December 15, 2009
Amazing things happen when we all come together!
By Lynn Lane
Once again, members of LO showed that amazing things do occur when everyone steps up and works to achieve a common goal. Such was the case, when 77 volunteers in Ottawa came together on Oct. 30 for the annual Day of Tribute.
The special day saw industry volunteers manage the grounds at the National Military Cemetery (NMC) in Ottawa’s Beechwood Cemetery. In good spirits, they aerated, fertilized, over-seeded, raked, trimmed, pruned and planted. For these Ottawa Chapter volunteers, the Day of Tribute was a way to show their respect to the Canadian Forces men and women who have and do serve Canada, some making the supreme sacrifice. Currently 25 Canadian Forces men and women who were killed in Afghanistan are buried at the national cemetery. The work prepared the site for Remembrance Day ceremonies.
The morning began with a ceremony that included acting executive director of Beechwood Cemetery, Roger Boult, chief warrant officer Dan Bradley, Canadian Forces manager for the NMC, Bob Adams, president of Landscape Ontario, and Tony DiGiovanni, executive director of Landscape Ontario, all saying a few words.
DiGiovanni recounted some of the first LO tribute days. He concluded with a statement that what we do here is very important, and that LO’s contribution truly touches people. “We have something important to give,” he said.
This year, industry volunteers were joined by the horticulture students from Sir Guy Carleton and Bell high schools. It bodes well for the future of the industry, when such giving and talented young people eagerly pitch in for a great cause. Even some local neighbours brought their rakes to lend a hand, after reading about the event in the newspaper.
The following companies generously donated staff and/or product for the Day of Tribute: Adams Lawncare, Bell High School, Bytown Lawn Experts, Campbell Tree Experts, Custom Lawn Care, Garden Creations of Ottawa, Green Unlimited, Greenlife, Greenspace Canada, Hirsig Landscapes, Lynn Lane and Associates, Nutri-Lawn Ottawa, Peter Smit and Sons, Sir Guy Carleton, Skeggs Landscaping and Design, TerraPro Corporation, Weed Man - Ottawa, and Welwyn Wong Landscape Design.
The LO Ottawa Chapter board of directors thanks the organizers, Sharon Urquhart (Green Unlimited) and David Stewart CHT (Custom Lawn Care) who created a great opportunity for the industry to give back to the community. Thanks also go out to coffee/lunch sponsors Norleans Technologies and Manderley Sod, and product donors Agrium Advanced Technologies, BJE Distri-Organic and Plant Prod.
Sharon Urquhart, who has organized the event since 2005, said, “I’d like to offer a personal thank you to each and every person involved in the Day of Tribute. That includes those onsite, providing labour, and those who made donations. They were all instrumental in the success of this special event. Our industry was at its finest and the community took notice. The military personnel on-hand were especially thankful for our effort and commitment and want to spread the word about our annual event.”
Once again, members of LO showed that amazing things do occur when everyone steps up and works to achieve a common goal. Such was the case, when 77 volunteers in Ottawa came together on Oct. 30 for the annual Day of Tribute.
The special day saw industry volunteers manage the grounds at the National Military Cemetery (NMC) in Ottawa’s Beechwood Cemetery. In good spirits, they aerated, fertilized, over-seeded, raked, trimmed, pruned and planted. For these Ottawa Chapter volunteers, the Day of Tribute was a way to show their respect to the Canadian Forces men and women who have and do serve Canada, some making the supreme sacrifice. Currently 25 Canadian Forces men and women who were killed in Afghanistan are buried at the national cemetery. The work prepared the site for Remembrance Day ceremonies.
National historic site
Beechwood was named the National Cemetery of Canada in April 2009 by an Act of Parliament. It is the home of the NMC, the RCMP National Memorial Cemetery and is a national historic site. It is owned and operated by The Beechwood Cemetery Foundation, a not-for-profit organization and a registered Canadian charity.The morning began with a ceremony that included acting executive director of Beechwood Cemetery, Roger Boult, chief warrant officer Dan Bradley, Canadian Forces manager for the NMC, Bob Adams, president of Landscape Ontario, and Tony DiGiovanni, executive director of Landscape Ontario, all saying a few words.
DiGiovanni recounted some of the first LO tribute days. He concluded with a statement that what we do here is very important, and that LO’s contribution truly touches people. “We have something important to give,” he said.
This year, industry volunteers were joined by the horticulture students from Sir Guy Carleton and Bell high schools. It bodes well for the future of the industry, when such giving and talented young people eagerly pitch in for a great cause. Even some local neighbours brought their rakes to lend a hand, after reading about the event in the newspaper.
Volunteers
Sincere thanks go to all those who took part: Bob Adams, Alan Abbey, Matt Agnel, Mustafa Ahmed, Rifat Al-Chadigi, Amann Al-Zafiri, Araz Aminin, Sarah Ardis, Trevor Ardis, Faisa Awil, Aaysha Babaria, Carson Bennett, Bill Bitz, Kaylagh Bizzell, John Bloskie, Colin Brand, Glen Campbell, Lynn Campbell, Simon Carlson, Kyle Clark, Andrew Conroy, Tony DiGiovanni CHT, Andrew Doherty, Hubble Doug, Jameson Ekdahl, Tory Farr, Denis Flanagan, Kimberly Francis-Pierre, Daniel Freed, Jane Gafney, Tristan Goodwill , Richard Groen, Martin Hanzel, Ken Hiem, Sonia Hirsig CHT, Jim Hooper, Mariam Ismail, Ricky Jiang, Sarah Johnston, Ryan Kearney CHT, Dave Kirkey, Lynn Lane, Eric Laporte, Mike Larocque, Abby Levent, Sylvain Levesque, Christian Levesque, Mattieu Levesque, Trevor Luck, Mitchell Lui, Saaya Machino, Jody MacInnis, Dwayne Macleod, Ahmed Mader, Fred Minduik, Hank Mollema, Trinh Nguyen, Helen Palocios, Brendan Palocios, Andrew Partington, Tam Phuong, Kamal Shahzad, Brian Shane, Michael Skeggs, John Smit, Anthony Stargard, David Stewart CHT, Dylan Stone, Kyle Symes, Sharon Urquhart, Chris Urquhart, Martha Walsh, Harry Wei, Christopher Witt, Susan Wong, Welwyn Wong, Asma Worsajee and Tony Zegers.The following companies generously donated staff and/or product for the Day of Tribute: Adams Lawncare, Bell High School, Bytown Lawn Experts, Campbell Tree Experts, Custom Lawn Care, Garden Creations of Ottawa, Green Unlimited, Greenlife, Greenspace Canada, Hirsig Landscapes, Lynn Lane and Associates, Nutri-Lawn Ottawa, Peter Smit and Sons, Sir Guy Carleton, Skeggs Landscaping and Design, TerraPro Corporation, Weed Man - Ottawa, and Welwyn Wong Landscape Design.
The LO Ottawa Chapter board of directors thanks the organizers, Sharon Urquhart (Green Unlimited) and David Stewart CHT (Custom Lawn Care) who created a great opportunity for the industry to give back to the community. Thanks also go out to coffee/lunch sponsors Norleans Technologies and Manderley Sod, and product donors Agrium Advanced Technologies, BJE Distri-Organic and Plant Prod.
Sharon Urquhart, who has organized the event since 2005, said, “I’d like to offer a personal thank you to each and every person involved in the Day of Tribute. That includes those onsite, providing labour, and those who made donations. They were all instrumental in the success of this special event. Our industry was at its finest and the community took notice. The military personnel on-hand were especially thankful for our effort and commitment and want to spread the word about our annual event.”