A Sundre volunteer who had previously been left speechless after being nominated for a Minister’s Seniors Service Award said being officially recognized as a final recipient was the “icing on the cake.”
When considering others who tirelessly give their time as well as energy and are deserving of such an award, Dolores Dercach said she did “absolutely not” anticipate actually being named for the award.
She was one of six individuals and two organizations that were selected from 50 nominations to receive an award. For more than 20 years, the awards have served to recognize volunteers as well as organizations that improve the lives of Alberta’s seniors, reads a provincial press release.
A dinner and awards ceremony was held on Monday, Oct. 1 at Government House in Edmonton. Formerly the lieutenant-governor’s primary residence, the structure has long since been designated a historical building used for other functions, said Dercach.
“The setting was very nice,” she said.
“It was quite an amazing experience,” she said, describing the “intimate affair” as a classy, formal kind of event that started off with a welcome reception with wine while people mingled, followed by introductions, speeches, dinner and of course the presentation of awards.
All of the recipients were approached individually by Lt.-Gov. Lois Mitchell as well as Alberta’s Minister of Seniors and Housing Lori Sigurdson, she said.
Introducing Dercach was Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre MLA Jason Nixon, while the lieutenant- governor and minister thanked and presented her with the award, “which is a beautiful, heavy glass plaque shaped like the province of Alberta.”
Each award winner was allowed to invite as many as four guests, and there were about 100 people who attended, she said.
Offered a minute to address the crowd, Dercach said she went slightly over her allotted time while expressing gratitude for everyone’s support and how honoured she felt simply to have been nominated. She also talked not only about the personal fulfilment of her volunteer work, but how her time with organizations such as the Greenwood Neighbourhood Place Society, which she now chairs, made a positive difference in her life that fostered a sense of purpose while helping to forge new relationships.
“Receiving a prestigious award like that was not on my radar when I first started volunteering,” she said, adding her main priority after relocating to Sundre about 10 years ago with her husband John was to become a part of the community by getting involved in volunteer work to help seniors.
“When I first moved here, I didn’t know what our lives would look like,” she said last Wednesday during an interview, adding, “I didn’t know a single soul when we moved to Sundre.”
Since then, she has above and beyond her contributions to GNP gotten involved with the Sundre and District Historical Society as well as the coordinated community response for elder abuse. Over the years, keeping fired up her passion for volunteering has largely been a sense of making a meaningful contribution.
“It also makes a difference of who I am in terms of self value. It feeds me; it nurtures me.”
She praised GNP as an amazing organization that offers people of all ages an opportunity to lead a more enriched life.
The coordinated community response for elder abuse is also an important initiative that strives to ensure no senior is left behind. All too often, she said, some seniors can feel, through isolation, that they are alone. But there are people who are ready and willing to lend a hand, she said.
“There is help out there — they’re not alone.”
She said there is no shame or stigma for victims of elder abuse, which is an issue that must be faced head on.
“With education and awareness, we can all help victims of abuse, which comes in many forms,” for example, financial, physical and emotional, she said.
Dercach encourages anyone who either requires assistance or who perhaps is worried about a loved one not to hesitate to contact GNP’s office at 403-638-1011.
“If we don’t have the answers, we will try to find the answers.”
