December 4th Calgary – Century Homes Calgary receives the Governor General’s History Award for Excellence in Community Programming

The Governor General’s History Award for Excellence in Community Programming was created by Canada’s History Society (http://www.canadashistory.ca/) to recognize programming developed by volunteer-led heritage, community and cultural organisations at the
grassroots level, the award judges considered a variety of criteria when evaluating the submissions, including audience reach, historical research and innovation. According to Joanna Dawson, community engagement coordinator of Canada’s History Society, Century Homes Calgary stood out because of its significant impact on the community, both in terms of the number of participants in the project, and the number of those benefitting from the legacy of the research in future years.

As you may be aware, 508 historic homes in 30 communities participated in Century Homes Calgary. The project focused on homes constructed during Calgary’s first building boom, which peaked in 1912, with people celebrating their home’s 100th birthday in a citywide event.

The projects intention was to increase awareness and appreciation of Calgary’s heritage homes by engaging the people who live in them. The number of people who signed up to do research and display their passion for their Century Homes with signs and banners was overwhelming.

The Alberta Real Estate Foundation is proud to have supported this project in its first year.

Executive Director Cheryl De Paoli commends the award by saying “Century Homes Calgary is an innovative project that got communities and the public engaged with the history of homes and neighbourhoods in Calgary. A well deserved recognition indeed.

Plans are underway for a 2013 round of Century Homes in Calgary.