Nelson city councillor Bob Adams is among the latest local recipients of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for community service.
Adams was presented with his medal on behalf of the Metis Nation of BC.
“I found out I was getting one when I went to the annual general meeting of the Metis Nation of BC,” he said. “It was presented in honour of my service to the city and to them.”
The Metis Nation asked Adams for a resumé, which he said included his work for the local Metis group, his time on city council, being president of the Public Works Association BC and four years as a justice of the peace in BC.
“I was overwhelmed,” he said. “It was a wonderful thing to get. There were about 250 people at the annual general meeting and I think they gave away 10 medals to Metis people.”
Adams joins fellow city councillor Donna Macdonald as a recipient of the medal, commemorating 60 years of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign.
Various organizations and politicians, including Nelson-Creston MLA Michelle Mungall, have been asked to find worthy candidates to receive the medals.
Mungall will present them to Joan Reichardt of Nelson, Shannon Nickisch of Sirdar, Bruce Walker of Kaslo, and Dorothy Hearn of Salmo at a ceremony on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Hume Hotel.
They were selected as part of a two-month process initiated by Mungall that included an open call for nominations and an online vote.
For 24 years, Reichardt was supervisor of local home support services. She also sat on the boards of BC Transit, Mount St. Francis and the Nelson and District Housing Society. She’s still involved with the Nelson and District Seniors Coordinating Society and has long been an advocate for those less inclined to speak for themselves.
“All four medal recipients have done so much for this region,” Mungall said in a release. “It is wonderful to have the opportunity to put on an event to honour them, as well as include all those who were nominated and the community.”
Meanwhile, Alex Atamanenko will present medals Friday to recipients nominated by the Regional District of Central Kootenay, including Macdonald, former MLA Corky Evans, Kaslo’s Aya Higashi, and Ymir’s Hans Cunningham.
— With files from Greg Nesteroff