Celinda Williams is nominated for her role with “6,000 Red Poppies project.”
The project was to create a poppy field to commemorate the centennial of the armistice of the First World War, with each poppy representing a fallen soldier from British Columbia. The project was self-funded and community driven. Spanning two years, more than 50 volunteers invested over 500 hours of work to create 8,500 poppies.
She was the Liaison between the project lead and the hands-on working groups. She put plans into action, organized and led volunteer teams, and handled all material resources and fundraising. She rallied volunteer support, successfully found a donor who would cover most of the project cost, and purchased, collected and distributed materials. Her role required frequent travel that was done at her own expense.
The hard work culminated in a formal ceremony on November 10, 2018, in which the poppies were placed at the graves of 4,000 Veterans. The over 300 people in attendance included dignitaries from France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Korea. The event received significant media attention, further highlighting the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.
Without her passion and dedication, the important commemoration could not have taken place.