Celebrating Burnaby’s Local Heroes: Announcing the 2025 winners

With over 15 years of dedicated volunteer service in Burnaby, Alishah has enriched the lives of countless individuals. As president of the Fair Haven Homes Society Board of Directors, Alishah implemented new governance structures and championed diversity, equity, and inclusion. Since 2012, she has volunteered with the Aga Khan Education Board overseeing English conversational classes in the Burnaby area. Alisha also finds time to lead fundraising efforts for events like the World Partnership Walk, highlighting her commitment to community well-being.

Minaz’s contributions as a volunteer with Burnaby’s Citizen Support Services are invaluable to many seniors. He helps reduce loneliness and ensures access to necessary care by driving a bus to transport seniors to social outings, visiting isolated seniors and providing rides for seniors to medical appointments through the Cancer Clinic and Better at Home programs. In addition, Minaz also finds time to volunteer with CRATax prep. He’s truly a local hero who helps bring the community together.

As a Block Watch Captain since 2005, Elsa has been a tireless advocate for community safety in Burnaby. By actively recruiting neighbours to join her Block Watch group, she’s grown the group to 82 members, significantly boosting local vigilance. Elsa has also volunteered at the Burnaby and Region Allotment Garden Association for 18 years where she grows vegetables and donates the excess to the Food Bank at Ryan’s Rainbow. For the last four years, she’s also volunteered at the Burnaby Village Museum, helping to judge student presentations at the Regional Heritage Fair.

Erika has been a dedicated volunteer at the Burnaby Art Gallery for twenty years. Her background in art history has greatly benefited the gallery, especially in her role on the advisory committee. Erika's efforts in delivering tours, providing feedback, and assisting with programs have made art more accessible and enjoyable for many people.

Emy has been a steadfast volunteer with the Block Watch program since 1999, and a volunteer with the Emergency Management department since 2015. Emy's outreach and promotion of city programs to neighbors have fostered a safer, more connected community. Her advocacy for community safety has helped create stronger relationships with residents and provided an avenue for effective information sharing.

Vincent has been volunteering with St. John Ambulance since 2012. He became an official first aid instructor in 2018 and has been voluntarily teaching first aid on weekends throughout the year since. In addition, Vincent also volunteers with the City of Burnaby as an Emergency Management Volunteer, taking on training for crucial support during emergencies. His dedication to training and support during emergencies underscores his commitment to safety and preparedness in Burnaby.

Karen was instrumental in starting the Society to End Homelessness in 2015 and served as a board member until 2022, where she led the society in many initiatives. Karen also volunteers with Burnaby Family Life and brought together community partners to create the Burnaby Community Action Team (BCAT) in 2018 to address the toxic drug crisis and overdoses in the community. Her work in creating anti-stigma educational workshops and fostering community partnerships has been crucial in promoting awareness and unified efforts to tackle these pressing issues.

Karl is a key member of the LaPower Running Society where he has served as a group leader and board member for 10 years. In addition to being an active member of the society, Karl has been committed to organizing the Burnaby Lake Run for the past seven years. LaPower Burnaby Lake Run fundraises for Burnaby Hospital Foundation while contributing to community health. Over the years, Karl has been combining fitness with community clean-up efforts, showcasing the community, promoting community wellness, environmental sustainability and social connection in Burnaby.

For 27 years, the Local Hero Award has celebrated members of our community for their heroic volunteer contributions. To be eligible for the award, a candidate is nominated by Burnaby citizens and must be an active volunteer in Burnaby for at least five years in a minimum of two activities. To date, the City has recognized 299 local heroes.