• Awarded on: November 28, 2006

Hélène Wallingford Panalaks, Gatineau, Quebec
Governor General's Caring Canadian Award

A woman of courage and kindness, Hélène Wallingford Panalaks has devoted herself to aiding people in distress. In addition to organizing fundraising events for battered women and young single mothers facing hard times, she has helped new immigrants and refugees settle in Canada and has launched several community healthcare projects. In 1983, this former nurse founded the Association des femmes bahá'íes de Gatineau to support women's social equality and empowerment. She has spent over 30 years promoting Thai culture in Canada and has volunteered abroad with her husband to work with impoverished communities in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Through her community endeavours at home and abroad, Mrs. Wallingford Panalaks continues to translate into action her personal motto: "La terre n'est qu'un seul pays" (This planet is one big country).