2022 Volunteer Appreciation Award nominations are now open!

Know a standout individual or group in Warman? Nominate them for one of the following awards:

Diamond Citizen of the Year: This award is the highest honour of the Volunteer Awards program, reserved for a true community builder, someone who has worked tirelessly behind the scenes, who has donated time and skill towards the betterment of others, and who has truly made an impact for future generations.

Volunteer of the Year: This award recognizes individuals whose efforts have made a significant impact on the development and advancement of recreational sports, arts and culture, environmental leadership, or community and social services. The major focus of this award involves volunteer efforts made during the calendar year (January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022).

Legendary Group Award: The Legendary Group of the Year is a club that has contributed long-term to Warman. With their combined efforts this club has developed and implemented projects, fundraisers and/or events that have had a positive impact on our community.

Group of the Year: This award is given to a club (with three or more members) whose efforts have significantly contributed to Warman’s quality of life through recreational sports, arts and culture, environmental leadership, or community and social services. The major focus of this award involves volunteer efforts made during the calendar year (January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022).

Future Leader Award: The Future Leader Award is given to a resident 18 years or under who is actively involved in the community and who has demonstrated outstanding achievements in his or her area of interest.

To submit a nomination, email the following information to execassistant@warman.ca:

• Name of the group or individual (first and last name) you’re nominating;
• Which award they’re being nominated for;
• Contact information (email and phone #) of the group or individual you’re nominating;
• An explanation of why the individual or group is being nominated; and,
• Your full name and phone number.

The nomination period closes January 31, 2023.

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2021 Award Winners:

Diamond Citizen of the Year: Darwin Davis

The City of Warman and Warman City Council are excited to announce the recipient of the Diamond Citizen of the Year is Darwin Davis!

Darwin was nominated for his OK Tire Bus service and the charitable impact he’s made in Warman as a result.

With the popularity of the bus service, there’s a high probability that every Warman resident has either used it, or knows someone who has, since Darwin generously brought the buses to the city.

Darwin’s selfless service started out as one 21-passenger bus that he loaned to minor sports teams in exchange for merely a tagged post on social media and as long as the user refilled the tank. Just over half a year after getting that first bus, the bookings filled so quickly he bought another smaller bus to add variety. But, it didn’t take long for him to need another 21-passenger bus to meet the demand and bring his fleet to three prior to the start of 2021.

Darwin elevated this already-selfless service to benefit the community even more last year.

Even though he and his staff spent hundreds of hours of maintenance on the buses in 2021 alone, instead of receiving payment for these bookings, Darwin began loaning them out under a third condition – that the user donates to KidSport Warman.

Combined, the three buses were used over 100 times in 2021 alone, ranging from weddings to minor sports, from ski and fishing trips to transporting seniors, and everything in between.

Darwin was able to raise approximately $16,000 for Warman KidSport through all these bookings. His pace for 2022 is similar, if not better.

This is not an easy, cost-effective service Darwin has generously provided without hesitation for the community. To him, the goal is not to make money, but to raise it.

His humility and generosity have touched the lives of everyone from youth to seniors in Warman. And, his donations to KidSport have helped make sports more accessible to all youth in the community.

Darwin has played a large part in bringing the tight-knit community of Warman even closer together.

So again, the City would like to congratulate Darwin Davis on being named the 2021 Diamond Citizen of the Year!

Volunteer of the Year: Rob Obrigewitch

The City of Warman and Warman City Council are excited to announce the recipient of the Volunteer of the Year is Rob Obrigewitch! 

Just like all past winners of this award, Rob is the definition of what it means to be dedicated and community-minded.

Rob’s 2021 saw him gravitate towards the volunteer tasks that are often tougher, less glamourous and less sought-after to ensure they run smoothly.

The most strenuous task was Rob’s role as scheduler for Warman Minor Hockey Association. This accounted for approximately 400 hours as he adjusted schedules for all 49 minor hockey teams. The scheduler also needs to allow adequate ice time left over for other programs to schedule their own seasons. Outside of that, Rob’s scheduling experience was used to helps plan camps, 3-on-3, and to serve as a liaison for WMHA as they work with Warman Osler Skating Club and Warman Ringette Association to determine if ice allocations need adjusting from year to year. This was Rob’s fourth season as WMHA’s scheduler.

Within WMHA, Rob was also on the coaching staff of two teams, score clock/scorekeeping at AAA Wildcats games, and organized an offseason skating program in August.

Rob also was an umpire for the year-end Slo-Pitch tournament, working over 10 games in a weekend.

And, Rob’s volunteerism extended into Warman Ultimate Cheerleading events as well – he drove the pickup shuttle, among other tasks.

Rob has invested – and continue to invest – a massive amount of time and effort into Warman. This has been incredibly generous and selfless. The community is grateful for his efforts.

Though he doesn’t volunteer for the accolades or recognition, the work he does behind the scenes still deserves to have the spotlight shone on it.

So again, the City would like to congratulate Rob Obrigewitch on being named the 2021 Volunteer of the Year.

Group of the Year: Diamond BMX Club

The City of Warman and Warman City Council are excited to announce the recipient of the Group of the Year is Diamond BMX Club!

After an impressive first two years as a club – and despite facing many COVID-related challenges for their volunteer board – adaptation and determination brought many big moments for Diamond BMX in 2021.

Their membership soared from approximately 35 members in 2020 to over 110 in 2021. Last year was also the first season Diamond BMX fielded a high-performance team. This team represented their club and our city very well in many events, including some against inter-provincial competition.

Within their weekly events around the province, Diamond BMX hosted several very notable ones here in Warman – home to a world class facility that is the best BMX track in the province. Their volunteer group hosted a very well-run Saskatchewan Cup Grands and Championships – an equivalent to provincials. They also hosted the first-annual “Flash Classic” in memory of the late Jamie “the Flash” Holtorf, who was a notable name within the Saskatchewan BMX community. For these two events especially, the amount of behind-the-scenes efforts and attention to detail with event planning really shone through. These two events, along with a day of coaching from Olympian Tory Nyhaug, were also highlighted provincially on TV, which helped showcase the club’s passion and our community in a very positive light.

Out of the spotlight, even more track upgrades were made by their volunteer members during 2021. They received and re-finished bleachers, and secured sponsorship for sod and grass to be planted around the track. These will be welcome additions to the race day atmosphere in the years to come.

The City would like to thank Diamond BMX President, Niall Schofield, and members of the club for the tireless efforts that have brought a new, high-level sport to our community. The club’s efforts to host amazing events and show tremendous sportsmanship while competing don’t go unnoticed. We’re grateful to have a volunteer-run group like theirs in Warman.

Diamond BMX is in store for an even bigger 2022, as they continue preparing to host a stop on the Canada Cup circuit in August. The City looks forward to welcoming this national event to our community.

Legendary Group Award: Warman Minor Hockey Association

The City of Warman and Warman City Council are excited to announce the recipient of the Legendary Group Award is Warman Minor Hockey Association!

Where there’s a legendary group, there’s usually a lengthy, rich history behind it. WMHA was established in the 1966-67 season. In their inaugural season, they had just over 50 members and a small executive of two to three volunteers. In the early days, players and volunteers had to scrape and clean the ice between periods at Diamond Arena. If a flood was needed, out came the barrel and rug.

In the 90s, WMHA grew to over 150 members. The executive rose to eight members with two division administrators per age group.

Similar to the city as a whole, WMHA was poised to skyrocket in population. From 2005-15, WMHA membership more than doubled from approximately 200 players to 450. Thankfully, The Legends Centre was built and aided in the growth.

Then, from 2016 until today, another 250 players joined WMHA – 696 players and 49 teams in total. They also now have 17 executive members and two paid positions. As well, there are approximately 400 volunteer managers, coaches, trainers, helpers, treasurers, planners, etc. that volunteer between dozens and hundreds of hours each season to ensure players can keep playing.

WMHA is one of the most prominent and brightest member clubs within Hockey Saskatchewan. They are also one of the amazing pillars of sport in our community. We are proud and grateful of how their members and executive represent our city.

We are thankful for the efforts they have invested to ensure WMHA continues to be a fantastic program for youth in our community. It’s important our youth have many options to reap the rewards that team sports and group activities in general have to offer.

Future Leader Award Winner: Brigette Montgrand

The City of Warman and Warman City Council are excited to announce that the recipient of this year’s Future Leader Award is Brigette Montgrand!

Brigette has been an exemplary student, volunteer and role model for youth in the community.

In 2021, Brigette gave a helping hand in making sure many events and programs were a success:

• She is a member of the Warman High School SRC; she has helped plan the 2022 graduation ceremony, collected donations and many other tasks.
• She was an important part of the Summer Fun Program through the Warman Recreation & Community Services Department.
• She helped run activities at The Legends Centre during our Canada Day celebration.
• She worked at children’s birthday parties at The Legends Centre.
• She was a game-day volunteer selling tickets at AAA Wildcats games.
• As a senior member in dance, she has helped give tips and mentor younger members so they succeed and gain confidence.
• And she helped behind the scenes with set and costume design for Warman High School’s musical.

To have such a lengthy list of community involvement in a difficult year for activities shows Brigette’s passion for the community.

Brigette is about to graduate from Warman High School. Following in the theme of being a Future Leader, Brigette is set to attend the University of British Columbia starting in the fall. There, she will work to get a bachelor’s degree out of the Sauder School of Business, before transitioning into the Peter A. Allard School of Law with aspirations of becoming a criminal defense lawyer.

Brigette, we are thankful for the efforts you have invested into the community.

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City of Warman 2020 Volunteer Appreciation Awards & Winners

DIAMOND CITIZEN AWARD: Congratulations to the City of Warman 2020 Diamond Citizen of the Year, Barrie Redford! 

Barrie founded the Warman Community band in 2000. He has applied his musical and teaching experience to countless hours of instruction, sourcing music and practice space, conducting rehearsals, organizing community concerts, and sharing his love of music with others. As a conductor, his bandmates describe him as a great musician, and a patient, creative educator. The Warman Community Band (celebrating its 20-year anniversary this year) thoroughly appreciates Barrie’s leadership.

LEGENDARY GROUP AWARD: Congratulations to Warman Community Association, the City of Warman’s 2020 Legendary Group of the Year!

The Warman Community Association is a non-profit, volunteer-run group that puts on events to raise funds and lends a volunteer hand when needed. They have been serving Warman in numerous ways since 1956. Recipients of contributions from Warman Community association include Warman High School scholarships, buddy benches for Warman Elementary School, Prairie Oasis gazebo, Brian King Centre, Warman Fire Rescue, Warman Food Bank, and the Legends Centre.

VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR: The City of Warman 2020 Volunteer of the Year is Cam Kayter!

For Cam, volunteering is a way for him to share his passion for encouraging youth to excel in both sports and in life. Cam leads coach and player development with the Warman Minor Hockey Association. In 2019, he coached the Warman Wildcats Peewee AA hockey team, leading them to win the Centre Four Hockey League and the Northern Provincial finals, culminating with the Saskatchewan Hockey Association Peewee AA championship. These young athletes have benefitted from Cam’s leadership, learning the importance of teamwork, responsibility, goal setting, accountability, and how to overcome challenges. These are life lessons that are very important for kids to learn, so thank you Cam for your hard work and dedication to sports and recreation in the City of Warman.

The 2020 Volunteer of the Year award is sponsored by aodbt Architecture and Interior Design.

GROUP OF THE YEAR: The Warman History Committee is the 2020 Group of the Year! 

The Warman History Committee prominently represents our city’s past with its maintenance of historical displays at the Legends Centre and has made significant contributions to the arts and culture scene, especially with the undertaking of the research, story collection, and photo sourcing for a local history book project. It is a massive project and the volunteers of the committee have done a great job getting it off the ground.

FUTURE LEADER AWARD: The 2020 City of Warman Future Leader is Adam Fenner! 

Adam is a friend of Warman Fire Rescue – always helping with breakfasts, barbeques, and open houses – and recently completed his first responder training. When he’s not at the fire hall, Adam is at the rink either playing hockey or reffing! He is not a stranger to being recognized for his community involvement: when Adam was in grade 9 he earned a citizenship award for his volunteering. Adam is a flight leader with his air cadets’ squadron, winning a sportsmanship award in 2019, and now teaches new cadets wilderness survival skills.

LEGACY RECOGNITION: It is with great honor that the City of Warman remembers an individual of our community who spent valuable hours volunteering throughout her lifetime. We are pleased to present a Legacy Recognition of Catharine Braun as part of the 2020 volunteer appreciation awards. A plaque commemorating Catharine’s memory will be installed on a city bench as an everlasting tribute.

Catharine was a lovely person who gave hours of her time to many different causes and groups in the community. For years, Catharine operated a daycare, creating a fun, nurturing place for children to play and learn. This connection with families resulted in a flood of graduation and wedding invites through the years!

Catharine enjoyed working at the Warman Thrift Store and with various church activities. She was a gentle and kind woman who loved to visit with everyone. Along with her husband, she meticulously cared for the Warman Cemetery for decades. Catharine Braun left the City of Warman a better place.

VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER OF THE YEAR: The City of Warman is pleased to announce the 2020 Volunteer Firefighter of the Year is Brian Revet!

Brian joined Warman Fire Rescue in 1989 and is a fully certified firefighter and first responder. He’s been an integral part of the firefighting team, whether it’s through his repainting of old fire trucks to make them look new again, or teaching first aid to high school students and kids in the babysitting course.

In 1996 Brian became one of the first Automated External Defibrillator (AED) instructors in the province. He created the first-ever first responder group in Saskatchewan, and today there are over 100 others. Brian has competed and earned medals in many first responder competitions across the province. He is a regular volunteer at Red Cross blood drives in the City of Warman, as well as with Remembrance Day ceremonies, pancake breakfasts, and BBQs!