Frank Moore of Tillsonburg was one of 13 outstanding volunteers presented the Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship for 2021-22.
“I’m so excited about what happened,” said Moore. “It was quite an honour – exhilarating – and it was a humbling experience to walk across the stage.”
The medals, representing the second-highest honour awarded by the province, recognize ‘individuals whose exceptional volunteerism has helped drive positive change and made a lasting impact in their communities and across the province.’
“This event was quite an experience,” said Moore, who was recognized for serving as president of Breast Cancer Support Services serving Oakville, Burlington and Hamilton, his work with the Kinsmen Club of Erin Mills and the Rotary Club of Tillsonburg. The recognition was also for contributions to the local cenotaph and the new Remembrance banner program with the Tillsonburg Military History Club and its partners, and a project honouring the lives of aircrew shot down over the Netherlands in 1943, which included a 2023 commemoration ceremony with the 405 Squadron Royal Canadian Air Force in Nova Scotia.
It’s only a small window of his volunteerism. Years ago, he organized teams to run in the CIBC Run for the Cure. He was zone chair for Cystic Fibrosis Canada in Erin Mills when they were organizing skate-a-thons nearly 20 years before that.
“I’ve been involved in the community since the late 70s,” he noted. “I had a successful career and I’ve been blessed in my life, and my thought has always been ‘giving back’ or doing something to support the community in some way, shape or form. And the best way to do that is to use the skillsets that you have, combined with the things that interest you the most.
“I step out and be somewhat bold. It’s a leadership role that my business world taught me how to do.”
He is passionate about many things, but embracing the memory of Canadian veterans is near the top of his list, he said, honouring “those who have passed before us, who have given their lives for the lives that we have today.”
The Honourable Edith Dumont, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, joined by Michael Ford, Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism, awarded the medals at a March 25 ceremony at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.
“I am delighted to present the Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship to a remarkable group of recipients,” said Dumont in a media release. “It is so important to celebrate the contributions of Ontarians who have improved daily life in their communities. Their stories illustrate such inspiring examples of good citizenship, an essential part of building caring communities.”
Since 1973, 573 Ontario residents have been invested with the Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship.
Author: Chris Abbott
Source: norfolkandtillsonburgnews.com