The old saying “if you want something done give it to a busy person,” holds true with Doug and Glenna Smith.
Therein lies part of the reason the two were jointly named as 2011 Puslinch Seniors of the Year.
As part of the July 20 council session, Mayor Dennis Lever said, “It is my great pleasure this evening to present an award to the Senior of the Year for Puslinch Township.”
“It goes to two people. Council made this decision some time ago, but it’s taken a little bit of time to arrange the awards presentation.”
The presentation was halted briefly by a round of applause in the council chambers.
Lever said, “Doug and Glenna have three children – Cathy, Jim and Dale … Doug and Glenna have been married for 48 years and have lived in the village of Arkell for almost 47.” Lever quipped, “It makes one wonder what took you so long to move there.”
He added both are very active members of the Arkell Church. Glenna is the treasurer and involved with the United Church Women. She was also a long-time member and organizer of the Arkell Women’s Institute. Doug is a trustee and member of the choir.
Glenna is the secretery-treasurer and Doug sits on the Farnham Cemetery Board. They also coordinate burial and plot sales. She is currently the Federate Women’s Institute of Ontario advocacy coordinator.
Doug retired as Fire Chief of the Puslinch Fire Department in 2005, after serving 38 years.
Both are involved with the local Conservative Party Association, both provincially and federally. They are also both members of the Community Oriented Policing (COPs) committee – many of whom were there for the celebration. They love to travel and enjoy spending time with their family and friends.
Glenna quipped, “If someone had told me, I would’ve dressed up.”
Lever laughed. “The idea was, we couldn’t tell you.”
He added, this was council’s second attempt to present the award.
“Congratulations to both of you,” Lever added.
A comment from the audience was, “Who said you can’t keep secrets in Puslinch?”
Glenna said, “While I think there are a lot more deserving people out there, it’s wonderful to be recognized.” She added, “They managed to surprise us, very much so.”
