News Release

Call for Nominations for 6th Annual Awards of Rural Excellence

Source: The Foundation for Rural Living.

Guelph, May 17, 2004 -The Foundation for Rural Living is accepting nominations for the 2004 Awards of Rural Excellence. Groups, associations, municipalities or programs whose activities take place in rural Ontario are encouraged to submit nomination forms for the Awards which will take place in October.

The Awards of Rural Excellence were created in 1999 as a way of celebrating outstanding rural initiatives whose actions contribute to a vision of a better rural Ontario. They are an annual opportunity to illuminate the potential in rural and to stimulate others to build capacity, address challenges and profile their communities.

"We feel privileged to have an opportunity like this to shine a spotlight on the wonderful work being done in Ontario's rural and small towns," says Gary Davison, Chair of the Foundation. "Each nomination is a source of inspiration across the province."

Proud sponsors of this year's Awards are founding sponsor Pioneer Hi-Bred Limited, The Co-operators, The Province of Ontario and Union Gas.

There are seven award categories: Excellence in Community Leadership; Excellence in Formal Co-operative Models; Excellence in Economic Development; Outstanding Voluntarism and/or Partnership in the Voluntary Sector; Outstanding Rural Youth Achievement; Outstanding Philanthropic Action, and Outstanding Partnership with Business.

Efforts being recognized must take place in rural Ontario, which includes communities with a population less than 50,000. An independent selection committee, made up of practitioners in each of the award category fields, will review the nominations, which must be postmarked no later than July 31, 2004.

"Celebrating success is critical to the health of a community," says Michelle Quintyn, Executive Director of the Foundation. "The process of selecting the winners is every bit as important as the activities surrounding the awards night."

This year's Awards will take place October 18, 2004, at the Four Points Sheraton in London, Ontario, during The Ontario Rural Council's annual rural development conference.

Nomination forms are available from the Foundation for Rural Living, 1 Stone Rd., Guelph (519-826-4126), or on our website: www.frl.on.ca. The Foundation is a registered charity dedicated to building sustainable rural capacity and enhancing the quality of life for rural citizens through the growth and development of community investment in the form of philanthropy, citizenship and collaboration.

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For more information, please contact:
Anita Hayes, Foundation for Rural Living
Tel: 519-826-4126 Email: awards@frl.on.ca

Disclaimer: The Foundation for Rural Living does not endorse or maintain the information contained within the above article, with the exception of news releases from the foundation itself. In all other instances, any information contained therein should be referred to the author of the news article listed as the source.