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

(2013) Recipient: Todd Ralph
Citation

Let me tell you a little bit about this year’s winner, who was lovingly nominated by his very proud daughter. She starts out by calling her Dad "amazing" - that’s something all Dad’s want to hear.

This will be his third time checking the Tely 10 off of his “To Do”. It all started January of 2010, when the folks at his office organized "The Biggest Loser" contest. He decided he’d join and then proceeded to work hard to lose weight - his family supported him as he went to the gym every day during his lunch break and then watched as he got into running and decided one day that he would start training for the Tely 10 Road Race. Not only did he lose an incredible amount of weight, but indeed yes... he did win the "Biggest Loser" contest at his office as well!

His family was there encouraging him on thru all his efforts. His daughter told us that he also inspired his wife to exercise more, and together they lost 100 lbs. That’s an admirable effort in itself.

In his first ever Tely 10, he crossed the finish line for the first time at 81 minutes. Apparently, to quote his daughter, “you could not find a bigger smile on anybody else like that ear-to-ear smile on his glowing face!”

This year’s winner has since inspired his daughter, son and wife to also participate in the Tely 10, so it’s become a bit of a family affair. In 2012, he broadened that reach by also encouraging two of his cousins, and one his good friends to join as well. Apparently the whole clan all crossed the finish line in under 2 hours, and Dad beat his time by 10 minutes, making an outstanding time of 71 minutes!

Thanks to her Dad, his daughter “now has the honor of saying ’I completed the Tely 10”. It is very rewarding, and to this day, we are all running and keeping active, entering in more races and having a great time doing it. All of the family hope to beat their personal records.

Not satisfied to stop there, he is even encouraging more people in his community to be active, as himself and my mom are part of the Paradise Running Club with more and more people joining and kept motivated by him and the rest of the crew.

His daughter said to us that "my dad is an amazing person, motivating people to do their best. He is one of the most inspirational people you will ever meet. I look up to him as a role model for pushing me to the top even though it may be hard, but he always finds a way to do it and look at the bright side of everything. If Dad can do it, so can I."

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