Mayor Diane Therrien, Examiner managing editor Kennedy Gordon, with recipient Lifetime Achievement Award – Bill Morris and Coun. Andrew Beamer during the annual Civic Award Presentations held at Peterborough Sport and Wellness Centre on Tuesday June 11, 2019 in Peterborough, Ont. – Clifford Skarstedt, Examiner
Recipient Lifetime Achievement Award – Bill Morris, Kawartha Land Trust Trustee
Bill began volunteering with Kawartha Land Trust (KLT) in 2013 by assisting us in increasing our community of support, not only within Peterborough and the Kawarthas but also inspiring donors and volunteers who live outside of our region to support KLT and our local conservation efforts.
His ability and thoughtfulness to connect like-minded individuals who care about conserving ecologically significant lands have been critical in increasing the scope and reach of our work.
In our experience, Bill supports organizations through the empowerment and capacity building of the people who work and volunteer within those organizations. He is an expert facilitator of connections, allowing for the sharing of expertise, resources, and networks.
In 2017, KLT reorganized its governance structure to incorporate a Trustee model. Bill was elected as one of our founding Trustees: the keeper of our mission, the ambassador for our cause, the believer of a community that is better for the sake of preserving natural spaces for future generations. He continues to serve as a Trustee today.
Perhaps we could call Bill an expert gardener, or cultivator of civic engagement and community building. He knows what seed to plant, where to plant it, and the conditions that will increase the likelihood of success. He himself has said that he “believes in cross pollination” between organizations and people; sharing knowledge.
In an effort to summarize the volunteer contributions of Bill Morris in relation to Kawartha Land Trust, through hundreds of hours he has donated to KLT, he thinks of the generations yet to come and he believes in building the capacity of those in the present to do good work that will have a positive impact in the future. We have benefitted tremendously from the volunteer contributions of Bill, and that in turn translates to a benefit that will be shared and enjoyed by thousands of others for years to come.
Congratulations Bill, we are honoured to have you on our team!
Read more about the 2019 Civic Awards in the Peterborough Examiner article.
Posted June 12, 2019.
