The City of Oshawa has announced the recipients of the inaugural Oshawa Community Awards.
The program honours community members, businesses and organizations for their outstanding contributions to the city, and includes award categories that have been recognized by the city in previous years – the Accessibility Improvement Award, Citizen Volunteer Award, Community Legend Award, Culture Counts Awards, and E.P. Taylor Windfields Farm Champion Award – as well as a new category: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Champions Award.
The recipients were recognized and presented with their awards at a special meeting of council on Thursday, June 18.
Accessibility Improvement Award
Boys and Girls Club Durham Aquatics Department
CIH Mental Wellness Solutions
Matisse Hamel-Nelis
Citizen Volunteer Award
Gene Balson
Dave Briggs
Indra Deen
Gail Elliott
Ed Foley
Jillian Follert
Marie Harding
Denise Kettela
Jackie Kot
Marion Saunders
Community Legend Award
UndercoverDachshund
Culture Counts Awards
Professional Artist: Michael Drolet
Emerging Artist: Yongzhen Li
Innovation and Creation Champion: Oshawa Public Libraries
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Champions Award
D.E.I. Youth Champion: Khushi Dhalla
D.E.I. Community Champion: Marisa Mei
D.E.I. Business Champion: Fairy Glen Day Care Centre
D.E.I. Organization Champion: Mission United Physician Services
E.P. Taylor Windfields Farm Champion Award
Marlene Grass
“Congratulations to the winners of our inaugural Oshawa Community Awards! Your creativity, talents, leadership and service create a meaningful impact in our community every day and help make the great city of Oshawa a welcoming, inclusive and vibrant place for all,” said Mayor Dan Carter.
Visit oshawa.ca/Awards to learn more about the Oshawa Community Awards and the 2026 winners.