Congratulations to eight Quinte Ballet School volunteers who received Volunteer Service Awards from the Province on March 24, 2021 at a virtual ceremony. Award recipients included Dan Atkinson, Karen Bond, Mayanna Deryaw, Cameron Galway, Bob House, Shae Jones, Helen Kelly and Shirley Rogers.
Belleville resident, Helen Kelly received a 40 year Volunteer Service Award from the Province in recognition of her support for Quinte Ballet School. Kelly said “I have derived great satisfaction from each of those years, furthering the art of ballet and building this remarkable school. It is a veritable gem in the Quinte Region.” Helen Kelly was among the original members of the Belleville branch of the National Ballet Guild of volunteers that helped to increase public awareness of ballet in the Quinte Region. Helen is a founding member of the Guild who were instrumental in bringing Founding Artistic Director, Brian Scott to teach in Belleville and serves as an ex officio member of Quinte Ballet School’s Board of Directors. The annual Helen Kelly Award recognizes the achievements of QBSC students in their final year of studies.
The Province’s Volunteer Service awards also recognized Quinte Ballet youth volunteers Mayanna Deryaw, Cameron Galway, and Shae Jones.
Belleville photographer Bob House received a 20 year Volunteer Service Award from the Province and has been a supporter of Quinte Ballet School in various ways, from shooting photos of all school performances, special events, helping with fundraisers and serving on QBSC’s Board of Directors.
Karen Bond received a 10 year Volunteer Service Award in recognition of her contribution to QBSC’s wardrobe. A highly skilled seamstress, Karen has helped to design, adapt and repair costumes that have been worn by hundreds of students in QBSC’s annual shows and community events.
Other recipients of Volunteer Service Awards included Dan Atkinson and Shirley Rogers. Dan Atkinson, QBSC’s Treasurer, is a Chartered Accountant and retired partner at Welch & Company who has served on many arts boards in the region – Heritage Belleville, Quinte Arts Council and Hastings County Historical Society. Shirley Rogers has played many volunteer roles at Quinte Ballet School from organizing the school’s extensive archives to getting involved with Gala fundraisers, chaperoning students as they toured The Nutcracker and Spring Showcase to Kingston, Toronto, Hamilton and London, working backstage helping with costumes and makeup, billeting students in the professional training program and chairing the Board of Directors.
