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May 15, 2004
RED HILL ACTIVISTS HONOURED
Three Red Hill activists have been chosen to receive Environmentalist of the Year awards.
 Kevin Hamilton, the young man who occupied a tree in the valley for two and a half days is co-recipient of the prestigious Dr. Victor Cecilioni award.
The other co-recipient is Betty Blashill, webmaster for Friends of Red Hill who also was treasurer and membership director for many years.
An award of merit is being given posthumously to Norman Jacobs, the aboriginal leader who first articulated the rights of the Haundenosaunee under the Nanfan Treaty of 1701.
The awards will be handed out at a dinner on June 2nd at the Hillcrest Restaurant. Tickets are $25 and can be obtained from Chapman Books in Dundas at (905) 627-5007, or Jocelyn Neysmith at (jocelyn@neysmith.ca ) or John Struger at (905) 547-5116. Tickets must be ordered by May 29. See below for the CATCH article that provides a more detailed explanation of the awards and the recipients.
Hamilton's Environmentalists of the Year
by CATCH - May 9
The young man who spent two and a half days sitting in a Red Hill Valley tree has been named the city's Environmentalist of the Year. Kevin Hamilton, currently standing trial for his efforts to stop the valley expressway, is one of two winners of the annual award named in honour of Dr. Victor Cecilioni. Hamilton is also active in cycling initiatives and organic agriculture.
The other winner is Betty Blashill who is being honoured for years of behind-the-scenes work with a string of environmental organizations. Blashill has been treasurer, secretary, and president of the Hamilton Naturalists' Club, as well as treasurer of both Friends of Red Hill Valley and Environment Hamilton. She currently operates a weekly internet events listing and maintains the websites of six local environmental organizations - all of it as a volunteer
This is the twenty-fifth anniversary of the awards program and the first in which two winners have shared top honours. It is co-sponsored by the Conserver Society of Hamilton and District, the United Nations Association in Canada-Hamilton Branch, the Hamilton Naturalists' Club, the Hamilton Chapter of TD/Friends of the Environment Foundation and the Royal Botanical Gardens , with support from the Hamilton Conservation Authority, the Bay Area Restoration Council and Friends of Red Hill Valley.
Victor Cecilioni pioneered the fight for clean air in Hamilton , carefully documenting the much higher incidences of lung cancer downwind of the steelmills. He spent 45 years fighting for the health of his north end patients and was recognized with the first Environmentalist of the Year award in 1979. His story and those of the other winners can be viewed at http://www.hwcn.org/link/wloec/.
This year's honour list includes two lifetime achievement awards won by former Dundas councillor Joanna Chapman and Burlington store owner Robert Elstone. Chapman's accomplishments include the Urquahart Butterfly Garden in Dundas , while Elstone was president of the Naturalists' Club and founder of its newsletter which recently celebrated its 50 th anniversary.
There are also five awards of merit to individuals and organizations including the Steering Committee for the the Restoration of Courtcliffe Park in Flamborough, and a post-humous award to Norman Jacobs, the aboriginal leader who championed the protection of Red Hill Valley . Other winners are Bruce MacKenzie for his efforts to preserve the Grimsby lakeshore wetlands, Pat Vica for his environmental work at St. Martin of Tours School in Stoney Creek , and a group of Greensville residents led by Peter Turkstra who have fought the dumping of pollutants into Spencer Creek by the Rothsay/Maple Leaf rendering facility.
The awards will be presented at a dinner on Wednesday, June 2, 2004 at the Hillcrest Restaurant in Hamilton . Tickets are available at $25 per person and tables for eight can be reserved. Tickets can also be purchased at Chapman Books in Dundas at (905) 627-5007, from Jocelyn Neysmith at (jocelyn@neysmith.ca) and John Struger at (905) 547-5116. Tickets must be ordered by May 29.
The dinner will also feature Student Awards for Environmental Conservation that are judged and presented by the Hamilton Conservation Authority and the Conservation Foundation of the Hamilton Region. This year's winners are Shari Engelbrecht of Sherwood Secondary School and the Environmental Green Keepers from Westdale Secondary School.
CATCH (Citizens at City Hall) provides regular email news updates. Contact CATCH@cogeco.ca to subscribe.
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