Congratulations To The 2023 Winners Of The Access Recognition Awards

See below for the text read out during the ceremony, highlighting the contributions of our amazing winners.

Access Recognition Awards 2023 – Clerk’s script

The first award is presented to the

Waterloo-Wellington Aphasia Program

The award recognizes the group as an Outstanding Contribution of a Business

The recognition message on the award is:

In recognition of your outstanding work to raise awareness about aphasia through a Town Hall meeting with the Mayor and hosting a flag raising ceremony at Guelph City Hall.

The award recognizes:

The Waterloo-Wellington Regional Aphasia Program (‘The Aphasia Program’), a community-based program managed through St. Joseph’s Health Centre Guelph.

Aphasia is a language problem often caused by stroke or brain injury. Aphasia can significantly affect conversational interactions (talking and understanding) as well as reading and writing.

This year, The Aphasia Program celebrated their 10^th year of operation.

The Aphasia Program participants and care partners are being presented with this award because they went ‘above and beyond’ to raise awareness about aphasia and strengthen connections within the community through two initiatives.

A first-ever Aphasia Town Hall meeting was held with Mayor Cam Guthrie and City Accessibility Staff to discuss the barriers faced by individuals with aphasia in the community.
This event was a collaborative effort between the Aphasia Program and City Staff, emphasizing the importance of working together to address these challenges. Program participants and their care partners spoke about the barriers they face in everyday settings in the community.
Following the Town Hall with the Mayor, the participants with aphasia expressed feelings of empowerment and being heard by a public official, something that they didn’t think was possible because of their aphasia. 
They also expressed that the meeting boosted their self-confidence in continuing to advocate for change within their communities.

The second initiative was a public flag raising and ceremony during Aphasia Awareness Month in June. The Aphasia Program members raised the aphasia flag at Guelph City Hall, for the first time. This symbolic gesture served as a visible reminder of the importance of aphasia awareness and support. Thank you!   

The next award is presented to the

Guelph Enabling Garden Board of Directors

The award recognizes them for their Outstanding Contribution of a Business

The recognition message on the award is:

In recognition of your outstanding work to create an improved inclusive and safe environment to host programming in the Garden.

The award recognizes:

The Guelph Enabling Garden, a garden where all are welcome, is located within Riverside Park. The garden hosts many Horticultural Therapy Workshops and regular events such as the Friday Morning Tea ‘N Tales summer series.  Safe and inclusive seating during these well-attended events has become a challenge in recent years. 

The Guelph Enabling Garden Board of Directors is being presented with this award because they prioritized accessibility and worked to remove barriers to participation.
The Board carries out the Garden’s mandate to provide the opportunity for the entire community to share in the joy of gardening with people of all abilities.
The Board of Directors made the decision to replace the older, plastic chairs with safer, stackable, medical grade bariatric chairs.
This led to the Board writing grant applications for funding.
These bariatric chairs were purchased thanks to the generosity of a shared grant from Rotary Club of Guelph Trillium’s annual Ribfest fundraiser and Service Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors grant.

The Board of Directors went ‘above and beyond’ to provide new chairs that are sturdy, accessible, and comfortable. They reduce the risk of injuries in addition to removing an inclusion barrier for people with disabilities. Thank you!

The next award is presented to

Heidi Torreiter

Heidi is being recognized for an Outstanding Contribution of an Individual

The recognition message on the award is:

In recognition of your outstanding work and commitment to accessibility and collaboration to remove and prevent barriers for people with disabilities through inclusive programming.

Heidi, the Guelph Enabling Garden’s Registered Horticultural Therapist, is being presented this award for demonstrating her commitment to inclusiveness, reducing isolation and engaging clients, workshop participants, care givers, parents, and volunteers of all abilities to share the communal joy of gardening.

Heidi hosts many horticultural therapy (HT) sessions and community events in the GEG throughout both the regular season and virtual winter season.

Heidi has gone ‘above and beyond’ hosting many of the HT sessions and programs in partnership with community organizations including the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), Community Living Guelph-Wellington, Hospice Guelph-Wellington, Guelph Public Library and Guelph-Wellington Seniors Association (GWSA).

Thank you!

The next award is presented to:

Maddy Workman

Maddy is being recognized for an Outstanding Contribution of an Individual

The recognition message on the award is:

In recognition of your outstanding dedication to improving accessibility by advocating for the removal of physical barriers to access at Guelph business.

Maddy is being presented with this award because she went ‘above and beyond’ to advocate for accessibility and inclusivity.

Maddy wrote a letter to the Owner of a local business explaining how physical improvements to their facility would make their building accessible so people who use mobility devices are also welcome. In addition, Maddy was resourceful in recommending alternative ways to create a physically accessible facility – such as the use of portable ramps. Maddy also took the time to meet with the Business Owner to demonstrate how she could navigate the facility using her own portable ramp. This contribution has created an accessible and inclusive environment for Maddy, and people with mobility-related disabilities to access the services provided by the business. Thank you!

The final award is presented to:

MyLife Counselling Guelph

The award recognizes them for their Outstanding Contribution of a Business

The recognition message on the award is:

In recognition of your outstanding dedication to enthusiastically improving accessibility by removing physical barriers to access at MyLife Counselling Guelph.

The award recognizes:

MyLife Counselling Guelph, located at 109 Surrey Street East, offers various types of counselling services.

They are being presented with this award because they have gone ‘above and beyond’ to improve the accessibility of their facility by removing physical barriers to access by implementing portable ramps to access their facility.

In addition, while they waited for the portable ramps to be delivered, MyLife Counselling understood the importance of the accommodation and offered alterative services, which included home visit counselling and virtual counselling. The new ramps provide inclusive access to their business so that all clients feel welcome.

Thank you!