A three-time winner of a Jeanne Clarke Local History Award is now a four-time winner, and the latest trophy was for his entire body of work.
When the 34th annual Jeanne Clarke Local History Awards were handed out by the Prince George Public Library this week, the highlight of the night was their service award going to Trelle Morrow, a retired architect and tenacious documentarian of the region's history.
"Morrow's architectural career spanned 40 years and he designed such notable buildings as the former Prince George Citizen building on Brunswick Street and Sacred Heart Cathedral. He is an active member of the City of Prince George's Heritage Commission," said Amy Dhanjal, the library's communications coordinator.
Dhanjal also listed the past accolades Morrow has earned from that organization.
"He won (a Jeanne Clarke Award) in 2016 for Living Legacies: 100 Years of Prince George Architecture, in 2012 for The Grand Trunk Pacific and Other Fort George Stuff, and in 2010 for Aviation North: Flying Frontiers in Northern British Columbia. Among his other publications are Silent Passage: Life with Reaction Ferries; The Big Smoke: Social Reflections on Wood Burners; and Cataline: Packer Extraordinaire."
Valerie Giles, herself a two-time winner of the publication award, introduced Morrow and noted that "the citizens of Prince George know more about the city's history because of his work."
The library board of directors chose three authors for the publication category this year.
Helen Raptis accepted a Publication Award (Regional) on behalf of herself and members of the Tsimshian Nation for What We Learned: Two Generations Reflect On Tsimshian Education And The Day Schools.
"The book explores the influence of day schools on the lives of a group of Tsimshian people who originally lived near Prince Rupert. Raptis travelled from Victoria to attend the event," Dhanjal said.
Aaron Williams won a Publication Award (Regional) for Chasing Smoke: A Wildfire Memoir. Dhanjal said, "The memoir details the author's time and experience as a professional wildfire firefighter in Northern British Columbia with a specific focus on the 2014 forest fire season. Williams was unable to attend, but provided an acceptance speech via video."
A Publication Award (Local) was granted to Gwen and John Reimer for Ness Lake Bible Camp: A Statement Of Faith.
"The book documents the foundation and expansion of the camp and its contributions to the local history and community of Prince George," Dhanjal said.
The Jeanne Clarke Awards are presented annually "to individuals or groups for outstanding contributions in the preservation and promotion of local and regional history."
The award was established by the library board in 1985 in memory of former library board chair Jeanne Clarke. She was a founding member of the library's local history committee, "and played a key role in establishing the library's local history collection."
