Oshawa seeking nominations for its arts and culture champions

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Published February 1, 2023 at 1:28 pm

Oshawa is looking for its culture champions with the opening of nominations for three of its highest citizen awards.

The City is calling for nominations of individuals, collectives and organizations that have made a positive contribution in the community for the Community Legend Award, the Oshawa Culture Counts Awards and the E.P. Taylor Windfields Farm Champion Award.

The Community Legend Award recognizes a person of any age or an organization/group who has:

  • made a significant contribution to an activity, sport or community initiative as a volunteer;
  • contributed to improving the quality of life of the Oshawa community; and/or,
  • made a significant impact on the Oshawa community at a grassroots level through arts and culture, sport or community initiatives.

The Oshawa Culture Counts Awards celebrate and honour the creative and cultural achievements of the community. Individuals, groups and/or organizations can be nominated or apply in three categories:

  • Oshawa Culture Counts Professional Artist Award, which recognizes an established artist of any arts discipline who has demonstrated creativity, originality, professional maturity and artistic leadership in the community.
  • Oshawa Culture Counts Emerging Artist Award, which recognizes an emerging artist who is in the early stages of their career. The award encompasses all art disciplines and honours an artist who inspires and enriches the lives of fellow citizens.
  • The Innovation and Creation Champion Award, which honours an individual, collective and/or organization in the creative and cultural industries that has created or enhanced an event, product, program or partnership in the past year. This award recognizes work that is unique, transformative, and positive in its impact on arts, culture, and heritage in Oshawa.

The E.P. Taylor Windfields Farm Champion Award, awarded every four years, celebrates someone who exemplifies innovation and has overcome adversity. This could include:

  • developing and implementing new ideas into tangible initiatives, programs or projects in the community; and/or,
  • leading transformational change that has impacted the community through innovation focused on products, organizational change or social impact.

The E.P. Taylor Windfields Farm Champion Award is part of the ‘Honouring the Windfields Farm Legacy’ program, which was approved by council in 2016 as a commitment to preservation, education, events and commemoration.

Nominations will be accepted until 5 p.m. Tuesday, February 28. Oshawa City Council will present recipients with their awards at a meeting this spring.

To learn more about these awards, including eligibility requirements and past recipients, visit Oshawa.ca/cultureawards