Diefenbunker AGM and Volunteer Recognition Awards — May 14, 2009

Annual General Meeting

As they do each year, Diefenbunker members, staff and Board of Directors gathered to evaluate and reflect on 2008 — the bunker's 10th anniversary and a banner year for the museum! The highlight of the night was Fire Retrofit Project Manager George Fawcett's presentation.

Some highlights of 2008:

• a 42% increase in visitorship, to a record 36, 000
• the first Cold War Youth Writing Contest
• the launch of our "From 60 to 500 in Two Years or Less" campaign
• our 10th anniversary gala
• the opening of two new permanent exhibitions
• hosting the Cold Culture Symposium

See our Annual Report 2008 for details.



Volunteer Recognition Awards

In order to recognize the unique contributions of our volunteers, the Executive Director, staff and the Board of Directors at the Diefenbunker, Canada’s Cold War Museum were pleased to present the first annual Volunteer Recognition Awards at the Annual General Meeting on May 14th, 2009. The recipient of all the awards had to be individuals actively engaged in volunteer activities at the Diefenbunker and who demonstrated:

• Performance over and above the call of duty
• Exemplary leadership qualities
• A desire to persevere, create and invent more efficient ways to enhance the Diefenbunker as a museum;
• A perpetual quest for higher standards

The 2009 winners were:

1.    Volunteer Interpreter Award- Les Ott

“His dedication and kindness make him an outstanding member of the Diefenbunker community. His tours are excellent- interesting and educational and his groups- both adults and youth- always leave having had a fantastic experience”.

2.    Sustainability Champion- Wendy O’Keefe

“The winner is someone whose infectious smile and enthusiasm has been with the Diefenbunker from the early days and her amazing skills and talents have been channelled recently into the Diefenbunker’s fundraising committee amongst other endeavours. Not only has her creative energy infected this committee- she has also donated her professional skills by writing and designing all of the Diefenbunker’s fundraising brochures, “ask” packages, web banner and posters.”

3.    Professional Contribution Award- Gord Heath

“Gord is a constant presence at the Diefenbunker- he is always ready to offer his expertise to help the museum run as efficiently as possible. Gord’s knowledge of the Diefenbunker far outreaches the scope of most and his passion and dedication are incredible. Gord’s knowledge, good humor, and modesty make him a pleasure to work with- without him OSAX would have remained a mystery!”

4.    Lifetime Achievement Award- Dr. Barry Bruce

“The first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award was an obvious choice…Dr. Barry Bruce was not only one of the founders of the organization, he, personally, kept it afloat, financially, in the early days of the museum. He has continued to be a major donor to the Diefenbunker throughout the years and played a seminal role in shaping the mandate and mission of this organization. He played an important role in 2008 as the Chair of the Anniversary Committee and also stepped up to the plate and became the Chair of the Fundraising Committee, too. He is a passionate, fearless individual who has demonstrated his commitment to the community of West Carleton and to our museum over and over again. He is truly the soul of this organization.”

The Diefenbunker would like to thank our sponsors for the Volunteer Recognition Awards: The Swan at Carp and The Cheshire Cat restaurants.