Just because the community has ground to a screeching halt and the Whistler Excellence Awards are postponed doesn't mean we shouldn't be celebrating the best and brightest the resort has to offer. In fact, it's even more reason to do so.
Originally scheduled for April 27 at the Fairmont Chateau, the Whistler Excellence Awards are put on by the Chamber of Commerce and recognize the best in business, community and the arts.
Nominees for this year were unveiled earlier this month, and in a rarity for the black-tie event, will see a teenager, 17-year-old Whistler Secondary Student (WSS) Jade Quinn-McDonald, go up against Whistler Half Marathon founder and youth sports coach Dave Clark and former Whistler Youth Soccer Club president PJ O'Heany for Citizen of the Year, the resort's longest-running award.
"It's kind of a thrill of a lifetime, honestly. It was definitely unexpected," said Quinn-McDonald of the nomination, which was put forward by Mayor Jack Crompton.
A Duke of Edinburgh Award winner, Quinn-McDonald is a tireless volunteer, lending her time to the Big Brother/Big Sister program, the WSS Leaders Club and Enviro Club, where she serves as president, as well as student council, as co-president. Quinn-McDonald was also instrumental in helping organize last year's local climate march, which was attended by hundreds of residents.
"Honestly, at the beginning it was just to pass the time and then it became so much more," she said of her volunteer work. "It's the most fulfilling thing I can spend my time on. Sure, completing an assignment feels pretty good, but it's not exactly like seeing a child open up to you after spending six weeks with you every Wednesday, and then telling you about their life."
Even with all her time giving back, Quinn-McDonald will have some stiff competition at the Excellence Awards. Clark, who has helped raise more than two-thirds of a million dollars to fight Crohn's and colitis and cancer through the Whistler Half Marathon, was also nominated last year. Clark also coaches youth baseball and biathlon.
"It's so humbling, really. It's such an honour and ... it's certainly not what you're expecting when you get up in the morning," he said of the nomination. "You just kind of go out and do what you do, as everybody does, and it just happens that a lot of the stuff I do benefits the wider community and people outside the community as well."
The president of the Whistler Youth Soccer Club for nine years, O'Heany has helped grow the sport by leaps and bounds and was a major advocate for the addition of the turf soccer field to Cheakamus Crossing. O'Heany is also the founder of YES Tours, a ski and snowboard instructor training program.
"It's a lovely honour to be nominated. I certainly don't look for accolades; I like to fly under the radar screen," O'Heany said. "That's more my style, so I hope that in this environment we can still have a dinner. It might be like a Dutch auction."
In the Business Person of the Year category, James Kirkwood of Kirkwood Consulting; Naoko Homma, owner of Sushi Village; and Nicolette Richer, founder and co-owner-operator of Green Moustache, were nominated.
Murphy Construction Corp.; vegan bakery BReD; and Snowboard Addiction, makers of snowboard instructional videos and training products, are up for the Innovative Business of Year Award.
Cassandra Spence, Pearl's safe home and homeless prevention coordinator for the Howe Sound Women's Centre; Whistler Blackcomb's Court Larabee, who is also the director of the First Nations Snowboard Team; and Nikki Best, founder of Snowberry Consulting, will vie for the Rising Star of the Year Award, given to a local businessperson under 39 who has made an impact beyond their years.
In the Whistler Experience Service Small Business Award, Escape Route's Alpine Demo Centre, Forged Axe Throwing and Revolution Powersports are nominated, while Mongolie Grill, The Adventure Group and the Whistler Public Library will compete for the large business category.
BReD, ecologyst & café and the Fairmont Cheateau Whistler were nominated in the Sustainability in Action Business category, while the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre, the Fairmont and the Whistler Film Festival are up for the Champion of the Arts & Culture Awards, given for the first time this year to organizations instead of individuals.
Former Whistler Blackcomb VP and director at the Whistler Learning Centre Doug Forseth; Gibbons Whistler's director of festival and events Katrina Frew; and avalanche forecaster and Peak to Peak Adventures safety consultant Wayne Flann were nominated for the Above & Beyond Award, recognizing a local who has made an outstanding contribution to Whistler that has benefited the community in unique and meaningful ways.
The Chamber has not announced plans for this year's postponed awards. Check back with whistlerchamber.com for updates.
