*Updated* Celebrity chefs Anna and Michael Olson announced the winner of the 2018 Remarkable Residents contest on June 13, 2018. The stories of all three finalists represent persistence, community spirit and also remind us to never give up. This contest gave viewers the opportunity to show their support for Canadian seniors. In short, they have all made differences in their communities and in the lives of others.
ALL THREE finalists will be awarded one-month free rent due to the amazing engagement we received on Facebook.
Thank you to everyone for liking, sharing and commenting on the remarkable life stories of Norma, Cecil, and Ann.
Congratulations to our official winner, Cecil!
The Seasons Celebrates Remarkable Residents program highlights and celebrates the outstanding achievements, contributions and talents of our residents. 2018 marked the 6th year of the contest, and we received over 100 submissions. This year, two of the finalists were from Seasons Wetaskiwin and Seasons Drayton Valley in Alberta. One finalist was from Seasons Welland, representing Ontario.
“The Remarkable Residents program has a lasting, positive impact on our residents. They reflect on their past accomplishments and share important life lessons,” says Mike Lavallée, CEO, Seasons Retirement Communities. “The program also positively affects our staff members because they learn something personal and amazing about the residents they serve each day.”
Cecil spearheaded the initiative to open three palliative care rooms at the Wetaskiwin hospital in 2007 after losing his wife to cancer.
“I traveled to surrounding areas and discovered that almost every hospital had either very poor palliative care units or none at all,” said Cecil. “There was only one thing to do, go and do something and that’s what I did.”
Norma worked for 20 years to open the Beehive Support Services Association. The Beehive Support Services Association is directed by the individuals in service and strives to make a difference for persons living with disabilities. It respects, honors and celebrates the abilities of all people.
“The local schools in Drayton Valley rejected my oldest son, Syd because of his special needs. They told us to send him to the Red Deer School for Mentally Retarded, now called the Michener Centre,” said Norma. “We felt Red Deer was too far away, so with the help of other families in the community, we took matters into our own hands.”
Ann broke barriers in 1954 as one of only four women to obtain her Assessors license in Ontario. In 1963, Ann gained the approval of her mortgage application at a time when the Central Mortgage and Housing Corporation didn’t grant approvals to single women. Soon after, Ann built a house, which she lived in for 39 years.
Throughout her life, Ann extended her leadership skills to organizations within the Welland community. She volunteered with the Canadian Cancer Society, her Church Council, Civic Employees Credit Union, now Penn Financial, to name a few.
“In all my years of volunteerism, I felt honoured to be able to help so many people. Helping others was my reward and I would do it all over again,” said Ann Gono.