Horizons of Friendship is pleased to announce the winner of this year’s David Stewart Medal. The David Stewart Medal was set up in remembrance of one of Horizons’ founders to recognize those individuals in Canada who demonstrate a commitment to volunteerism and leadership in addressing social inequality and injustice.
Jim McCallum, who has worked tirelessly to advocate and fundraise on behalf of children in Honduras for nearly 30 years, has been selected to received the 2007 David Stewart Medal from among a group of outstanding individuals. A resident of Peterborough, Dr. McCallum is the founder of Friends of Honduran Children, and has been chosen for his ongoing volunteer work and lifetime commitment to grassroots community development.
Dr. McCallum, an oral surgeon by profession, first travelled to Honduras with a medical brigade in 1979. What began as a trip to perform dental work in rural areas of Honduras has turned into a lifetime commitment to children and families in Honduras. After his second medical brigade in 1980, Dr. McCallum continued his volunteer work from Canada, shipping hospital equipment, medicine and school supplies, while still travelling to Honduras annually. In 1992, he founded Friends of Honduran Children. In addition to sending medical brigades, the organisation provides education and scholarships for children, supports a community development for single mothers and their children where they have access to housing, education, healthcare, and employment opportunities, and runs a farm where young boys forced to migrate to the city receive shelter, education and basic care. The organization’s work is carried out in cooperation with Sister Maria Rosa and Sociedad Amigos de los Niños (SAN) in Honduras. Jim continues to travel to Honduras several times a year.
Friends describe him as very modest, one who works tirelessly in the background, never seeking praise for the work that he does. “Jim rarely speaks of what he has accomplished. He is a humble and generous person who leads by example. He is very dedicated to the people of Honduras, and I have never met anyone who is so dedicated to one cause the way that Jim is,” says Ann Farlow, who has known Dr. McCallum for 25 years and first travelled with him to Honduras in 1983. “It is hard to separate his volunteer work from the rest of his life because it simply is his life.”
One of the most impressive accomplishments of Jim’s work is the way he has engaged so many members of his community to get involved. “Jim is a member of our parish and it is through him that I have been awakened to the needs of the Third World” said Father Paul Massel of St. Alphonsus Church. “It is because of Jim that our church has formed a relationship with SAN and why we are supporting children’s programs in Honduras through our church.” Dr. McCallum has also engaged youth in his work with Honduras: Students from Peterborough’s Holy Cross Secondary School participated in a 10 day social justice awareness trip to Honduras last year, where they met with SAN and raised funds in advance for the organization.
Each year, there is also a southern recipient of the award, chosen from amongst Horizons’ partner organizations. This year’s Southern Recipient is The Teachers Mothers Organization (OMMA) in Panama. OMMA has been in existence for 34 years and presently works in 159 impoverished communities of rural and urban Panama. OMMA provides training and guidance to mothers (and increasingly fathers) to enable them to manage community-based early childhood teaching facilities, which provide care and stimulation for children less than six years of age. The organization is very grassroots and fully volunteer-run.
The final decision to select the winner was taken by a special committee made up of Horizons’ board members, staff and a member of David Stewart’s family. Horizons of Friendship wishes to thank and acknowledge all other exceptional nominations. The David Stewart Medal will be awarded at a special ceremony during Horizons’ AGM on Monday June 11th from 3:30 pm – 5:15 pm at Citizen Forum, Victoria Hall, 55 King W. Cobourg, Ontario.
Join us for a celebration of the volunteer spirit!
For further information:
Michelle Switzer
905-372-5483 Ext. 24
