My name is Cara Muise. I grew up in Sydney, NS but moved to Halifax for school. I’m pursuing a undergraduate degree in linguistic analysis. It’s an inter-university program, so you can find me bouncing back and forth between Dal, SMU and MSVU. When I’m not busy pouring coffee, I’m either running with my dog or curled up on my sofa with a book. I became interested in the Haliwards while chatting with the project’s director, Alex Maine, via Twitter. After reading about previous award winners and how they contributed to their communities, I was 100% sold. I try to volunteer as much as I possibly can (with groups like the Canadian Cancer Society, tutoring children/my peers, teaching religious education classes, helping palliative care patients and their families) so I understand how much time and effort the nominees are putting into their communities. More importantly, I understand the need to thank them, to tell them that their work hasn’t gone unnoticed, and remind them that they’re contributing to a better and brighter Halifax. As we at the Haliwards like to say, it’s time to say thank you! Here’s looking forward to an incredible 2011!

Hi everyone, I’m Maeghan Murphy. I’ve got a passion for two things: my studies and my city. Working with the Haliwards, I get the opportunity to pair both of these and I couldn’t be happier. Two years ago, I moved to Halifax to study Public Relations at Mount Saint Vincent University. I’ve been in awe of the perfect balance Halifax has – a big, beautiful city with a small town feel. Growing up in the booming metropolis of Sydney, Cape Breton, I definitely appreciate the small town feel. I became involved with the Haliwards after receiving the newsletter and reading that Alex was looking for board members. I crossed my fingers and hoped no one had already claimed the PR role. Luck was on my side – bring on the press releases! What really drew me into the project was the lack of rules that go along with nominations. As long as it’s extraordinary – it’s Haliwards approved. Behind every strong community is its people – here in Halifax, our people are of elite quality.

Let’s get celebrating!

My name is Alanna Langille and I was not only born, but also raised in Halifax. In my spare time, when I have “me time”, you can find me with my camera in hand. I love photography and it has become one of my favourite hobbies. I have recently graduated from Halifax West High School, class of 2010, and will be attending Dalhousie for Nursing in the fall. While in high school, I was an active member of Student Government and volunteered with various events as well as organized my own events which got the school and community actively involved. I was nominated and awarded a Haliward in 2010. The experience was amazing because not only did it make me realize what I had done had made a difference, but also that it did not go unnoticed by the community. The feeling that was behind being nominated for such a prestigious award was incredible. Being on the board this year for Haliwards is an honour and I look forward to giving back to my community.

Hi, my name is Angela Espejo, and I am a new nursing graduate of the University of Alberta. I grew up in Fort McMurray, AB, and currently work for Capital Health Halifax in acute care Psychiatric-Mental Health. At twenty-three years, I convocated with my Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and decided to move to a new region of Canada to kick off my healthcare career! I moved to nurse in Halifax largely because my employer offers a transition program for new nurses; indeed, I’ve always found Atlantic Canada intriguing, and this area in particular. Now I’m here to discover Halifax firsthand! What better way to make Halifax home than to volunteer with an organization that is committed to the community, and gives citizens the opportunity to say thank you?! I believe that embracing and participating in the community truly enriches the lived experience of its members, and when I heard about the Haliwards, I just knew I had to get involved.  I love to shop local, cook for friends, practice yoga, and sing. I feel so blessed to join a community that celebrates its members. As such, I’d like to extend a thank you for the warm welcome to Halifax, and an invitation for you to give back by recognizing those who make a difference in your community.

Hello everyone, I’m Megan Thain. I was born and raised here in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia and have lived here for all 19 years of my life. I am currently enrolled in the Tourism Management program at the Nova Scotia Community College and I will be going into my second year of the program this upcoming fall. I am currently working two jobs. I work at the Empire Theatres in Dartmouth Crossing and have been working there since the building opening in June 2007! I am also currently working at the Delta Barrington Hotel in the House Keeping Dept. I have to do this job for my co op which is part of my course requirement for school but I am enjoying it. I really enjoy just being around people; It doesn’t take much to make me have fun. I’m often the type of person that people come to with their problems because people put a lot of trust in me and know that I’m always here to listen. Part of the reason I was interested in volunteering for the Haliwards project was because I’m one of those people that is always doing whatever I can to help out, and putting others before myself and I know how good it feels to have your hard work recognized and I want the people of Halifax to know that they are making a difference and that we all really appreciate their efforts.

• • My name is Heather Shay and I am currently attending NSCC(Nova Scotia Community College) taking Tourism and Hospitality Management. This course has opened up many opportunities; one of them being the Haliwards. Haliwards recongizes the people that make a difference in their communities. Haliwards acknowledges everyday people that dedicate time and effort to making their community a better place. It also provides everyone a chance to say thank you. I volunteered last year not knowing what I was getting my self into! Alex and his team were steadily working to make Haliwards a reality. Fourtunely,I was able to be a part of the ceremony presenting 2 awards. I am excited to be on the board this year continuing to give thanks to everyone who deserves it.

    My name is Jess Wishart. I was born in Halifax, and despite having done a fair bit of travelling, somehow I always end up coming back. It must be something about the atmosphere and the people, that indefinable appeal that makes this city and the people that live here so unique. I became involved with Haliwards as it seemed to me like a fantastic way to start characterizing that something special, starting with appreciating Haligonians for all the great things they do for others in work and play. I graduated from the University of King’s College and I currently work for the Sun Life Financial Chair in Adolescent Mental Health as the Youth Engagement Coordinator. I can’t wait to start reading your nominations and learning more about all of the people that help make this city great!

  Hi, my name is Cassy Ellis-Browne, and I live here in Halifax. I was born in England, and moved here when I was six to be closer to our family here in Canada. I am a Tourism Management student at NSCC, my main focus being Food & Beverage. I heard about the Haliwards when an instructor of mine sent out an email asking for volunteers to help with Haliwards. I was really intrigued by the project and really wanted to be involved. I met up with Alex a few days later. It started out that I would just be helping with the planning, but I ended up presenting awards at the ceremony! It was really nervewracking, but seeing all the people accepting their awards and hearing all of the amazing things these people in our own community had done really inspired me. It was one of the best experiences I’ve had here in Halifax and I am glad to have met all the people working on this project. I believe the awards are so unique because as you may have heard “they have no boundaries”. It really is just for the people and it’s my honour to be a part of it.

Hello all! My name is Katie Radchuck and I was born and raised in Halifax. I traveled alot during my highschool years at the Halifax Grammar School since I was playing for the Junior Canadian National Soccer team. I moved to the USA to go to university at the University of Connecticut where I continued to play soccer as well as get my science degree in Physioneurobiology. I loved my time there but was excited to come back to Halifax where I have my family and many lifelong friends. I currently work as a mental health researcher for the SunLife Financial mental health team for the IWK. I also spend alot of my spare time volunteering for organizations and events I feel worthwhile to our community and the people who are a part of it. I was happy to be included as a track and field coach for the Special Olympics as well as spend my time as a committee member for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation helping create events to spread awareness and raise money. I am a proud Canadian and a very proud Haligonian. This is a phenomenal city to live in and I love the idea of the Haliwards as a way to celebrate anyone or anything! : ) in our community that make this such a wonderful place. Take a few seconds and recognize the people that have made a difference to you!

Ah the morning after. Some would say it’s not the best time to write a follow up post to an event but that’s what I’m doing, so if parts don’t make sense, that’s because I’m tired! Where to begin.. Well we kicked off shortly after 7:30. Surprisingly there were a handful of free seats due to some organisations buying large numbers and then not using them, but it didn’t really affect us. It’s a shame though because I know lots of you wanted to come but we were pleased that we had half a dozen or so pay on the door.

The ceremony kicked off with the Nova Scotia Mass Choir who were extremely impressive. They started the ceremony with “We are Family”, a very fitting song. By the time the choir has reached their acapella chorus the audience was clapping along. It was a great atmosphere. Once they had made their way to the upper seating on the balcony I welcomed our guests and award winners and we were on our way.

First up was our first artist. Jenny Macdonald. Her performance had a certain rustic feel to it which was very fresh and entertaining. Sadly Jenny didn’t get to hang around as she headed off to another gig.

Our first award went to Lindsay Allain who has been fundraising for the IWK. In 2005 Lindsay’s sister was diagnosed with HSP which developed into Berger’s Disease. While her sister Anika spent time in the IWK, the two of them would play in the crafts rooms and Lindsay noticed that the rooms were a little bare and this was the beginning of ‘Crafts for Kids’. Lindsay has been fundraising for the crafts rooms for five years. This year she raised $4000. Thanks to Tillie Cox, of the Child Life team at the IWK for sharing a few words.

Our second award went to Irvine Carvery. Irvine has been living in Halifax for 58 years. He is currently the President of the Africville Genealogy Scoiety, Chair of the Halifax Regional School Board and a community basketball coach. Irvine said some very kind words about me at the ceremony and I am very thankful for that. Irvine is one amazing man.

The third award went to Q104 for their fundraising efforts and commitment to their community. Most recently they were raising money for Haiti disaster. We were lucky enough to have Dan Bedell come say a few words. Dan is the Director of Public Affairs for Atlantic Canadian Red Cross. My joke about our researches getting distracted by Q104’s thong of the day gallery went down quite well too.

Then we moved on to Adriana Afford, owner of the Argyle Fine Art. Adriana is your community super star. The gallery as she describes it is a gallery by day and a community hall by night. She embraces all types of visual arts at the gallery. Examples of this are the many music nights, wine events, hair shows, book launches, weddings and obviously art collections.

Four awards down, we took a short break. During the interval the guests wondered the lower galleries looking at the museum’s collections. We also ran some photographs on the projector from previous projects that were accompanied by random facts about our previous award ceremonies.

After the break the Nova Scotia Mass Choir moved back in to share their next song with us, “Love Train” It was another truly awesome performance. You should certainly check it out. This was quickly followed by a performance from our Second Artist, Kristina Trites. She was singing one of her new creations which was titled “Nova Scotia”. Very fitting!

Then it was on to our final 3 awards. We began with the IWK and the QE2 for their awesome work in organising Bust a Move. Bill Bean head of the QE2 foundation shared some great words with the guests. For those of you who don’t know, Bust a Move for Breast Health was a massive project undertaken by both foundations. On January 30th over 750 participants took part in a huge fitness fundraiser at the Halifax Metro Center led by some local celebs and Richard Simmons.

—and finally on to our last two which had an overlap. We received a nomination for four students at Halifax West High School. I could write about Alanna Langille, Patrick O’Connor, Morgan Patzelt & Chan Kim all day. They students are incredible. They raised thousands for the cancer society at Run for a Cure and 15k more at their recent “Head for a Cure” event which I was able to attend this week. There is much more to these students so check out the ceremony video for full details.

We then presented an award to Sandra who is the teacher who has guided these four amazing students and she is just as amazing. Sandra Starratt runs the school government at Halifax West. The government has 13 sub committees and the students we have been talking about make up the volunteerism committee. We had speeches from Lyn Moulton, Vice Principal at the West and a representative from Run for a Cure. As you can see it was a packed night.. but it wasn’t over just yet. Our Third artists of the evening Mary Stewart brought the ceremony to a beautiful close. She is extremely gifted and has such a unique quality to her voice. I was very thankful she was able to join us.

Then it was time for some serious points to be made. I shared my disappointment with City Hall and their lack of support. We never asked for money, all we wanted was a thumbs up from the City to show they supported us. I also expressed my hope that they will be less hesitant about my work in the future. At some stage soon we will be posting that speech so you can all watch it.

—and while we are on the subject, I encourage you all to check out the video and photographs of the ceremony. You can pre-order your copy on the Haliwards website.

I would like to express my thanks to everyone who attended the ceremony, the staff and to our award winners. You guys know who you are!

The Haliwards is where the Somerset County Awards was several years ago. This project was far from perfect. Not only was it a new angle for me, it was new territory. I feel that we have created the foundations we need to make this an annual project that one day everyone in HRM will know of. It feels appropriate to end with the lines that I used at the ceremony last night.

“Ladies and gentleman, alas we are out of time, and apparently out of words. It’s been a pleasure. Goodnight.” PS. Thanks for the standing ovation.

Last year Steven Argent founder of the Street-based Orphfund charity, Children’s World, Glastonbury Street Lions club and PCSO Jemma Lawson picked up awards at the ceremony.

“What makes this years awards so special is that i am introducing a transatlantic bond between Central Somerset and Halifax, Nova Scotia” said Alex Maine who is organising the awards.

Mr Maine said in an email from Canada this week that people can make their nominations online at http://alexmaine.net/pocs

I have wanted to say this ever since i raised a glass to toast the success of 2009; the nominations for the Pride of Central Somerset 2010 are now open. Last year POCS was a resounding success and i hope with the help of some dedicated colleagues we will be able to do even better this year. I hope this post will either be something new and exciting to you or a refreshing look at what we have changed to make this year more of a success.

The Pride of Central Somerset is looking for those who are special in our lives. Those who make our community an incredible place to live in. Anyone may make a nomination and anyone may nominate anybody with one simple rule, they must be extraordinary. The Pride of Central Somerset covers Glastonbury, Street, Wells and the surrounding villages. We know that there was a bit of confusion about Wells last year but we want to make it very clear that Wells is included. We should also make you aware that this year we have decided to once again go this alone which means that we will not be working in partnership with Mid Somerset News and Media but we wish them every success with their ongoing projects.

Nominations will work in the same manner as last time. Once we receive all the nominations we will personally look at each one and decide who we feel deserves it the most. Some of you may have noticed that nominations have opened a little later than usual. This is because we didn’t receive many nominations in the past over the Christmas period so we have decided to push everything back by several months. The exact date of the ceremony will be announced a little later this year but nominations will be closing on the 28th February.

I am also very excited to announce that the Pride of Central Somerset now has a sister project running on the other side of the Atlantic. It gives me great pleasure to introduce to you the Haliwards taking place in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The Haliwards works exactly the same as POCS just in a different community. You can find out more about this project by visiting the home page.

Lastly I want to mention how POCS is continuing to keep with the times and we welcome you to connect with us on Facebook and Twitter. Thank you to everyone for your continued support.

Firstly i would like to begin by wishing you all a very Happy New Year. It seems hard to believe that its been ten years since the millennium. I guess the calendar isn’t lying so it must be true. I am very excited about 2010. It’s rare for me to go into a new year with a project already in motion but i am pleased that the Haliwards made an unexpected comeback in December. The public response to the Haliwards has been overwhelming and talks still continue between me and HRM. It also gives me great pleasure to launch the Pride of Central Somerset 2010 in the next few days. I hope that it will be as successful as last year which really took the project to a new level. It will be a first for me to have two similar projects running with one on either side of the Atlantic.

2010 is not only a year for recurring annual projects it’s also a year to spread by wings and to develop some new ideas. Over the past few months several projects have begun to take shape and are in there very early stages, so early that i have made no public announcements about them.

It’s not only a year for my projects either. I am very much looking forward to working with the Blue Nose Marathon this year. In 2009 i helped co-organize a pre-mixer at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and this year i hope to do the same as well as sit on the Board of Chairs for the Special Events Committee
Between all of this i hope to continue my work with local artists. 2009 introduced some very talented people, including Joe Buck, Adam Sterling and Brittany Wesley. It has been a pleasure listening to their music and i hope to receive more tracks from Haligonian hopefuls throughout the year.

Many of you know through 2009 i participated as a volunteer for many events in the HRM and while i have every intention of doing the same this year i hope that some of your projects may find me. If you have a project in mind and you’re looking for that extra boost in the right direction i would be more than happy to look over your project plan or hear your ideas and offer any ‘injection’ i can.

Best Wishes for 2010,

Alex Maine

When i first started work on the Haliwards here in Nova Scotia it really was new grounds for me. All the ideas and successes from England could be redesigned, remade and in theory reanimated. I really have not had the time to put my heart and soul into a project so i wanted to start with something simple but something that would make a good impact to the local community. Since the launch of the Haliwards project in June we have surpassed all kinds of numbers i could have hoped for. We received nearly ten times as many nominations as we did when we first did a similar project like this in the UK.

While i have every hope that City Hall will eventually catch up with us, the show must go on. I have decided to extend nominations until the end of the year which gives all you latecomers plenty of time to catch up and get your nomination in. The award winners will then be picked in the new year and the awards presented before the spring.  I had thought long and hard about postponing it until the new year and i felt this was the best option. I could have easily just rustled up some pathetic certificates and plonked them on a desk, rambled on for ten minutes about who did what, but i really like to take time to think about these things.

Many of you know that the Haliwards was my way of testing the water. Apparently i should have just dipped my pinky in but in real British fashion i put my whole hand in and i am doing my best to avoid getting burnt. Many of you have expressed how much you like the idea of the Haliwards and because of this and obviously my stubbornness this project will go ahead as planned.