Not all news is bad news.
In fact, here at the Burnaby NOW, we pride ourselves in taking the time to salute the good things and people in our city. Every year, our pages are filled with stories of people who make a difference to the city in ways big and small.
At the end of the year, we’re pausing to take a look back at some of the people we encountered in 2015 – and we salute them with our “If Everyone Were Like Them, The World Would Be a Better Place” award.
Here are our winners for 2015:
Margaret Anteros
Besides being just all around awesome, Byrne Creek grad Margaret Anteros’s story is a great answer to Canadians asking themselves, “What’s going to happen to this great land of ours if we keep letting in all these refugees?”
Anteros arrived in Canada as a five-year-old refugee from war-torn South Sudan 12 years ago.
This year she was among 21 students across the country recognized with the Terry Fox Humanitarian Award for demonstrating “the highest ideals and qualities of citizenship and humanitarian service.”
A well-rounded student, who played basketball, soccer and field hockey for her school while maintaining a 90 per cent average and taking advanced placement (AP) art, Anteros was also heavily involved in volunteer work at her school and in the community.
She was president of the African Dream Club at Byrne Creek, raising money for clean-water projects in South Sudan. She co-founded the school’s Social Justice League and the Girls Leadership Group, which helps girls transition from elementary to high school with positive role models.
She also volunteers at Burnaby Neighbourhood House and with More Sports Canada.
She is now studying at the University of Ottawa, where she was offered a $12,000 entrance scholarship.
Elsie Dean
Long before she was named Burnaby’s Citizen of the Year in 2015, Elsie Dean was a big contributor to the community – and to the world at large.
Dean is a lifelong activist who’s lived in Burnaby since 1970. She’s a founding member of the Voices of Burnaby Seniors task force, BROKE (Burnaby Residents Opposing Kinder Morgan Expansion) and Women Elders in Action (We*Act).
Throughout her life, she has campaigned for awareness and action on a range of issues, including peace, the environment, racism, the rights of women and the rights of seniors.
Her passion for those causes – and for the planet at large – make her an example for everyone in the city.
To Margaret, to Elsie, and to everyone else who’s out there quietly making a difference in the world, we offer our thanks – and all the best for 2016.
