THE DR. JOHN P. WILLIAMS AWARD

Presented in memory of Dr. John P. Williams to the Tely 10 participant who has inspired others through enthusiastic and spirited participation in the annual Telegram 10 Mile Road Race.

Citations for Recipients

(2022) Recipient: Florence Barron
Citation

This year’s winner of the Dr. John P. Williams award is an inspirational, well-known local runner who has been referred to as an “Octogenarian Record-Breaker” by Impact Magazine…. That might give you a pretty strong hint, in fact.

While she was an active wife and mom, raising five children, she didn’t dedicate herself to running regularly until the age of 59…. An age when many seasoned runners might begin easing back on a rigorous running schedule. As her nominator said…. “She doesn’t just like to run, she likes to win,”… and to prove that point, she is credited with 15 first-place wins in a variety of age categories during her 22 years running the Tely 10. That’s right…. This 84-year-old powerhouse has now run 23 Tely 10’s, including today’s edition. It must be noted that at the age of 79, yes 79, she had one of her best Tely 10’s ever…. finishing in 87 minutes!! That’s a wicked time for any age category, wouldn’t you agree?

She’s got good advice for any first-timers to the Tely 10 today as well…. Don’t be like her….. she ran her first Tely with no particular preparatory training. …. But she’s been laser-focused, using cross-training and weight training to strengthen her muscles and cardio endurance ever since.

Countless Tely 10 participants over the past 22 years have been inspired by our own “celebrity runner”… she’s gotten national media profile in the process. Chatelaine magazine, Impact Magazine, and Running World, to name just a few.

This woman is widely respected and admired among the dedicated runner community…. She’s a cheerleader, a long-time road-race and community events volunteer, a devoted participant and a mentor to many runners who are significantly younger than herself. She’s known to offer timely words of support and encouragement to those who might be having an off day in their training regimes…. Tely 10 Kate Bazeley admires her, referring to the winner as a “role model and inspiration to her,”… and she has faith that one day the winner could just run a world-class time. We’ll be cheering her on that day for sure!!

Please welcome to the stage, with a totally appropriate huge round of applause, the 2022 Dr. John P. Williams award winner for “enthusiastic and spirited participation” in the Tely 10… the one and only Florence Barron.

Please come on up, Florence.

To be eligible for this award, the candidate:

must have participated in the Tely 10 road race at least once
must have specifically motivated others to participate in the Tely 10, either by walking or running or as a wheelchair participant
must by participation in the Tely 10 have inspired and motivated others to become physically active

The candidate may be someone who:

began regular exercise at an advanced age
overcame a serious emotional or physical challenge in life
or began exercising while recovering from a serious or life-threatening illness

Submission deadline

Nominations must be sent to Patricia Williams by Monday, June 10, 2024.
Please send the nomination via email in Microsoft Word format or Portable Document Format (PDF). Please ensure that the following information is submitted along with the nomination:
1. Nominee
  - Name
  - Address
  - City/Town
  - Province & Postal Code
  - Telephone
2. Nominator
  - Name
  - Address
  - City/Town
  - Province & Postal Code
  - Telephone
  - E-mail
3. Reason for the nomination
4. Date & Signature of Nominator

Nominations