The Linda Buchanan Award

Do you know someone who has made a difference?

The Linda Buchanan Award is given to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the field of volunteer engagement. It is named after Linda Buchanan, a visionary of human capacity and a pursuer of community improvement. Linda served as a Village Councillor in Port Stanley and was the first recipient of the award in 1991. She inspired those around her to reach new heights and helped individuals realize their potential in their own unique way. Linda was a family person, a mentor and a friend to many people. She was a professional and above all, she was proud to be herself in a most natural way.

Just a short seven years after Linda was awarded for her contribution to volunteer administration, she was taken away from us in a tragic car accident. Earlier on in that fateful day she had been kite-flying with a number of volunteers. The activity of kite-flying is a fitting example of Linda’s zest for life, optimism and vision for new heights. To commemorate her lasting legacy, PAVRO renamed the Outstanding Administrator Award in her honour and memory.

Nominations are invited each year from our membership - a colleague who deserves this special recognition, an administrator who has inspired and mentored, someone who has strengthened the volunteer force in their organization or community.

The winner of each year's Award will serve on the Awards Selection Committee for the following year. Please Note: Nominees must hold current PAVRO memberships.

The 2024 nominations are now closed. 

Join us in congratulating the recipient of the 2022 Linda Buchanan Award - Lynn Felker!   

Nominated by Erin Spink, Lynn Felker is the Community and Volunteer Engagement Coordinator with Stedman Community Hospice in Brantford.  A volunteer engagement professional for at least 14 years, Lynn is a strong advocate for the profession and has promoted the profession through a variety of means.  She is an excellent role model, a leader, and an advocate for the profession.  

Lynn is the President of the Brant Regional Association of Volunteer Administrators and with her leadership, BRAVA partnered with WEAVA last spring for an event that she co-facilitated.  She has also started a book club at BREAVA and engages the group in lively and necessary discussions, helping to mentor, guide, and inspire the membership to pursue excellence in VE within their organizations.

In addition to her involvement locally, Lynn is also an accomplished writer and speaker, presenting to other leaders of volunteers, especially on the topic of resilience, bringing a fresh and important voice to learn from.  Engage Journal published her article “Designing Volunteer Roles: The Ethics of Paid and Unpaid Work” in its January 2022 edition; her work has been referenced by Katie Campbell, former ED of the Council for Certification in Volunteer Administration.

As stated by Erin, “Lynn exemplifies exactly the kind of excellence that Linda Buchanan would appreciate.  She is smart, caring, and thinks and feels deeply about the value of the contributions that volunteers make.  She holds herself to the highest standards and is always pursuing new knowledge and ways to make things better and is one of the most enjoyable people I’ve worked with”.

Past recipients of the Linda Buchanan Award

1991	Linda Buchanan	2004	Alison Caird	2017	Erin Spink
1992	Marg Warriner	2005	Joan Cox	2018	Lorraine McGrattan
1993	Lorraine Pollock	2006	Syrelle Bernstein	2019	Kathy Magee
1994	Carissa Urquhart	2007	Not awarded	2020	Charmaine Cades
1995	Nan Einarson	2008	Emanuela Gennaccaro Ducharme	2021	Adriane Beaudry
1996	Magda Rigo	2009	Anna Grenier	2022	Lynn Felker
1997	Marilyn MacKenzie	2010	Karen Sacke
1998	Anthea Hoare	2011	Elizabeth Straiton
1999	Colin Thacker	2012	Lori Gotlieb
2000	Carol Anne Clarke	2013	Faiza Venzant
2001	Doug Miron	2014	Michael Fliess
2002	Beth Schroeder	2015	Loretta Turpin
2003	Andrea Cohen	2016	Kathleen Douglass