If you know a volunteer in Saint-Laurent that deserves to be honoured, now is the time to act. Nominations for the Ambassadeurs de l’action bénévole with the Centre d’action bénévole et communautaire Saint-Laurent (ABC) are open.
In its second year, the initiative aims to give credit to unsung heroes in the community. These are people who can affect your everyday life—from the library, to sports teams, to soup kitchens.
Through organisations with ABC alone, there are 1,074 registered volunteers in Saint-Laurent. “It’s a big number, but unfortunately there is not a lot of visibility,” said Fatou Thiam, a development agent with ABC. “We want to put the volunteers in the spotlight.”
Beyond thanking the honourees, the initiative hopes to inspire others to lend their time by highlighting the importance of giving back.
“They are volunteers that are in all sorts of positions. Without them, it’s sure that organisations could not do their missions or allow other people to have a better quality of life.”
The five “ambassadors” will be given trophies and gift cards at a ceremony at the Musée des maîtres et artisans du Québec, in December, for International Volunteer Day.
People 12 years and older can be nominated by somebody familiar with their work in the St-Laurent community. Last year, 15 ambassadors were selected out of 76 nominees.
To throw someone’s hat in the ring, visit centreabc.org by Nov. 4.