They come from different backgrounds, have had different experiences and are of different generations, but two southeast Saskatchewan residents have been honoured with Senate Canada 150 Medals.
George Sereggela of Estevan and Tony Day of Carnduff were presented with the medals on Dec. 8 at a ceremony at the Saskatchewan legislature. Each was recognized for their commitment to the community and success in their respective careers.
Sereggela was selected by Sen. Denise Batters to receive the honour. He said he was humbled by the recognition, a sentiment that he said was shared by many of the recipients.
“They all felt undeserving, and they called her and tried to persuade her to find someone more deserving, and I guess that’s very much how I felt as well,” said Sereggela, who said he tried to decline the award. “It’s certainly something I’ll cherish, but I have no doubt they could have found other more worthwhile recipients.”
He said the award was created to recognize those who have made a meaningful contribution to the community through volunteer work, contributions to non-profits, financial donations and professional success.
In Sereggela’s case, he is currently on the board for the Power Dodge Estevan Bruins and the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum. He has previously served on the board for the Estevan Chamber of Commerce and the Estevan Business Improvement District.
From a professional standpoint, Sereggela was on the Southeast Bar Association when he practised law, and now that he is in insurance, he sits on the board of the Insurance Brokers Association of Saskatchewan.
“There’s a need (for people to be involved),” said Sereggela. “The community has been good to my family and good to me, and when you see it, you don’t really think of it as a commitment. You think of it as living in the community and being part of the community.
“A professional association is much the same. We benefit from our professional associations, and you learn a lot. You learn a lot from other people that you’re involved on boards and associations with, and it’s a win-win.”
He believes he has taken something away from each of the activities that he has been a part of and the groups that he has been active in.
“I just find that you’re usually surrounded by equally well-meaning, hard-working and intelligent people, and it’s a pleasure to be around people who care and want to give back,” said Sereggela.
As for Tony Day, he was selected by Sen. David Tkachuk to receive the medal.
According to the biography on Day that was read out at the awards ceremony, Day started Fast Trucking in 1957. Initially it was a small business hauling fresh water to oil rigs using a Chevy water truck.
Fast Trucking, which is based out of Carnduff, has since become a big part of the southeast Saskatchewan oil patch.
“But now instead of moving water to the rigs, it moves the drilling rigs themselves and other related equipment,” his bio stated.
Day has been recognized on multiple occasions by his peers. Thanks to his success in the oil patch, he was named the Southeast Saskatchewan Oilman of the Year at the Saskatchewan Oil and Gas Show in Weyburn in 1999, and in 2009, he was inducted into the Saskatchewan Oil and Gas Hall of Fame.
The bio at last week’s ceremony noted that Day is also an active fundraiser in his home community, and for his generosity, the town’s medical clinic has been named the Tony Day Family Medal Clinic. Also, the community’s library is known as the Tony and Vi Day Resource Centre, in honour of Day and his wife.
The town’s arena, meanwhile, was renamed the Fast Centennial Arena a few years in honour of Fast Trucking’s support.
Sereggela said he had the pleasure of sitting next to Day at the ceremony.
“If you want to feel undeserving of something, it’s when you’re being honoured at the same time as someone of Tony’s stature,” said Sereggela. “I know he’d been a friend of my dad’s years ago, and I certainly enjoyed catching up with him.”
Sereggela said it was a short ceremony that was completed in about an hour, with a reception to follow. Both Batters and Tkachuk spoke on how this was an initiative the senate took this year, and Batters and Tkachuk thought it was important for the senate to recognize those who have been leaders in the community.
Not only does 2017 mark the 150th birthday of Canada, but it’s the 150th anniversary of the senate.
“They thought this would be a good initiative for the senate to undertake to recognize people who have made contributions to the communities,” said Sereggela.
A total of 18 medals were handed out that day at the legislature.
Sereggela noted that among the other recipients that day was former Saskatchewan premier Grant Devine, who served as the MLA for Estevan when he was premier from 1982 to 1991.
The Senate of Canada 150 Medal celebrates the 150th anniversary of the first sitting of the senate on Nov. 6, 1867. The medal was created to mark this important occasion and to give senators the opportunity to recognize Canadians.
All senators who were in good standing in the senate, up to Aug. 31, were eligible to nominate up to 12 recipients.
