Twenty-one young people from across Orléans and the surrounding area were recently honoured at a special ceremony.

The Orléans Outstanding Youth Awards were first established in 2006 as a way to recognize the outstanding achievements of local youth.

This year’s awards were held at École secondaire catholique Béatrice-Desloges on
Jan. 4. It was the first time the awards were handed out at a live event since before the pandemic.

Nineteen of the 21 recipients were in attendance, as were nearly 100 family and
friends and the award sponsors. The actual presentations were punctuated with performances by Julianna Labelle and Liana Molinaro from Sing House Studios in Orléans, a group of dancers from the Cumbrae School of Dance and pianist and award recipient Charlotte Hou.

Along with their award, each recipient also received at least four copies of a commemorative program with the accom-plishments of each of the recipients listed inside.

Unlike other awards which have various categories, the Orléans Outstanding Youth Awards have no categories. Instead, they recognize youth who are outstanding in a number of areas including academics, athletics, community service and personal character.

This year’s recipients were Selena Pang, Zaccary Jeggo, Maya Laframboise Tudor, Justine Perrault, Keira Westlake, Charlotte Hou, Owen Murphy, Raina Smith, Emily Rafter, Timéo Atonfo, Victoria Kay, Max Frederick, Julia Hanlon, Sefunmi Asanbe, Joel Iziomon, Maya Pasionek Chaparro, Myka Fournier, Olivier Myrak, Archie Hallen, Tyler Lahaie-Desabrais, and Jean-Sébastien Gorley.

The awards would not be possible without the support of presenting sponsors Collège La Cité, Université St-Paul and Collège Boréal; Platinum sponsor Richcraft Homes; Gold sponsors M.L. Bradley Inc. and the various individual award sponsors.

The accomplishments of each recipient will be published in the Orléans Star over the coming weeks. You can also read their accomplishments at orleansonline.ca/pages/OYA_recipients_2023.