Kudos go out to citizens celebrated by their boroughs

June 2011

Montreal is a city that loves to celebrate its more famous natives. Nick auf der Mauf was honoured with an alleyway near his favourite haunts; Schwartz’s got a whole musical devoted to it; William Shatner was presented early in June with an honorary doctorate from McGill.

And although there is one internationally recognized name on the Outstanding Citizen list released by the borough of Côte des Neiges-Notre Dame de Grace, most will be known only to people who live on our island. The borough tributes are awarded to individuals and organizations that work toward bettering our communities on a municipal or provincial level. New retirees were singled out for special mention for their many years of service.

Rouè-Doudou Boicel was honoured by C.D.N.-N.D.G. in the culture category.

“This is an important gesture, because these people all contribute to the borough’s status through their social involvement, their volunteer work and their excellence in their respective areas of expertise,” said borough Mayor Michael Applebaum at the May event.

Elaine Ethier, an Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television consultant, agreed: “The borough is filled with generous and talented people with a concern for preserving residents’ quality of life. We had to make tough decisions this year, but we urge all citizens to submit new candidates next year.”

The N.D.G. Food Depot was honoured in the community-groups category. For sports and culture, top spot went to Rouè-Doudou Boicel, founder of Montreal’s first jazz festival, the Rising Sun Festijazz. Helen Guy, chief of the Monkland Community Centre, was named for her contributions to volunteerism and social involvement.

But what about that internationally recognized name? That would be actor-director Jay Baruchel, best known for his roles in Almost Famous and The Trotsky. He also appeared in the movie Notre-Dame-de-Grace, film in his hometown N.D.G. He was recognized in the ambassador and outreach category alongside the Fondation Serge Emmanuel Jongué, which preserves and publicizes the works of Jongué.