Events
Leaders of Tomorrow Graduation 2009
by Victoria Tang, LOT Class of 2009 Program Graduate
Connecting for good was the theme of the night for the tenth annual Leaders of Tomorrow graduation, held on September 10, 2009. Graduating mentees, mentors, special guests, and LOT alumni enjoyed an evening of networking, refreshments, and awards at the recently restored Heritage Hall in Vancouver.
As keynote speaker, Janet Austin, CEO of the Vancouver YWCA, shared her thoughts on leadership and mentorship, based her experiences as a long-time community champion and as an “accidental CEO,” as she humbly refers to herself. Ms. Austin’s speech explored different dynamics of connecting with one’s peers. She highlighted the importance of positive collaboration and encouragement, emphasizing that one of the most important qualities of leadership is to inspire others to have confidence in themselves. As she reminded the audience, “Take every opportunity you have to give encouragement … [for] you are in a position to help those around you to do their very best.” In fact, Ms. Austin credits the support of her mentor with helping her discover and act upon the leadership potential that her mentor had recognized in her. Humorous anecdotes and insightful quotations rounded out her speech with vitality and wisdom.
Janet Austin with Mentee of the Year Award winner, Henry Yeh.
The awards ceremonies following the keynote address honoured those participants who had shown exemplary leadership and outstanding potential during the 2008-2009 program year. Last year’s award winners, Chris Demwell and Aaron Nakama, were on hand to present the Mentee and Mentor of the Year Awards to Henry Yeh and Bruce Arthurs (Scotiabank). Mr. Yeh, the Mentee of the Year, was recognized for his extraordinary dedication to the LOT program through his constant engagement in LOT and Board of Trade Events. Mr. Arthurs, the Mentor of the Year, was praised for his generosity of time and connections. In addition, the Committee Member of the Year Awards commended LOT members Lisa Balcaen, Rosabel Bong, Sasha Ramnarine, Victoria Tang, and Kara Turcotte for outstanding contributions to their committees.
To close the ceremony, Yvonne De Valone, LOT & CYP Program Chair, announced the graduates of the Leaders of Tomorrow Mentorship Program. Echoing Ms. Austin’s sentiments, Ms. De Valone encouraged participants to stay engaged and to continue to develop strong professional relationships. During the reception that followed the ceremony, it is clear that all one hundred guests were happy to take her advice and nurture the valuable relationships that they had formed during the past year of LOT.
We would like to thank all Mentors and Students for their participation this year as well as the support of our sponsor companies. The LOT Program is only made possible through their efforts and I feel fortunate to have been a part of it!
Committee Member of the Year Awards winners, Sasha Ramnarine, Kara Turcotte and Victoria Tang with LOT program coordinator, Austin Nairn.
We would like to recognize the following LOT Program Sponsors:
Platinum sponsor: Scotiabank
Gold sponsors: British Columbia Institute of Technology, Business in Vancouver, LifeLabs, London Drugs, Simon Fraser University Business, and University of British Columbia
Silver sponsors: BC Hydro, HSBC Bank Canada, Kwantlen Polytechnic University
Bronze sponsors: Citywide Printing, Davis LLP, and Mill Creek Coffee Company
L-R: London Drugs mentor, Jim Skinner with graduation M.C. Victoria Tang, keynote speaker, Janet Austin, CEO, YWCA and mentee of the year recipient Henry Yeh.
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