Local Heroes 2015

They inspire the best in us, and for their work we can all be thankful.

November 25, 2015 | | Local Heroes

There’s a quote from actor Robert Downey Jr. that goes, “Hero is not a noun, it’s a verb.” Our collection of local heroes this year exemplifies that concept. They are doers, not talkers. Though all will claim their pursuits are humble, they have actively shifted the shape of our community for the better, whether through the halls of power, the bringing together of neighbours, the nurturing of youthful promise, or the dew on flower petals as they shimmer in the morning sunlight outside a hospital window. They inspire the best in us, and for their work we can all be thankful.

2015 Local Heroes: Ingrid Sproxton, Jim Lorriman, Mary Rose, Kate O’Hara, Lynn Sinclair-Smith, Mel Stevens and Colleen Darrell. Photo by Pete Paterson.

2015 Local Heroes: Ingrid Sproxton, Jim Lorriman, Mary Rose, Kate O’Hara, Lynn Sinclair-Smith, Mel Stevens and Colleen Darrell. Photo by Pete Paterson.

About the Author More by Jeff Rollings

Jeff Rollings is a freelance writer living in Caledon.

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Ingrid is a lifelong learner who went back to school part time to earn a business degree at age 50.

Jim Lorriman... call him a craftsman. Photo by Pete Paterson.

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The single most important thing I wish to accomplish – is to encourage artists and craftspeople to preserve their craft by making videos spelling out the intricacies of their talent.

Mary Rose, Dufferin’s Irish Rose. Photo by Pete Paterson.

Mary Rose

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“I hesitate to say I did anything. It has to be all of council working together.”

Kate O’Hara is guided by her it-takes-a-village philosophy. Photo by Pete Paterson.

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I consider myself a facilitator. Maybe it’s the teacher in me.

Lynn Sinclair-Smith tends the Friendship Gardens. Photo by Pete Paterson.

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Lynn is the organizing and fundraising brains behind the Friendship Gardens, the vast network of trees, shrubs and flowers that grace the hospital grounds.

Mel Stevens mentoring young people. Photo by Pete Paterson.

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But Mel deflects all recognition for these successes. “The credit goes to God,” he says.

Colleen Darrell a trailblazing volunteer. Photo by Pete Paterson.

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