Castlegar’s Citizens of the Year for 2023 are Mike and Brenda Balahura.
The couple is known for their community-centred careers and wide range of volunteer work through the 43 years they have lived in Castlegar.
The annual award is organized by the Castlegar branch of the Knights of Columbus.
The Balahura’s received multiple nominations for the award and one nominator described them as ”exemplary examples of citizens who daily, tirelessly contribute to the well being of our community.”
“It is a bit embarrassing,” Mike told Castlegar News in an interview.”You don’t do this for the recognition or accolades. We are pleased to work with the people that we work alongside of in order to get things done in our community.”
The Balahuras say their volunteer work in turn is a gift to themselves as well.
“It keeps us active, it keeps us feeling young, it keeps us engaged in the community and with our friends.”
Mike is a retired school administrator who spent part of his career working in the special education field and helping integrate special needs students into local classrooms.
He has also served as the chair of the Kootenay Society for Community Living Board of Directors and has been a dedicated Rotarian for more than 20 years serving in various roles including committee chairperson and president.
He is also involved in the West Kootenay Flyfishing Club where he is known for openly sharing fishing tips.
Brenda is a retired educator and school librarian. She too has served as the Castlegar Sunrise Rotary’s president as well as leadership roles in Eastern Star and the Canadian Legion Auxiliary.
She is known for being hardworking and an excellent fundraiser.
Brenda says she wants to give back to a community that has given her and her children a good life.
You will see the couple’s fingerprints in everything from the December to Remember and Rotary Wine festivals to highway garbage clean up projects, Rotary youth exchanges and, most recently, a project to construct an outdoor basketball court.
Outside of the local community, the Balahuras are instrumental in the Help Honduras Society where Mike is the president.
The registered non-profit organization partners with Rotary clubs to provide educational opportunities and skills training to children and adults in Honduras as well as improving school conditions with things like toilets and hand washing stations.
The Balahuras have traveled to Honduras seven times to ensure that the money raised for the project goes where it is intended.
“When you go down there and you have people coming up to you and saying, ‘muchos gracias’ and you hear stories of young ladies that have gone to university and now have good jobs … If they hadn’t been sponsored, hadn’t gone to school, they would be selling trinkets or tortillas in a market,” said Mike.
“When you see that impact, it is easy to be passionate about it because you know the work that we have done, with all the other people involved, has made a difference.”
The Balahuras say they are touched that the people they work with wanted to recognize their contributions by nominating them for the award.
“We don’t do this alone,” said Mike. “We do this alongside a bunch of really good friends and people in the organizations that we work with and it is a gift back to us as well.”
The Balahuras will be honoured at a ceremony on Wednesday, May 29 at the Saint Rita’s Parish Hall (513 7th Ave.). The public is invited to attend and asked to arrive between 6:30 and 6:45 p.m to ensure guests are seated prior to the entry of the honorees.
RELATED:
Kay Jones is Castlegar’s 2022 Citizen of the Year
Castlegar seniors advocate Sandi McCreight named 2021 Citizen of the Year
