The Okanagan Valley where I live and have my foundry harbors a lot of artistic talent.

In 2004, while I was President of the Arts and Business Council, a group of us got together to discuss a way of honoring our local talent. I came up with the idea of creating an award and the work began. The end result was the "Okanagan Angel Awards for the Arts". Winners in 7 categories received bronze sculptures created in my foundry to celebrate their unique talent. The second year the awards were held, the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, the Honorable Iona Campagnolo, attended the ceremonies and handed out the awards.

The winners include:

2005:

Dr. Jannete Armstrong - Largest Cultural Contribution
Roz Franz - Largest Cultural Contribution
Lee Clairmont - Best Individual - Visual Arts
Imant Raminsh - Best Individual - Music
Elisabeth Scott - Best Organization - Music
Randy Leslie - Best Organization - Theatre

2006:

Neal Facey - Largest Cultural Contribution
Stu Goldberg - Best Individual - Music
David LaHay - Best Organization - Theatre
Holliby Ross - Best Organization - Visual Arts
George Cwiklewski - Best Organization - Music
Alex Fong - Best Individual - Visual Arts
Ron Green - Best Individual - Theatre