Debbie Raymond said that it was all just a really good idea backed up by a really good friend and a whole lot of people.
Raymond is receiving a special Community Spirit Leadership Award from the Community Information and Volunteer Centre for her work behind the campaign called St. Albert United in Light.
“I’m extremely humbled … and a little overwhelmed,” she admitted. “For me, it was just about healing a community and giving people an avenue to show our first responders how important they are. I was only the facilitator.”
Immediately after the tragic RCMP shooting on Jan. 17, she was inspired to decorate the city in white ribbons and her friend, Tara McCormick was right there all the way.
“I couldn’t have done this without her. We did it together. She put in as many hours as I did,” she stated. “She’s just a beautiful person throughout. Just an amazing person.”
Together, they spent several 20-hour days on the work that eventually saw hundreds of city trees bedecked with white ribbons, the symbol that she said means “community spirit.” They also dealt with the widespread media interest that came from all over the country.
“It was very crazy.”
She also thanked the Ribbon Factory, the Edmonton business that donated a large supply of white ribbon to continue the campaign, as well as Peggy Lynkowski, Sandra Campbell, Keri Demetrioff, Denis Lefebvre, Cindy Upton, Sharon Gregresh and the “hundreds and hundreds” of people who came together to make it all happen.
“I did nothing. I came up with an idea. It was the community and the volunteers standing behind me that made this successful.”
Glynis Thomas, executive director at the CIVC, confirmed that the volunteer agency, along with the city itself, wanted to offer a special thank you to the woman who started the ball rolling.
“We felt that Debbie needed to be recognized and appreciated. I believe that we felt at the time that we were disconnected, that we wanted as a community to be able to come together in a meaningful way. Debbie brought us together, and gave us all as individuals the opportunity to be able to demonstrate our support for our RCMP.”
“It was incredible what happened with the volunteers in our community. It demonstrates their incredible strength, their incredible resilience, their incredible ability to be able to come together when necessary, when the community needs them.”
McCormick will receive her award during the Volunteer Citizen of the Year ceremony on May 2.
