Kim North

Kim North is a steadfast volunteer who has contributed to several non-profits over the years. In 2019, a need for greater collaboration in the community between nonprofit groups and other sectors was identified. True to the vision, Kim stewarded the Community Connect HUB into being with the help of many committed volunteers. The HUB, created on Main Street in Lillooet, now provides co-sharing space for multiple non-profits and builds connections across the community. Alongside the development of the HUB, Kim helped raise critical funds to open the community swimming pool. Armed with $200,000, raised in just over seven months, she was part of a group who enabled the community to say “yes” to this essential public resource.

Kim also volunteered with Lillooet Naturalist Society and Sekw’el’was for many years to complete ecological restoration and environmental outreach projects in the region. Out of this work, Splitrock Environmental was created. Today, Splitrock is an award winning, St’at’imc-owned business, specializing in environmental services, ecological restoration, native plant propagation and production of ethnobotanical products. Kim is committed to work around truth and reconciliation, decolonization and consistently brings these important conversations to the table.

Don Philip Peters

Don Peters has been at the forefront of advocating for affordable housing on the North Shore of Vancouver since 2004. As chair of the Community Housing Action Committee (CHAC), a program of North Shore Community Resources, Don has brought immense energy and enthusiasm into his work championing affordable, accessible, and appropriate housing for those most in need. Don’s innovative and collaborative approach pulls in research-informed data to build consensus and develop creative solutions.

The City of North Vancouver is now a leader in housing delivery, notably in the number of new rental homes available to its citizens, in part due to Don’s tenacity to ensure the North Shore remains an accessible place for people to call home. Don has built relationships with municipal staff and councillors, housing operators, apartment owners, builders and developers, enabling the CHAC to engage in planning before final decisions have been made. He remains a strong voice for housing affordability and for respectful treatment of tenants, by participating in community engagement and municipal presentations.

Gerry Nellestijn

Gerry Nellestijn is a founder and trailblazing force behind the Salmo Watershed Streamkeepers Society (SWSS), an organization that promotes research, awareness and restoration of threatened fish and wildlife and their habitat in the Salmo watershed and beyond. Described as the lynchpin of SWSS, Gerry has worked to change attitudes within the local community by using his skills to leverage funding support to ensure critical instream habitat restoration work in the Salmo watershed. This has led to several long-term fisheries monitoring projects being funded for over 20 years while protecting the watershed for generations to come.

Gerry has organized and coordinated the multi-stakeholder Watershed Technical Committee and the Watershed Planning Team to produce a comprehensive action-based Salmo/Pend d’Orielle River Watershed-based Sustainability Plan Report: Setting Watershed Priorities. In addition, he has volunteered as a director for the Columbia Kootenay Fisheries Renewal Program and the White Sturgeon Recovery Initiative, and is a Salmon Ambassador for the Ktunaxa Nation, touring elementary, high schools and colleges in the region to talk about salmon and their recovery. Gerry is dedicated to collaborative approaches engaging stewardship ethics, principles and values.

Meeka Morgan

Meeka Morgan has given thousands of hours volunteering as the founding Artistic Director of Tl’kemtsin 2 Rivers Remix (2RMX), BC’s first Indigenous-led festival of contemporary Indigenous music and culture. Under Meeka’s guidance, 2RMX has become one of the largest all-Indigenous contemporary music festivals in Canada. 2RMX has remained a free, grassroots event reflecting the diversity of all Nations, and to date more than 100 Indigenous artists have been showcased.

In 2021, a fire destroyed much of the festival site, along with homes and equipment. Meeka persevered and delivered the 2RMX Movable Feast, an Indigenized re-imagining of cultural presentation that enables small Indigenous communities to actively participate in creating their own local cultural events with the support of 2RMX. The Movable Feast collaborated in 2022 with eight different small Indigenous communities to showcase local artists alongside national award-winning Indigenous artists. Meeka’s passion for music and community link back to her own band, The Melawmen Collective, and her master’s thesis that investigated how the Secwepemc people maintained a sense of family in the 1950s and 1960s despite residential schools.

Simon Daniel James

Simon Daniel James, also known as Winadzi, is an internationally renowned artist who works across many mediums. A member of the Kwakwaka’wakw nation, Simon began carving cedar at the age of 15 and trained under the guidance of his father. Simon has worked on numerous community engagement and public art projects across Canada, the USA and Japan. His impact on local communities and students is immeasurable as he uses his creativity and compassion to inspire and nurture young learners.

In addition to carving and physical art, Simon is a gifted filmmaker and storyteller. He attended The Vancouver Film School and has worked with National Geographic’s All Roads Film Festival since 2004. He was the first recipient of the National Geographic All Roads Film Grant for Raven Tales, a ground-breaking, animated Indigenous storytelling series. As the co-creator and co-producer of Raven Tales, Simon uses his unique gifts to share and pass down stories through an innate visual and oral tradition.

Jack Gin

Jack Gin has dedicated an exceptional amount of time to uncovering and telling the story of Frederick Lee, a fallen member (1917) of the Kamloops Rocky Mountain Rangers. Jack’s award-winning documentary Finding Fred Lee, tells of Frederick’s unique experience as one of only a few Chinese Canadians in the military in World War I. Through years of research and heartfelt storytelling, Jack has been able to inform the community of Kamloops about a long-lost son, and an under known reserve army regiment.

In addition to putting the film together, Jack ensured that Frederick Lee’s origins were included at the Hill 70 Memorial in France and its feature walkway named after him. Sharing Frederick’s sacrifice has instilled pride within the Chinese community in Kamloops and Vancouver while raising awareness. Jack has made Frederick’s story, and that of the Rangers, part of local memorial efforts in schools. Thanks to Jack’s efforts, students learn about Frederick’s participation in World War I and how he made the ultimate sacrifice for his country.

James Harry Sr.

James Harry Sr. has consistently dedicated himself to building more resilient communities in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside (DTES) neighbourhood and in Indigenous communities across British Columbia. James works with conviction to provide holistic and culturally relevant supports to Indigenous people struggling with addiction, mental health and homelessness. In 2017, James became the Haisla First Nation’s first urban outreach and peer support worker. In his role, James has implemented a trauma-informed approach centered around trust and respect for cultural considerations.

In 2020, when navigating two public health crises, COVID-19 and an increasingly toxic drug supply, James mobilized a team of Indigenous and non-Indigenous community members to establish the All Nations Outreach Society (ANOS). ANOS continues to expand the scope and scale of culturally relevant supports available to people in the DTES. At the beginning of the pandemic, ANOS started its Feed the People program and quickly grew in size thanks to the support from other Nations and businesses. The volunteer-driven program now feeds over 300 people a week. James’ work sets an example and encourages Nations to come together, share their resources, and support each other in providing for their most vulnerable members.

Dr. Amy Gilchrist

Dr. Amy Gilchrist is a naturopathic physician and Clinical Director of the Family Naturopathic Clinic (FNC), a teaching facility that offers free naturopathic care to young, low-income families. With a diverse background in the areas of education, poverty reduction, and naturopathic medicine, Dr. Gilchrist has dedicated her career to improving the lives of those in need.

In 2007, Dr. Gilchrist founded FNC as a pilot project to provide accessible naturopathic healthcare. She expanded FNC to become a teaching clinic, facilitating much needed pediatric care experience to naturopathic interns supervised by licensed naturopathic doctors. Student interns at FNC gain clinical experiences important to completing their education and insight into providing care to those living in low-income, marginalized communities. Over the past 15 years, FNC has served more than 5000 patients in the community and provided clinical training to more than 300 interns because of Dr. Gilchrist’s vision and innovative leadership.

Connie Cocchia

Connie Cocchia’s advocacy within the autism community has helped change the lives of countless individuals and families. When few resources existed for those who have a sibling with autism, she created Growing Together. Anchored in personal experience, Connie built a sibling support group with tenacity and compassion aimed to connect siblings. Growing Together has hosted various sibling panels, workshops, fundraised and built a Games Room in Pacific Autism Family Network’s Hub. Growing Together also hosts an Annual Sibling Support Day, which has provided thousands of families with an inclusive movie theatre experience.

Connie combined her advocacy and profession as a filmmaker to write, direct, and produce her first feature film When Time Got Louder. The film had its World Premiere at the prestigious Frameline International LGBTQ+ Film Festival in San Francisco, followed by the Canadian Premiere at the Vancouver International Film Festival. Connie’s efforts for inclusion are shown through authentic casting and including members of the autism and LGBTQ+ community both in front and behind the camera. The film has been featured in over twenty international film festivals, won numerous awards, and received incredible reviews for its authentic and deeply moving narrative. Her film continues to enlighten audiences on the profound impact autism has on families, the importance of inclusion, and the unconditional love between siblings.

Kiranjot Kaur Toor

Kiranjot (Kiran) Kaur Toor is the co-founder and President of the KidsPlay Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides sport, education, mentorship, and counselling opportunities for youth in communities across British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario, and internationally in India and Colombia. Since inception in 2015, KidsPlay has been working to prevent children and youth from getting involved with drugs and gangs by giving them access to free programming and support services.

With a degree in Education from Simon Fraser University, Kiran uses her expertise to help keep youth engaged in sport and community projects. To date, over 100,000 youth have gone through KidsPlay’s numerous programs. Kiran has overseen all events and projects that have taken place. With roots grounded in her South Asian background and the Kalgidhar Trust, Kiran has carried across the ethics of service and faith in her work at KidsPlay to serve and support young people in her community.