Society Awards

  • To recognize and honour the outstanding achievements and commitments of individuals and organizations in the promotion and preservation of our heritage or related activities
  • To recognize the importance of volunteers in achieving The Society's Mission and Objectives.
  • Volunteers are nominated in one of three categories: Citations of Recognition Award, Award of Merit, Robert Crawford Community Service Award

Award Categories

Deadline for all Society Awards is MAY 1st of any given year. Awards are presented at the OGS Annual General Meeting held in June each year.

Members and Branches are encouraged to submit the names of Ontario Ancestors/OGS members who:

  • have provided a minimum of five (5) years of service to the Society;
  • have shown leadership in the Society;
  • have shown tangible contributions to the Society beyond the local Branch; and/or
  • have furthered the cause of genealogy in Ontario.

This award is normally restricted to five (5) or six (6) recipients per year. Please submit your nomination and supporting documentation on the online nomination form below. Deadline for submissions is MAY 1st. Awards are presented at the Ontario Ancestors/OGS Annual General Meeting held in June each year.

Members of Ontario Ancestors/OGS in good standing may nominate a Branch, Special Interest Group or outside organization or institution for this award. This award is presented to:

  1. a Branch or Special Interest Group of the Society which has taken leadership in a project that is useful to family historians outside their geographic scope, or contributed to a special project which lies beyond the Branch or Special Interest Group’s regular participation in Society activities, and is of interest to researchers across the province;
  2. an organization or institution whose contributions have been of benefit to the whole of the Society by:
    • Digitizing and/or preserving a group of documents of interest to researchers outside their geographic location;
    • Making their records available online;
    • Creating a finding aid or index to a large group of records of interest to researchers outside their geographic location; and/or
    • Or another reason justified in their nomination
  3. a new library or museum offering information of interest to researchers outside their geographic location.

The information from the Branch or Special Interest Group project, or from the outside organization or institution, MUST be accessible to the public either online or in a location accessible to the public.

The Robert Crawford Community Service Award recognizes OGS members who have served the various genealogical and heritage communities of which they are a part — whether they be geographic, organizational or any other construct the term Community might imply — reaching beyond the parameters of the OGS Mission and Objectives. It is presented in honour and memory of Ontario Genealogical Society Past President Robert “Bob” Crawford, who exemplified the best of Community Service. The history of the award and Bob Crawford can be found here.

Purpose

To recognize and encourage contributions of Community Service to the genealogical and heritage sector and to the broader community beyond the parameters of our Society mission and objectives.

Eligibility

Any current OGS member who has been a member in good standing for a minimum of five (5) years

Criteria

Has acted in a volunteer capacity within the last ten (10) years in one or more substantive ways within the Ontario Genealogical Society at either or both of the local or provincial levels. (This may also include service at the Regional level if the years in consideration fall within the time period prior to the dissolution of the Society Regions on 3 May 2014 due to a change in governance structure); and,

Has performed Community Service in the broader community within the past ten (10) years.

Nomination Process

Nominations may be submitted by any OGS member or non-member who has knowledge of the nominee’s volunteer service as outlined in the criteria.

Nominators must submit the nomination below, describing how the nominee meets the criteria, along with letters of support from other individuals or organizations having benefited from the Community Service provided by the nominee, or by email using the same headings and required information.

Nominations must be received electronically by May 1st of any given year.

Nominees not selected may have their names submitted again in following years.

Award

This award to be presented to one (1) OGS member each year.

Recipients may receive the award only once in their lifetime but might be nominated for Honorary Recognition in future years if their active Society and Community Service continues and warrants such recognition.

Annual Recipient’s name is acknowledged on the Society’s website (with permission of honoree).

Annual Recipient receives a “keeper” award.

Annual Recipient and Honorary Recognition Recipient(s) receive a certificate outlining the service for which they are being honoured: The Robert Crawford Community Service Award/Presented to _____________________/year/for volunteerism with (state organizations), etc.

Presentation

To occur at the annual OGS Awards Presentation

**OGS Awards Committee reserve MUST be accessible to the public either online or in a location accessible to the public.

Ontario Ancestors/OGS acknowledges that Branches and Special Interest Groups (SIGs) may be changing their communications with their members; Branches/SIGs may be using monthly emails to communicate with their members instead of or as well as a newsletter. Both forms of communication are eligible for submission to the Newsletter Award.

Branches and SIGs are asked to submit their best newsletter issue or monthly email for the previous calendar year by May 1  (for example – a 2017 newsletter would be submitted for the 2018 award). This may be in either print or electronic form. Newsletter or monthly email nominations may be submitted using the online nomination form.

The Awards Committee acknowledges the differences between a newsletter or monthly email for a ‘bricks & mortar’ group and a ‘virtual’ group.  Each group communicates with their members, but their purposes and content differ.  A virtual group does not need to provide information on meeting places as all meetings are virtual (usually) and no information is required about their library or research room (usually).  A ‘bricks & mortar’ website should include that information.  Newsletters also include articles of interest to their Branch/SIG members.  Monthly emails may or may not include articles.  Both should include notices or information about the Branch/SIG, local heritage happenings and/or information about other items of interest to their members.  Some examples are other Branch/SIG happenings, local library updates, local genealogical, historical or heritage society news, Ontario Ancestor/OGS news, etc. ST be accessible to the public either online or in a location accessible to the public.

OGS/Ontario Ancestors wants to acknowledge the talent and dedication of volunteer webmasters who create websites for their Branch or SIG.  The Awards Committee acknowledges the differences between a website for a ‘bricks & mortar’ group and a ‘virtual’ group.  Each group has a website, but their purposes and content may differ.  A ‘virtual’ group does not need to provide information on meeting places as all meetings are virtual (usually) and no information is required about their library or research room (usually).  A ‘bricks & mortar’ website should include that information. 

Both types of websites need to identify who they are, what they do, have a Search box, a Members Only section, and a way to contact the group.  Websites should also include information on upcoming meetings.  Most importantly, the websites need to be up-to-date and ensure all weblinks are working. 

No application is required for this Award as each year the Awards Committee reviews every Branch and SIG website.  The winning website will have the honour of having the “Best Ontario Ancestors Website” for the current year graphic to display.

Questions? Email the Awards Committee at [email protected].

* The Awards Committee reserves the right not to present an award in any given year should suitable candidates not be nominated.

Award Nomination Form

All submissions and nominations can be submitted using the online form below using the dropdown menu to select each award. If nominating for more than one award, please fill our one form for each nomination.