Mayor Watson inducts Order of Ottawa recipients

Mayor Jim Watson inducted 15 of Ottawa’s most outstanding residents into the Order of Ottawa during a ceremony this evening at Ottawa City Hall.

Those inducted by Mayor Watson into the Order of Ottawa are: Dr. Angel Arnaout, Dr. Tim Aubry, Mariette Carrier-Fraser, Barbara Crook, Nicole Fortier, Dr. Qais Ghanem, David Gourlay, Greg Kane, Q.C., Gilles LeVasseur, Glenn McInnes, Peter Morel, Tom Schonberg, Gary Sealey, Jesse Stewart, PhD, and Mary Wiggin.

“I am honoured to award the 2014 Order of Ottawa to these 15 remarkable people in recognition of their outstanding contributions to our city,” said Mayor Watson. “These individuals have helped make Ottawa better through their professional work and have demonstrated how one person’s actions can make a difference in the lives of others in our community.”

The Brian Kilrea Award for Excellence in Coaching was awarded this evening to Mr. Greg Patacairk. Mr. Patacairk was recognized for his incredible devotion to children with special needs as the founder, organizer and head coach of the Dunrobin Sports for Children with Special Needs Program. In addition to coaching on the hockey rink and the soccer field, “Coach Greg” developed a unique program for special needs children that greatly assists them in leading as normal a childhood as possible and exemplifies the qualities of leadership and commitment that have been the hallmarks of Brian Kilrea’s career.

A list of Order of Ottawa inductees will be prominently displayed on a wall on the first floor of City Hall. This civic award recognizes exceptional citizen contributions in the many areas of city life, including arts and culture, business, community service, education, public service, labour, communications and media, science, medicine, sports and entertainment, or other fields of endeavour that benefit the citizens of Ottawa.

More than 100 nominations from the public were reviewed. Recipients of the Order of Ottawa were chosen by a Selection Committee comprised of the Mayor, City Clerk and Solicitor, Chief of Police, Chief of Protocol, City Archivist and the Chief Executive Officer, Library Services.

For more information regarding the Order of Ottawa and the full biographies of the recipients, visit ottawa.ca .