The Lions Have Left the Building - Announcing the 2010 CHA Lion Award Recipients

The Calgary Heritage Authority (CHA) presented eight Lion Awards in six categories for heritage preservation on Wednesday night at the Water Centre, with four additional projects receiving honourable mention, as well as a special recognition award.

More than 170 Calgarians turned out to celebrate the Lion Awards, a biennial event that recognizes and celebrates heritage initiatives on any scale in Calgary.

“We are extremely excited about the community interest and participation in the Lion Awards.  Grass-roots projects really demonstrate the passion and sincerity that people have for heritage initiatives,” said Gerry Meek, Calgary Heritage Authority Chair.  “While the quality of submissions we received on large-scale projects has continued to be tremendous, the community-based ones are growing dramatically and demonstrate the value placed on heritage for its role in creating great communities.”

2010 CHA Lion Award Recipients

Building Restoration

• de Waal Block   
• Calgary Public Building
• Heritage Park Historical Village ENMAX Streetcar System Restoration and Expansion (Honourable Mention)

New Building Design

• Connaught School (Honourable Mention)

Landscape

• Central Memorial Park

Community Revitalization

• The Montgomery History Committee:  A Hunt for History, Montgomery Memories
• Stanley Jones School ‘Route to Roots’ Historical Garden Project (Honourable Mention)

Advocacy and Awareness

• SWERVE Magazine
• Calgary Public Library Community Heritage and Family History Blog
• The Little Synagogue on the Prairie Project
• Nellie McClung School‘s ‘Exploring Our Story’: Inglewood Community Emersion (Honourable Mention) 

Heritage Tradespeople/Craftspersons

• Janet Jones 

Special Recognition

• Sheila Moore Johnston

This year’s Lion Awards also provided the opportunity for the announcement of the Bob Etherington Heritage Trades Scholarship.  Bob Etherington was a journeyman carpenter and joiner and later a building inspector with The City of Calgary. Bob's dedication to the construction industry in Alberta throughout his career, along with volunteer work with the Alberta and Canadian Building Officials Association and his deep appreciation of history, exemplify the ideals promoted by this scholarship.

This scholarship is designed to develop the heritage trades in Alberta by encouraging tradespersons to hone their technical skills and further their understanding of the challenges and complexities of heritage conservation work.

For more information on The Lion Awards, visit:  www.calgary.ca/lionawards