WATCH: Here are Kelowna’s newest civic champions

It was a night of dazzle and prestige as citizens of Kelowna were honoured for their community commitment and outstanding achievements.

Winners of the 47th annual Civic and Community Awards were announced Thursday evening at the Laurel Packinghouse. The night honoured many individuals from young artists, to athletes, and environmental champions, among many more.

Before the ceremony got underway, the 2019 and 2020 winners were invited up to the stage for a group photo since the gala was cancelled for the past two years due to the pandemic.

As for the 2021 winners, Lloyd Nelson won Citizen of the Year for his outstanding volunteering, including his work with Food for Thought, a program from Hope for the Nations which helps feed children who are at risk of food insecurity in the Central Okanagan.

He builds community planter boxes, harvests food, and packs and delivers food every week for the nonprofit organization.

Young Citizen of the Year went to David Withler who has the title of the youngest and most frequent blood plasma donor in Canada.

“I was just doing these things because I thought they were the right thing to do,” Withler told Kelowna10. “I’m kind of shocked that I got the award and that I got nominated at all.”

He will be attending Okanagan College in the fall and received the $2,000 Payton and Dillon Budd Memorial Fund Youth Scholarship to help fund his post-secondary goals.

Another big winner on the night was Edna Terbasket, executive director at the Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society, who won the Anita Tozer Memorial Award. This is bestowed by council and Terbasket had no idea she was going to win.

“I was shocked. I just sat there for a while; I wouldn’t move,” she said.

Throughout her many years of service, but especially throughout the pandemic, Terbasket and her team made sure youth, families, elders, and others had essential services or just someone to talk to.

“We helped an amazing amount of people that were in need,” she said.

“This pandemic brought a lot of stress, a lot of anxiety, a lot of mental health issues… I’m so proud of my staff, I’m so proud of our volunteers, the board of directors, I’m just so proud.”

There were other awards given in the fields of sports, arts, volunteerism, and for the environment. The full list can be seen here.