Local volunteers honoured by Rotary Club

SACKVILLE, NB A trio of local volunteers who have dedicated their lives to making Sackville a better place to live were honoured Saturday night with the Rotary Clubs highest award.

Al Smith, along with the husband-and-wife team of David and Diane Fullerton, were awarded Paul Harris Fellowships during a formal dinner celebration hosted by the Sackville Rotary Club that paid tribute to the spirit of community service.

New Brunswick Premier Shawn Graham, who served as guest speaker for the evening gala, gave kudos to the latest recipients of the Paul Harris award.

To Diane and David Fullerton who have contributed to the fields of education, health care, sport and to the arts thank you for the tremendous difference you have made in making the lives here in the Tantramar region much better, said Graham.

And to Al Smith, youve done great work as a biologist and an historian, and in preserving and promoting the heritage of this community. Today, Sackville would be a much different place if you did not choose to call it home.

As New Brunswicks premier, Graham said he is blessed every day with an extraordinary opportunity for public service.

Every single day, I have the chance to help New Brunswickers worry a little less and hope a little more, he said. But the opportunity to change lives is not just the domain of premiers or prime ministers or governments. I believe that each person possesses the ability to make a difference, certainly as evident here tonight for those who have been honoured.

Graham also thanked community volunteer groups, such as the Rotary, that unite people in public service and play an important role in the province.

Each of us here has the ability to make a real and meaningful difference in New Brunswickand the key lies in the Rotary motto, Service Above Self.

Graham said the importance of volunteerism again hit home when he stopped by the Moncton hospital earlier on Saturday to visit his younger sister, who had just given birth to a baby boy.

Among the flurry of activity in the neonatal unit, Graham said his eyes fell on the big basket of knitted hats, mittens, scarves and sweaters, made by individuals who had taken their time to give help and support to the most fragile of our society.

And thats when it struck me people who give to public service dont do it for themselves. They do it for their community and they do it for the next generation of New Brunswickers.

Al, David and Diane couldnt agree more.

All three recipients acknowledged they dont expect recognition for the volunteer work they do; they do it as a way of giving back to their community.

Community involvement has been important to us. We love Sackville and this is our way of showing our appreciation for a town that offers us so many privileges, said David.

David, a lifelong Sackville resident, has been active in his community his entire life. He was a high school social studies teacher in Amherst for 33 years and has been actively involved in minor baseball associations and the Titans hockey team.

He has served on the board of directors for Live Bait Theatre, Canadian Parents for French, Tantramar Heritage Trust, and the Sackville Memorial Hospital Foundation. He has also been active with his church, where he has served on numerous committees. In the past few years, Dave has been most visible as Sackvilles new town crier. Diane said she hopes to encourage the next generation to volunteer their time when they can.

Diane has been a downtown business owner, teacher of the hearing impaired and executive director of the Sackville Chamber of Commerce. She has been a member and coordinator for Red Cross Meals to Seniors, and served as a board member on the Tantramar Hospice Palliative Care Organization, Renaissance Sackville, Yorkshire 2000 organizational committee, Mount A alumni board, Sackville swim club, local hospital foundation, Live Bait Theatre, the civic centre, and the Canadian Cancer Society, among others. She is also active with her church where she has been youth group leader, CGIT leader, and a Sunday school teacher.

Al said he was humbled and honoured for the recognition he received on Saturday night.

But as we can all attest to, any of us who volunteer our time dont expect to receive recognition. Just the fact that I played a part in bringing two major museums to this community is extremely rewarding for me.

Al is a lifelong resident of Sackville and a graduate of Mount Allison University. He was employed with the Canadian Wildlife Service for 31 years and, for most of his adult life, has shown a keen interest in his community. He has taken active and leadership roles in a wide variety of organizations such as Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, Community arts centre, Chignecto Naturalists Club, Sackville Curling Club, Renaissance Sackville, Tantramar Tourism Association, the local historic sites committee, the organizational chair of Yorkshire 2000 celebrations, and more. Smith is most noted for his roles in developing the Sackville Waterfowl Park in the 1990s and for overseeing several Tantramar Heritage Trust projects, including the restoration of the Campbell Carriage Factory and the development of the Boultenhouse Heritage Centre.

Over the years, more than 40 Sackville residents have been honoured with Paul Harris fellowships by the local Rotary.