TURNER

Since 2005 Michael has been a key member of the YOUCAN group. YOUCAN is a national organization, which trains young people to deal with conflict in a peaceful way. This is a whole school initiative at Kipling Collegiate. Michael has taken part in several training events and is now a senior trainer in the school. In March 2007 Michael was invited by the YOUCAN Team Toronto Manager to be a lead trainer at Resolve It 2007, in Ottawa. As a result of Michael’s experience in training he was recognized as a ‘super trainer’.

Michael assists new trainers in their delivery of the material for the program. He has spent time with them to ensure they are confident with the material and has supported their development of leadership skills by giving solid advice and encouragement.

Michael is now at York University and a member of the Board of Directors for YOUCAN. Michael has voluntarily taken on the role of organizing the meetings for Team Toronto, in the absence of a full-time manager. He keeps all the students up to date with what is happening locally and nationally for YOUCAN.

YOUCAN has put faith in Michael’s ability to stand up for non-violence, and deliver this message effectively to youth from all over Canada.

YOUTH OVER 18 – JEENIRAJ THEVASAGAYAM

Jeeniraj Thevasagayam has been a volunteer at the Yonge Street Mission for the past 4 years. He has collected more than 3,000 hours in various programs; youth, children, women and family, food bank, church at the mission, and the 310 computer centre. His biggest asset is that he shares his strengths. He created a Leaders in Training program for youth which teaches them social and career skills. He taught sound and technical skills at Drama Camp and initiated and formed 2 basketball teams. He also tutored children in homework club, and taught computers, and Sunday school.

Jeeniraj is now studying political science and sociology at U of T. He has started a YSM basketball house league with 4 teams. He also has started working at the TD securities computer lab teaching their homework club and he is involved with Tamil Aid at U of T. He continues to work at the Yonge Street Mission in the breakfast club and homework club and informally mentors a large group of youth –he’s a good role model for them. He tutors and he helps them find jobs and gives them advice and direction.

INDIVIDUAL – BRUCE LEE

Bruce Lee was an educator and coach in the Toronto area for 36 years. He has continued his love for coaching into his retirement years.

In the community of Woodbridge, where he and his wife, Noreen, have lived for the past 48 years, he has coached many sports such as hockey, lacrosse, and baseball.

Bruce was the founding executive for the Vaughan Rangers Hockey Association (House League, A, AA) and the Vaughan Kings Hockey Association (AAA). He was the presenter representing Woodbridge Minor Hockey that convinced the Vaughan Council to renovate the Woodbridge Arena, rather than demolish it.

He currently coaches basketball at Etobicoke C.I. Bruce can’t recall the number of youngsters he has coached over the years but said he’ll keep coaching as long as his health holds out.

Bruce volunteers at the Vaughan Food Bank where he coordinates elementary school children in the preparation of Christmas food hampers. He also helps with secondary students who are completing their community service hours by sorting and packing food and toy donations.

Bruce believes he has been very fortunate in his life to have had the opportunity to interact with so many people, and he hopes he has made a contribution to their lives.

Michael is an inspiration to many of our students. He encourages them to get involved and to learn more. He is a motivator on the team, without whom the YOUCAN program in school would not have been as successful

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION – PATHWAYS TO EDUCATION

Pathways to Education is a community-based program designed to reduce poverty and its effects by lowering the dropout rate among high school youth from economically disadvantaged communities and increasing their participation in post-secondary programs.

The program was started in 2001 in Regent Park, Canada’s oldest and largest public housing community. The first group of fewer than 100 students was facing an expected drop out rate of 56 percent. By 2007, results (verified in a report by the Boston Consulting Group) showed that the program was successful: the drop out rate was reduced to 10 percent and the benefit to society was measured as $25 for every $1 invested.

In September 2007, the program was launched in five new communities: Lawrence Heights and Rexdale in Toronto; as well as Kitchener, Montreal, and Ottawa. Pathways currently serves over 1,700. By 2012 Pathways to Education will be offered to more than 5,500 young people in 15 program sites across the country.

Pathways to Education is grateful to the Rotary Clubs of Toronto, the Ontario Provincial Government, the United Way Toronto and hundreds of individuals, corporations and foundations who have supported the program since 2001.

BUSINESS ORGANIZATION - TIM HORTON CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

The Tim Horton Children's Foundation is a non-profit, charitable organization committed to providing a fun-filled camp environment for children from economically disadvantaged homes. Every year, local children are selected from each of the communities in which a Tim Hortons store operates, giving thousands of children the opportunity to attend one of our camps. The camp experience is designed to give children confidence in their abilities, pride in their accomplishments, and the chance to gain a positive view of this world and their future in it.

A Tim Horton Children’s Foundation Camp is a very special place. A place where kids who’d normally never get the opportunity, can experience something extraordinary and unique. Through a variety of exciting camp programs, kids can do so much more than just enjoy the outdoors. They learn to challenge themselves, emotionally and physically, and in the process go further than they ever thought possible. Out of these experiences they often develop a greater sense of confidence in their own abilities along with a newfound trust in others. It is these and other abilities and real-life skills, they take with them out into the real world. It is there that they can truly make a difference in their own and other’s lives.

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2008 Recipients
Youth Impact Award Recipients 2008

2003 Michael "Pinball" Clemons - CFL star and coach. Charity work with children, Horizons for Youth

Every year the Rotary Club of Toronto West recognizes and honours individuals, organizations and businesses who have had a positive impact on youth in the Toronto Area Community through:

Nominations for the 2011 Youth Impact Awards are invited for the following categories:

The following sponsors have generously committed to support the 10th Annual Rotary Youth Impact Awards
Doesn't your name belong here?

Rotary club members will be contacting Toronto Area businesses to solicit your help in this worthy cause.

The Rotary Youth Impact Awards is a gala dinner and the main fund raising event for the Rotary Club of Toronto West. At this dinner, the Rotary Club celebrates the achievements of individuals and organizations who have contributed to their community and made a difference to the lives of at-risk youth. Awards are presented in various categories, including youth under 18, youth between the ages of 18 and 24, community organizations and business organizations. The highlight award is the Lifetime Achievement Award that is presented to an individual who had demonstrated over the course of his or her life the sacrifice of service above self for at-risk youth.

Yes. The Rotary Club of Toronto West and one of its predecessor clubs, The Rotary Club of Etobicoke Sunrise, have previously hosted 10 successful award dinners. This event is an annual event, with the upcoming dinner marking the 11^th annual dinner.

Previous lifetime achievement award recipients have included Mr. Murray Dryden, Mr. George Chuvalo, Ms. Silken Laumann, Ms. Diane Dupuy, Mr. Michael “Pinball” Clemons, Ms. Molly Johnson, Mr. Ted Woloshyn, Ms. Vicki Keith, and Mr. James Bartleman . Last year’s Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Ms. Susan Hay.

Zeke has had a distinguished career in several areas. As a football player, he was a member the NCAA champion Notre Dame Football Club in 1946 and 1947 and the 1952 Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts.

He worked 30 years for Sears Canada in Public Affairs and National Marketing and in 1974-75 he founded the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation of Canada to assist Sir Edmund with his work for the Sherpa people of the Solu Khumbu area of Nepal.

During his more than 30 years as Founder-President, the Canadian Foundation has raised more than five million dollars for Nepal to build schools, hospitals, medical clinics, water pipelines, bridges, trekking paths during flash floods, to provide medical scholarships, to train village health workers, and to fully fund the Kunde Hospital and Sagarmatha National Park reforestation programs.

In addition to the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation of Canada, Zeke is Chairman of King Mahendra Trust of Nature Conservation Canada, a Governor of Canada Sports Hall of Fame, Governor of Variety Clubs of Ontario, Past President of the Sports Federation of Canada. He also sits on the National Advisory Board of the Canadian Special Olympics and is the Founder of the Nepal Special Olympics.

100 percent of the net proceeds raised at the award dinner are used to support community projects.

Last year, for example, proceeds from the dinner were used to support Ronald McDonald House and World Vision.

Ronald McDonald House is undergoing a major expansion in Toronto. It is a place for children with severe medical problems and their families to stay together while the child undergoes medical treatment. Rotary International for many years has provided many humanitarian services through supporting various medical programs.

Meanwhile World Vision supports many needy children in Africa. The Rotary Club of Toronto West is pleased to provide support to other organizations which are helping save or improve young lives overseas.

This year proceeds from the event will be used to support projects of the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation of Canada, which include the building of a dental clinic and literacy programs for young women in Nepal.

The Rotary Youth Impact Award dinner generates revenues to support projects like the building of a dental clinic in three ways: (i) corporate sponsorship of the event; (ii) silent auction; and (iii) individual ticket sales.

There are three levels of corporate sponsorship – gold, silver and bronze. The cost for these sponsorships is $5,000, $2,500 and $1,200 respectively.

Each sponsorship level includes a set of tickets to the event, plus advertising exposure on tickets and brochures. The logos of corporate sponsors are also prominently displayed at the event and in all media advertising used to promote the event. The Rotary Club of Toronto West partners with Toronto Community News for free media content in the weeks leading up to the actual event.

Numerous silent auction items are also collected and some of the items are packaged into baskets which are raffled throughout the evening. Traditional items donated to the silent include games for young children, hockey and basketball tickets, golf packages, hotel packages, clothing, and household items. The Rotary Club of Toronto West also partners with Westmount Art Gallery in Etobicoke which provides a selection of prints and original artwork for the silent auction.

The 12^th annual Rotary Youth Impact Awards dinner is being held Friday, January 28, 2011 at the Old Mill Inn, Etobicoke.

Doors to the event open at 5:30 p.m. and the dinner commences promptly at 7:00 p.m.

The Rotary Youth Impact Awards dinner was started by the Rotary Club of Etobicoke Sunrise in 2000 for the purpose of recognizing and honouring those individuals and organizations who have worked to help youth in our community.

In 2004, the Rotary Club of Etobicoke Sunrise merged with the Rotary Club of Toronto West and the event since that time has been operated under the banner of the Toronto West club.

The Toronto West club applies three criteria in determining who is eligible to receive a Rotary Youth Impact Award. Recipients can be individuals, organizations or businesses who have had a positive impact on youth primarily in the Toronto Area Community through:

Generally, six awards are presented at each dinner based on nominations received by the Club and our independent research. They are as follows:

The Lifetime Achievement Award recipient is essentially the keynote feature of the gala dinner. The award is presented to a prominent individual who has demonstrated a genuine unmovable passion for helping youth at risk.

Over the years, this award has been presented to community leaders, athletes, journalists and artists.

The first recipient was Etobicoke’s Murray Dryden. Although he was probably best known as the patriarch of professional hockey league goalies Dave and Ken Dryden, he was also devoted to helping poor children around the world through a charity organization he created called Sleeping Children Around World.

SCAW, as it is known, still operates today out of the former Dryden family home on Pinehurst Cres., just off of Anglesey Blvd. This organization provides bed kits, which contain other items as well, to some of the world’s poorest children. The bed kits cost $35 per child and for many years has been a recipient of funds from the Toronto West club. Last year, the Toronto West club began to collect empty wine and beer bottles with all proceeds from such returns being dedicated to SCAW.

Other lifetime achievement award recipients have been Diane Dupuy for her work with Famous People Players, former world heavyweight boxing contender, George Chuvalo, for work in the Fight Against Drugs, Olympian Silken Laumann who founded the Silken Laumann Active Kids Movement, jazz vocalist Molly Johnson for her work with the Kumbaya Foundation for the care of people living with AIDS and HIV, former Toronto Argonaut, Michael “Pinball” Clemons, through his work for Horizons for Youth.

The most recent past recipients have been former 1010 CFRB Radio host Ted Woloshyn who has dedicated countless volunteer hours to establish children’s breakfast clubs in many of the poorest areas of Toronto, world famous marathon swimmer Vicki Keith, who is not only a fund raising dynamo, but a dedicated coach to young disabled athletes and other children, through her Penguins Can Fly and Y-Not Abilities programs and former Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, James Bartleman for his Club Amick literacy program for aboriginal youth.

Last year’s recipient was TV personality, Ms. Susan Hay, for her work for Ronald McDonald House and World Vision.

Since its inception in 2000, the Rotary Youth Impact Awards event has been the primary fund raising event for the founding Rotary Club and now the Toronto West club.

100 percent of these proceeds have been returned to community organizations to fund projects in Etobicoke such as the Gatehouse, Ski Hills Blues, a skiing program operated by members of the Toronto Police Department for at risk youth, and a long list of other local and international projects.

In the past few years, the Toronto West club began to use proceeds generated from this event for larger projects that would have a lasting impact. In 2006, $25,000 raised from the event was used in partnership with funds provided by a local business and Toronto Community Housing to build a basketball court facility in the Rathburn Road and East Mall area of Etobicoke.

In 2007, the Toronto West club provided more than $27,000 to the Mississauga YMCA to kick-start a Y-Not Abilities Program for children with disabilities.

The Mississauga YMCA was chosen to receive the funds because it was the only YMCA facility in the west end of the Greater Toronto Area that could facilitate the swimming portion of this program. This seed money has already been put to good use and a number of children and their families have enrolled in the program.

In 2008, $10,000 was provided to the Club Amick literacy program to help elementary school-aged children in aboriginal areas learn to read.

In 2009, a total of $15,000 was divided between Ronald McDonald House and World Vision.

	The Rotary Club of Toronto West will host the 12th Annual Rotary Youth Impact Awards Friday, January 28, 2011, at the Old Mill Inn
Banquet Tickets This Year's Recipients About the Awards Lifetime Achievement Past Recipients Nominations Sponsors Charity Auction Important Dates Contact Location Where the money goes FAQs Link to Rotary Club of Toronto West website Useful Forms	The highlight of the evening, a Lifetime Achievement Award, will be presented this year to an accomplished humanitarian, Ms. Kim Phuc. Kim was born and raised in a village close to Saigon, Vietnam. Over 38 years ago, at the age of 9, she was the victim of an horrific napalm bombing which set much of her skin on fire. Running naked down the street, she was photographed, in the most memorable picture of the Vietnam War. It was a photo that changed the way in which the world looked at this war, and a photo that changed Kim’s life. Kim now lives in the Toronto area, with her husband and two children. She has turned the tragedy of the past into the hope of future by spreading the message of reconciliation, mutual understanding, and dialogue and negotiation to replace confrontation and violence as a means of settling conflicts. She has dedicated her life to helping other victims of war, and accordingly, we are honoured to recognize her work and the projects she supports through The Kim Phuc Foundation.
This year's award recipients will be announced at the Gala Click for nomination information

GOLD SPONSOR - $5000 Shares spotlight with The Rotary Club as the primary sponsor of the event Sponsor and co-presenter of Lifetime Achievement Award 16 Tickets (two tables) to the event Primary exposure in event related publicity, including media and event advertising First refusal rights to be Gold Sponsor of next year’s event May bring and set up approved advertising display	GOLD [your name here?]
SILVER SPONSOR - $2500 Logo placement in event related publicity and media advertising 16 Tickets (two tables) to the event Sponsor and co-presenter of individual awards May bring and set up approved advertising display	SILVER [or here?]
BRONZE SPONSOR - $1500 Logo placement in event related publicity and media advertising 8 tickets (one table) to the event	BRONZE [or here?]

Chair	Stephen Thiele
Treasurer	Mark Dawber
Corporate Sales	Willis Rudy
Dinner music	Ron Manfield
Floor Director
Hotel Liaison
Lifetime Recipient Liaison
Nominees
Program and Ticket Printing
Silent Auction
Ticket Sales
Volunteer Liaison