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Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers
Governor General Announces the Creation of the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers
David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, July 15 announced that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has approved the creation of the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers. This new medal will recognize volunteers who have made a significant, sustained, unpaid contribution to their community, in Canada or abroad.
“Throughout the year and across Canada, I have the pleasure of recognizing individuals who care about the well-being of others and who share a desire to make our communities kinder and healthier places in which to live,” said the Governor General. “The Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers will celebrate the achievements of these Canadians and emphasize our country’s commitment to giving. This new medal will build on the legacy and spirit of the Caring Canadian Award, created by my predecessor, the late Right Honourable Roméo LeBlanc, in honouring exceptional volunteers.”
As an official honour created by the Crown, the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers will be part of the Canadian Honours System. The program will incorporate and replace the Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award (CCA). It will carry the same values as the CCA, and the medal itself will bear two intertwined hearts, symbolizing generosity and the action of caring. The viceregal colours of blue and gold present in the ribbon are taken from the design of the CCA, while the deep red colour represents the Sovereign.
Over the next year, presentations of the CCA will be ongoing and nominations will continue to be received by the Chancellery of Honours. The inaugural Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers presentation ceremony will be held in 2016. At that time, new recipients will begin to receive the medal and existing CCA recipients will subsequently receive the medal to complement their award.
Fact sheets on the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers and the creation of new Canadian honours are attached. To learn more about the new medal and how to nominate deserving volunteers, please visit caring.gg.ca.
