The Rotary Club of Orléans held its annual youth awards ceremony at the Shenkman Arts Centre on June 8. Twenty-one area youth were recognized for their achievements in a variety of areas including Leadership, Perserverance, Positive Attitude, Creativity and Entrepreneurship.
The bilingual event was co-emceed by Rotarians Musset Pierre-Jérôme and Micky Mwiti.
After event chair Nabil Oudeh kicked the proceedings off with his opening remarks, Rotary District Governor Teresa Whitmore congratulated all the recipients and then helped present the awards.
The honourees included Wael Cheaitani, Ocean Clark, Michelle Jiménez-Bucar, Nathan Gourde, Olivier Gagnon-Maheux, Vicky Glaude, Ellie Gravelle, Michaela Owusu-Sekyere, Emily Kennedy, Jason Haddad, Sylvia Imafidon, Avery Kaptein, Salwa Mumin, Owen Murphy, Camille Rochon, Laurieve Sabourin, Anthony Rodrigue and Amanda Springate.
Interact Club co-presidents Emmanuella Aregebsola, Kamsi Uchi and Anya Sinha also received awards.
Rotary Interact Clubs bring together young people ages 12-18 to develop leadership skills while discovering the power of the club’s motto “Service Above Self”.
The recipients represented a number of area high schools including St. Peter High School, Cairine Wilson Secondary School, Sir Wilfrid Laurier Secondary School. École secondaire catholique Béatrice-Desloges, École secondaire publique Garneau and Collège catholique Mer-Bleue,
Each recipient received a trophy and a certificate listing their achievements.
A special scholarship was also awarded to Michaela Owusu-Sekyere.
The award ceremony was punctuated with performances by Chloe Gaudet, Milana Gizela, Liana Molinaro, Kaylah Sanchez and Maria Stellar from Sing House Studio.
During his remarks, Nabil Oudeh thanked the sponsors who helped make the event possible.
Among the main sponsors were Assante Wealth Management, CCR International, Design and Systems Inc, Domaine Perrault Winery, Groupe Régimbal, GVE Lawyers/Avocats, Scotiabank, Venvi Portobello, TopRankin Mortgages, Ottawa Prestige Properties, Nathan Philips, Sing House Studio, Patricia Slaunwhite, and several Rotary Club of Orléans members.
The award program also benefited from the support of Orléans MP Marie-France Lalonde and City of Ottawa councillors Laura Dudas, Catherine Kitts and Matt Luloff.
For more information about the Rotary Club of Orléans, check out their Facebook page at facebook.com/Orleans.Rotary.Club.
The Club meets every Wednesday morning at the Venvi Portobello retirement community at 691 Valin St..
TRIVIA NIGHT from 7:30 p.m. every Tuesday night at the Royal Oak Pub Orléans. Free to play. Prizes for the winning team! The Royal Oak Pub is located at 1981 St. Joseph Blvd. near Jeanne d'Arc. For more info visit 
TRIVIA NIGHT from 6:30 p.m. at the Stray Dog Brewing Company. Exercise your grey matter before it turns to mush over the holidays. Reservations are a must to secure your spot. Send your team name and number of people to info@straydogbrewing.ca. The Stray Dog Brewing Company is located at 501 Lacolle Way in the Taylor Creek Business Park.
VALENTINE'S COMMUNITY SENIORS TEA co-hosted by councillors Matt Luloff and Catherine Kitts from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the Notre-Dame-des-Champs Community Hall, 3659 Navan Rd. Click 
SDBC AND CAPITAL TEASE PRESENT STRUT BURLESQUE presented by the Kin Club of Orléans from 7 p.m. Enjoy an evening of sultry dance, vintage glamour, and tongue-in-cheek humour – all while sipping on our finest. It’s the perfect mix of hops and hotness for a night out you won’t forget. For tickets visit 
FAMILY DAY ALL AGES MUSIC BINGO DANCE presented by the Kin Club of Orléans from 1 pm to 4 pm at the Queenswood Heights Community Centre, 1485 Dufurd Dr.
Tickets are $15 per person and include one bingo card, a bowl of chili and tortilla chips. Proceeds to go to help pay for local community projects. To purchase your tickets in advance go to 
