Who are the top citizens of Burlington? Have your say

Nominations are now open for Burlington’s civic awards program.

The awards are presented twice a year to those who make the city a better place to live.

Those who will be honoured are individuals or groups who have demonstrated a high level of achievement in one of three areas:

• Contributed significantly to the quality of life in the community through volunteer efforts
• Identified and addressed a priority need in the community and put a solution into action
• Achieved provincial, national, or international recognition and, in doing so, have brought honour to the City of Burlington

To be considered an individual or group must be nominated and meet the following criteria:

• Be a resident of Burlington or own a Burlington business
• Not currently hold political office
• Have contributed on a volunteer basis
• Primarily serve the residents of Burlington
• Not be a city employee or elected official nominated for their work as a city employee or elected official. City projects are also not eligible for an award.

The recognition awards will be handed out twice yearly, in the spring and fall. The application period for spring civic recognition nominations is open now until Oct. 4 at burlington.ca/civicrecognition.

A celebration to recognize successful recipients will be held in person on Oct. 29 at City Hall.

“Through the public engagement we did with the community, we learned many of these amazing volunteers prefer not to be recognized with a big event. They told us the work they do is the true reward. To honour this spirit, we are excited to introduce a new approach to civic recognition where we can express our thanks in a more relaxed and informal setting,” said Samantha Yew, Burlington’s city clerk.

According to those who are operating the program, all nominations will be evaluated by an independent selection committee made up of volunteer members from the city’s Advisory Committees. There is no limit to the number of individuals or groups who can receive recognition.