Parasport Ontario Promotes the Joys Material, Is Welcome Provided the Source Is and Rewards of Active Participation in Sports Acknowledged
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142626 WN Fame-final_WN Fox 2003 14-10-27 8:45 AM Page 1 FALL 2014 CANADIAN DISABILITY HALL OF FAME Welcome to The Hall of Fame Mark Wafer • Honourable Vim Kochhar • Elisabeth Walker-Young Sudarshan Gautam • Chris Williamson 142626 WN Fame-final_WN Fox 2003 14-10-27 8:45 AM Page 2 142626 WN Fame-final_WN Fox 2003 14-10-27 8:45 AM Page 3 IN THIS ISSUE CANADIAN DISABILITY HALL OF FAME WhyNot. Magazine / FALL 2014 MESSAGES 5 Published by the Canadian Foundation Greetings from Governor General David Johnston, for Physically Disabled Persons, The Honourable David Crombie 6 Garamond Court, Suite 265, and The Honourable Vim Kochhar Toronto, Ontario, M3C 1Z5 ELCOME TO THE ALL OF AME Telephone (416) 760-7351 W H F 7 Celebrating the 21st Annual Canadian Fax (416) 760-9405 Disability Hall of Fame inductions E-Mail: [email protected] Web: www.cfpdp.com THE TRADITION CONTINUES Meet the Hall of Fame’s 2014 inductees 11 Publisher: Dorothy Price Editor: Bill McOuat 16 A SALUTE TO OUR FOUNDER Publication Coordinator: Rob Ham The Hall of Fame honours its tireless founder and custodian with the Canadian Disability Design & Production: Craig Allen Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award Sales: Envision Inc. Event Co-ordination: City Events FAREWELL TO A FINE FRIEND 17 Printing: Thompson Printing, Paris, Ontario The CFPDP bids a sad farewell to longstanding Board member and steadfast friend Barrington Coke The reproduction of articles from WhyNot FUN FOR ALL Magazine, with the exception of copyright 18 ParaSport Ontario promotes the joys material, is welcome provided the source is and rewards of active participation in sports acknowledged. Additional copies of WhyNot. Magazine are available from the Publisher at a LEARNING INDEPENDENCE cost of $3.00 each plus shipping and handling. The Canadian Helen Keller Centre provides 22 members of the deaf-blind community with the skills Cover: Our 2014 Hall of Fame Winners they need to play an active role in their communities CFPDP 26 Mark your calendar for the CFPDP’s upcoming events in 2015 Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons, a charitable organization founded in 1985, assists people with physical disabilities to live fuller lives. Its mission is to create awareness in the public, business communities and government of the abilities of persons with disabilities and their needs in the areas of housing, employment, education, accessibility, sports and recreation and research. In the past 30 years, the Foundation has raised substantial funds, which it has distributed to a wide variety of organizations and events. These include the Canadian Disability Hall of Fame, the Eternal Flame of Hope, the Rotary Cheshire Home, the annual Great Valentine Gala (in cooperation with the Rotary Club of Toronto-Don Valley), the King Clancy Awards, the Corporate Awards, the WhyNot Marathon, the first Canadian Marathon for the Paralympics and the Rolling Rampage. Fall 2014 WhyNot. 3 142626 WN Fame-final_WN Fox 2003 14-10-27 8:45 AM Page 4 142626 WN Fame-final_WN Fox 2003 14-10-27 8:45 AM Page 5 MESSAGES Message from Hon. David Johnston Message from Hon. David Crombie Message from Hon. Vim Kochhar It is a pleasure to congratulate all As chair of the Canadian Disability Greetings and welcome to our those being inducted into the Hall of Fame it gives me great annual induction celebrations for Canadian Disability Hall of Fame. pleasure to announce our 2014 the Canadian Disability Hall of This year’s entries have proven that Hall of Fame inductees: visually Fame. I’m sure everyone will agree ingenuity, dedication and hard impaired Paralympic skier Chris that our 2014 inductees carry on work are universal. The strength of Williamson, Paralympic swimmer the Hall of Fame’s outstanding lega- this country’s compassion is driven and sports administrator Elisabeth cy of leadership, service and inspi- by men and women whose efforts Walker-Young, inclusive workplace rational achievement. I hope you enrich the lives of those around advocate Mark Wafer, and extraor- take this opportunity to learn about Hon. David Johnston them. The inductees have ensured dinary achiever Sudarshan Gautam. their remarkable accomplishments; The Governor General that Canadians with physical dis- Today we pay tribute to their they’re an amazing group of abilities have greater opportunities memorable contributions and individuals. to achieve their ambitions and add their names to the Hall of Here at the Canadian have helped to lessen the stigma of Fame’s distinguished record of Foundation for Physically Disabled living with a disability. They are all achievement. Persons we’ve always thought of great additions to the Hall of Fame Like all members of the Hall the disability community as a and are deserving of this honour. of Fame, this year’s inductees majority interest. Everyone who I wish everyone a wonderful are remarkably accomplished shares this cause is a member of celebration. individuals, but in recognizing the disability community. And that their achievements, we also hope community extends far beyond the to promote a broader message. limits many Canadians seem to Everyday in Canada, people with ascribe. All of us are vulnerable to Hon. David Crombie disabilities are striving to succeed. the ravages of age or physical Chairperson They work, go to school, raise impairment and all of us have a The Canadian Disability families and play an active role in stake in the disability community’s Hall of Fame their communities – and they do it continuing struggle for access and with the same passion, talent and inclusion. Today, in celebrating ability as their able-bodied peers. our Hall of Fame inductees, you This is the underlying message of are showing your support and the Hall of Fame and it’s a lesson partnership in this great cause we hope all Canadians will take and we thank you. It’s good to to heart. know we’re all in this together. I want to thank the members of I want to thank our loyal the Hall of Fame Selection Board patrons, sponsors and everyone whose deliberations play such an who supports the CFPDP’s long important part in this great under- running campaign to create a world taking. I also want to acknowledge of meaningful opportunity for Hon. Vim Kochhar the tremendous dedication and sup- Canadians who live with disability. Chairperson, Canadian Foundation for port of Vim Kochhar and his team All of us share in the disability Physically Disabled Persons at the Canadian Foundation for community’s ambitions for a better Physically Disabled Persons. As world. Together, I know that we always, it’s been a pleasure working can make it happen. with all of you. Thank you. Fall 2014 WhyNot. 5 142626 WN Fame-final_WN Fox 2003 14-10-27 8:45 AM Page 6 Proud to support the 2014 Canadian Disability Hall of Fame. We are working together with the Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons to make a difference in our communities. ® The TD logo and other trade-marks are the property of The Toronto-Dominion Bank. M05234 (0314) 142626 WN Fame-final_WN Fox 2003 14-10-27 8:45 AM Page 7 CANADIAN DISABILITY HALL OF FAME Welcome to the Hall of Fame AFTER SOME FOUR DECADES OF selves, according to the Honourable Vim The Canadian expanding protections in the area of employ- Kochhar, Chairman of the Canadian Foundation Disability Hall of ment equity and human rights, it may come as a for Physically Disabled Persons and Founder of surprise to Canadians that the marginal the Canadian Disability Hall of Fame. “I think Fame’s 2014 prospects for many people with disabilities in everyone in the disability movement would inductees carry on this country remain unduly grim. Unfortunately, agree we’ve come a long way in the last thirty or there is no arguing with the statistical evidence: forty years,” says Kochhar. “If you think about a great tradition of if you are a person with a disability in Canada the phenomenal growth of the Paralympics, the inspired leadership today, you are far more likely than the average increasing opportunities in sports and recre- citizen to be: (a) unemployed; (b) poor; and (c) ation, transportation, housing and education, and personal highly reliant on social assistance. Why this is these are all areas where we’ve seen marked achievement still the case after so many years of progressive improvement. The one really big barrier for peo- and forward thinking social action is a question ple with disabilities seems to be the workplace Photography by a lot more Canadians need to start asking them- and that’s something we can change, but we have Steve Blackburn The 2013 Hall of Fame presentations: Chair the Hon. David Crombie with Ramesh Ferris - Achiever, Stephanie Dixon - Athlete, Founding Chair the Hon. Vim Kochhar, and Annie and Jerry Johnston – Builders. In front, the Hon. David C. Onley, former Lt. Governor of Ontario and Michelle Amerie, receiving the posthumous Builder Award on behalf of husband Raymond D. Cohen. Fall 2014 WhyNot. 7 142626 WN Fame-final_WN Fox 2003 14-10-27 8:45 AM Page 8 Left: Manitoba M.P. Steven Fletcher. They have also The Hon. David Crombie receives founded and run some of the nation’s most the Lifetime Achievement Award respected healthcare and service organizations: from the Hon. David C. Onley and the Hon. Vim Kochhar. John Gibbons Counsell, Lieutenant Colonel Edwin A. Baker and Clifford Chadderton. They Middle: have been persuasive and articulate advocates The Hon. David C. Onley presents for a better world: Whipper Billy Watson, Beryl Raymond D. Cohen’s posthumous Potter, Mona Winberg, Raymond Cohen, Canadian Disability Hall of Fame Stephanie McClellan, Patrick Jarvis, Ramesh Award to Michelle Amerie, Ferris… And this is just a short list of the mul- with the Hon.