50th annual Civic & Community Awards winners announced

May 9, 2025

News Release

The winners of the 50 th annual Civic and Community Awards were announced this evening at the awards ceremony held at the Delta Grand Okanagan Resort . Congratulations to all finalists and recipients of the Civic & Community Awards who helped shine a positive light on our city in 2024.

  The 50th annual Civic & Community Award winners are:

  • Anita Tozer Memorial Award – bestowed by Mayor & Council
    Pam Turgeon and Shadia Doty
  • Bob Giordano Memorial Award – Coach/Sport Administrator of the Year
    Bill Franzman
  • Bryan Couling Memorial Award – Athletic Team of the Year
    OKM Sr. Girls Volleyball Team
  • Female Athlete of the Year Award
    Kylie Taylor
  • Male Athlete of the Year Award
    Jerome Blake
  • Augie Ciancone Memorial Award – Young Female Athlete
    Maya Andruchow
  • Augie Ciancone Memorial Award – Young Male Athlete
    Dominic Sodaro
  • Teen Honour in the Arts Award
    Almendra Osorio
  • Honour in the Arts Award
    Tyson Cook (Freida Whales)
  • Central Okanagan Foundation’s Volunteer Organization of the Year Award
    Special Olympics Kelowna
  • Corporate Community of the Year Award
    Valley First, a Division of First West Credit Union
  • Champion for the Environment Award
    Beverley Kalmakoff
  • Fred Macklin & Sarah Donalda- Treadgold Memorial Award – Citizen of the Year
    Clayton Gall
  • Young Citizen of the Year Award
    Ainsley Wood

The Young Citizen of the Year finalists will receive funding towards their post-secondary education through t he Payton and Dillon Budd Memorial Fund Youth Scholarship. The award recipient will receive $2,000, while each of the two remaining finalists will receive $1,000. The recipient of the Teen Honour in the Arts award will receive a $500 entrance scholarship to the University of British Columbia Okanagan, courtesy of the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies.

In addition, the recipient for the Central Okanagan Foundation’s Volunteer Organization of the Year will receive a $3,000 donation from the Central Okanagan Foundation.

Special thanks to the sponsors of this year's event for their generous support: Peter’s Your Independent Grocer, Central Okanagan Foundation, FortisBC, The University of British Columbia Okanagan, KCR Community Resources, The Payton & Dillon Budd Memorial Fund, Crowe MacKay LLP, Coast Capital, Mark of Distinction, Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Castanet, PacificSport , Vi sta Radio including 101.5 G O FM , 9 9.9 Sun FM, , AM 1150 , Castanet , Capital News and Okanagan Central Schools Athletic Association .  

Nominations for the 51st annual Civic & Community Awards will begin in the winter of 2025.

To learn more about the Civic & Community Awards and the recipients, visit kelowna.ca/civicawards.