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The WesteiFormer Area Residents ReeognizEditors’ Note: Anna is the daughter of Ida and the late Harold Arnt of Manitou.By Tracy Rimmer Baldur-Glenboro Gazette Reprinted with permission.Since 2005, eight members of our community have been recognized for their kindness, hard work, and dedication to the needs of the residents of Glenboro and the surrounding area. Eight people who have dedicated a large part of their lives in the service of others, and each of them has been unique and special in their talents and their efforts when it comes to the good of their neighbours. Some have focused on recreational opportunities, some on education, health, or community development, others on simply being the set of hands which always seems to arrive whenever, and wherever, needed, caring for and supporting those around them.This year, the Resident of Distinction award goes to a similarly unique individual. While she is all those things described above, her unique gift comes in the form of her service to children, and the programs and causes which allow for the children of our community, and families, to thrive.Anna Naismith is a mother of two who doesn’t seem to allow her busy, active family life to get in the way of her volunteering efforts. In fact, she seems to have meshed the two together so effectively that her efforts in the larger community seem to be part of her very dedicated parenting style. She has a way of turning up wherever there is a need, and she has earned the respect and friendship of nearly everyone she has come into contact with. No matter what the need, whether it is writing grant applications to support the new community playground, or serving on the Parent Advisory Council, she is involved, sleeves rolled up, ready to get the job done, all while guiding her children, eleven-year-old Brooke and eight -year-old Tyson, in learning to give of themselves, as well.“She always puts us first,” claims Brooke, going on to tell of an incident where Anna’s activities were at odds with a planned birthday party, and she chose the children’s party. “Always.”Upon the announcement, she is obviously surprised to be named a Resident of Distinction.“I guess I’ve just always viewed it as an older generation thing,” she says. “So, yes, I was surprised. It’s nice that they’re acknowledging the younger people. Maybe it will motivate more of theyounger people to get involved in the community.”While Anna may not yet have served as many years in the community as past recipients, it is clear to anyone who has ever worked on any board, or at any function, alongside her, that her level of service, the hours and hours of volunteer time she puts in, the dedication she feels and the responsibilities she undertakes, more than qualify her for this very distinct award. Over the years, Anna has served on the Daycare Committee, the Glenboro Playground Committee, and the Parent Advisory Council, as well as volunteering many hours with the Glenboro United Church Sunday School.She has written letters and grant applications, arranged for deliveries of building materials and gravel, planned Christmas parties, decorated floats, created budgets and kept financial records, planned and organized fundraising lunches, played taxi driver to groups of children involved in extracurricular activities, and taught Sunday School.She has helped with the Tiger Hills Festival of the Arts, and it is fully expected that when it is Glenboro’s turn to host the tri-community event in two years time, she will be there again, ready to assist in whatever way she is needed, because she believes that events like this are important for our children and community as a whole.One might think that a stay at home mother with two children in school would have plenty of time for such things, but that is not all that is Anna. In her “spare time”, she helps run a business with her husband, David, and also works as a casual employee at both the Glenboro South Cypress Library and the Glenboro Post Office. Perhaps more importantly, however, she is a dedicated and loving mother, and devotes much of her time to making sure that Brooke and Tyson have every opportunity possible. All while remaining friendly, cheerful, supportive, and interested in the experiences of others.“She doesn’t do all of these things for the glory or the gratitude,” says local resident Sandi Jarvis, who has served on many committees with Anna. “She does them because her community is important to her.”Anna Naismith puts the time and effort in to help make Glenboro a better place to live, and it is residents like her who will make our community a place which thrives and prospers in the years to come.Anna Naismith named Glenboro’s 2013 Resident of DistinctionAnna Naismith (centre) was named Glenboro’s 2013 Resident of Distinction. She is shown here with Sandi Jarvis (who submitted the nomination), and Wayne Davidson, who presented the award on behalf of the Glenboro Community Development Corporation. GAZETTE PHOTO/TRACY RIMMER
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Manitou Western Canadian
Manitou, Manitoba, CA
Tue, Apr 15, 2014
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CA 19 Mar 2025
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