Saskatchewan Centennial Leadership Awards
Heath minister John Nilson presented Saskatchewan Centennial Leadership Awards to two Lung Association volunteers at the Association’s annual general meeting on April 6, 2005 in Regina.
Marilyn Reddy of Regina was recognized for over 30 years of work in promoting lung health in Saskatchewan. Sarah Glowa of Saskatoon was recognized as future leader of lung health promotion.
Marilyn Reddy has worked in health care throughout her career and continues to contribute to respiratory health during her retirement.
She was an emergency department nurse serving Prince Albert and Regina from 1962-76.
In 1977, she was the first Employee Health Nurse hired by the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool and established an Occupational Health Service for the employees. Concerns about the effect of grain dust on the lungs was high. For twenty years, Marilyn worked very hard to establish surveillance programs to monitor the respiratory health of workers. She advocated for dust control systems in the elevators and the use of personal respiratory protective devices. She travelled extensively around the province counselling workers about their health, and encouraging smoking cessation. She worked closely with the Lung Association and the University in programs of respiratory health monitoring and research.
Marilyn served as the president of the Saskatchewan Occupational Health Nurses. She was active in helping to set standards for occupational health nursing in Saskatchewan.
In 1984, Marilyn became a member of the Lung Association Board of Directors. She provided leadership on various committees. She is currently Vice Chair of the Lung Association of Saskatchewan. She received several awards from the Lung Association including its highest honour, the Ken More Award, in 2000.
In view of the lifetime of work Marilyn has devoted to health in general and respiratory health in particular, and in view of her outstanding commitment to the work of the Lung Association, we are pleased to nominate Mrs. Marilyn S. Reddy for the Saskatchewan Centennial Leadership Award.
Sarah Glowa’s contributions to lung health are exemplary of an attitude of wanting to “give back”
Sarah has lived with severe asthma for most of her life. She first attended Asthma Camp as a camper. And a model camper she was: enthusiastic, energetic and caring. When she was no longer of age to attend camp as a camper she volunteered each summer to work as a counsellor-in-training and then as a counsellor.
The career path she chose was influenced by her many personal experiences with doctors, nurses and the rest of the medical team; emergency visits and hospitalizations. She entered the College of Nursing and further volunteered to work with the camp medical team as a student nurse. Following graduation she became employed by Royal University Hospital as a pediatric intensive care nurse. And yes, she continued her volunteer spirit by working at the camp as a registered nurse.
Sarah will always be a “special” volunteer to Asthma Camp – helping those young children benefit from the same experiences that have helped shape who she is.
The Saskatchewan Centennial Leadership Award is a way to recognize those who have contributed and those who will continue to contribute to the future of organizations throughout the province.
