I recently attended a meeting in Council Chambers at the Mississauga Civic Centre. Upon leaving, I was greeted by the wall of portraits of Mississauga’s citizens of the year – all recipients of the Gordon S. Shipp Memorial Award, which is presented annually to a resident of Mississauga “who has given unselfishly of his or her time and energy, for the betterment of the community and its citizens.” The award is presented annually by the Mississauga Real Estate Board.

The honour has been presented annually since 1980, and to date there have been 45 recipients. Although I have passed the wall of honour many times, this time I paused, perused, and wandered down my own memory lane. Some of the past recipients I know of only through what I have read or heard, others I have had a chance to meet or to interview, still others I have crossed paths with in one way or another, and several I have not yet had the opportunity to meet or to learn about. Regardless, it is a very impressive list that recognizes the many women and men who have helped to shape our city in a wide variety of ways. Looking at the collected portraits over the years, it truly does give a glimpse into those who have offered up their time and talents in our city’s ever-evolving story. In the portraits, you can also see the evolution, over time, of our city’s growing and dynamic multicultural story, highlighting that our community’s inspiring leaders have come from diverse cultural heritages, particularly post-2000.

Also nearby are the portraits of our City’s four former mayors: Dr. Martin Dobkin (1974-1976), Ron Searle (1976-1978), Hazel McCallion (1978-2014), and Bonnie Crombie (2014-2024). I find it an interesting story that in our city’s 50th year we will also be electing a new mayor – the fifth mayor of the city.

And speaking of our past mayors, today – February 14 – is not only Valentine’s Day, but it is also Hazel McCallion Day (officially named in 2016). A special party is being held in her memory from 11:30 am to 2:00 pm at Vic Johnston Community Centre (located at 335 Church Street, Streetsville). All are welcome: RSVP at www.rememberhazel.com

But back to the citizens of the year that are honoured on the second floor of the Civic Centre. I, for one, would like to say thank you to those who are honoured, and also thank you to the countless people and the families who supported and stood behind those who are individually honoured – as the saying goes, it truly does take a village, and we are all collectively better for it. I am not sure how often citizens of our city have a chance to visit the portrait gallery of the citizens of the year, but I highly recommend it. As we look back on 50 years as a city, we do so from the lofty heights that these giants who came before us helped to create.