Delta council presented their 2022 Heritage Awards to the Delta Optimist and the authors of Lord Don’t Want Me, Devil Won’t Take Me for their contributions to the community’s heritage on Monday afternoon.
Mayor George Harvie and Coun. Jeannie Kanakos presented the Optimist with the 2022 Heritage Award of Merit at the North Delta Centre for the Arts on March 7 in recognition of the newspaper’s 100th anniversary this year and for their contributions to the community and Delta’s heritage.
They also presented authors Jim Dwight and Gary Cullen with the 2022 Friends of Heritage Award for their book exploring the life of Tsawwassen’s Pansy May Stuttard who ran illegal alcohol and sex work operations out of her lodge in Tsawwassen during the 1920s and 1930s.
All the proceeds from the book’s sales go to the Delta Heritage Society.
“I’m really proud of the awards and of their recipients who work in our community,” said Kanakos.
The Optimist received a bronze plaque and certificate for their award and the co-authors of Lord Don’t Want Me, Devil Won’t Take Me received certificates for their award following a round of handshakes and congratulations.
“It’s really exciting to be part of the heritage commission at this time – I know I’m just there in the interim while Coun. Lois Jackson is on leave, but it’s such a great commission, such a wealth of knowledge ... They really were the ones behind the awards so I thank them for their time in putting together the subcommittee to pick those winners,” added Coun. Alicia Guichon.
The Optimist currently operates out of the historic Ladner Baptist Church building at 47A Ave. and Delta St., with the building itself being given the Heritage Award of Merit in 2003.
If you’re interested in learning more about Tsawwassen’s Pansy May Stuttard in Lord Don’t Want Me, Devil Won’t Take Me, it’s available for purchase at Black Bond Books in Ladner or online at Blurb Books Canada.
