2006 Recipients of the Medal of Merit

Dr. Sheldon Cameron

Dr. Sheldon R. Cameron has lived a life dedicated to providing care for Islanders trapped in a world of despair.

As an aggressive, forthright, and compassionate leader in the field of addictions care, Dr. Cameron has bettered the lives of thousands of his fellow citizens. A career spent in the service of those less fortunate has garnered Dr. Cameron the affection and respect of his patients, peers, and fellow Islanders.

Dr. Cameron has taken a leadership role in the struggle against the hold that addictions assert on so many of his fellow citizens of Prince Edward Island. Bringing together doctors, pharmacists, health care workers, as well as those in the realm of justice and community services to battle a common foe, Dr. Cameron has been a driving force in education, program development, and legislation on the local, provincial, and even the national level.

In a long and distinguished career, Dr. Sheldon has received recognition from many and varied organizations. The Canadian Centre of Substance Abuse presented him with its Award of Distinction; he was named Summerside’s Citizen of the Year; was presented the Harry T. Holman Award for Outstanding Volunteer Efforts at the Prince County Hospital; awarded the Mayor’s Medal of Honour; the Canadian Medical Association’s Senior Member’s Award, and was named a United Nations Global Citizen for his volunteer and professional contributions to peace, health, and society. The Prince Edward Island Medical Society recognized Dr. Cameron with a life membership for his professional contributions to anaesthesiology, geriatrics, and addiction services, and with his wife Isabel he shares the YMCA Peace Award.

Dr. Cameron has been instrumental in bringing together policy advisors, stakeholders, and government officials to promote the need for more services for prescription drug addicts. His tireless efforts in addiction education have led to a far better understanding of the scope and far-reaching effects of this issue on the Island.

Beyond education, Dr. Cameron’s efforts have led to tangible program changes and the establishment of support and recovery groups. He has brought together volunteers and the business community to improve programs at the St. Eleanor’s Halfway House, and to encourage community inclusion of the house and its residents.

Dr. Cameron has been a pioneer in dealing with issues facing an aging population. His work in the field of geriatrics has been recognized by his peers in the medical community as extraordinary. His efforts to ensure that the elderly have a much improved quality of life has had a profound impact on many Island families.

Dr. Sheldon Cameron has devoted much of a distinguished career to the service of those in our society who are most vulnerable. His forceful leadership and dedicated efforts on behalf of our less fortunate citizens mark him as an exceptionally worthy recipient of the Order of Prince Edward Island.

Honourable Barbara A. Hagerman, O.P.E.I. (Chancellor: 2006-2011)

The Honourable Barbara A. Hagerman was the 40th Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Prince Edward Island since the creation of the colony in 1769 and the twenty-seventh since Confederation. The installation ceremony was held on July 31, 2006.

Ms. Hagerman was born in Hartland, New Brunswick on February 9, 1943. She received her early education in New Brunswick and graduated from Mount Allison University in 1965, where she specialized in voice and organ. Barbara Hagerman has had a distinguished forty year performance and teaching career which has included teaching in the Island school system, guest performances with the PEI Symphony, adjudicating Music Festivals in the Atlantic provinces, appearing in recitals and on local television.

In addition to her music career, Ms. Hagerman has volunteered in many areas of Island life, including the PEI Music Festival Association, figure skating, gymnastics, cubs and church, with a very special interest in helping seniors and children with special needs.

Formerly, Ms. Hagerman has served on the National Boards of the Federation of Canadian Music Festivals, the Canada Council, the Association of Canadian Choral Conductors and the Fathers of Confederation Buildings Trust. She is held in high regard by her professional colleagues and makes a positive impression on people she meets from all walks of life across Canada. She was host of a CBC Maritime-Radio School Broadcast, has appeared on Vision-TV with her choir and conducted the Summerside Community Choir at a Canadian Choral Celebration at Carnegie Hall, New York City in 1997.

Her life story is included in the book “In Their Own Words” by Holly Higgins Jonas.

She and her husband Nelson have two children; a son Kurt lives in the Cayman Islands with his wife Rupal and their two children Kyle and Asha; their daughter Brynne lives in Chilliwack.

Frank Ledwell

A revered teacher, an author, a poet, and a mentor to generations of Prince Edward Islanders, Frank J. Ledwell’s spirit is woven tightly into the Island cultural tapestry.

Born and raised in St. Peter’s Bay, Frank Ledwell’s story is inextricably linked with St. Dunstan’s. He attended there as a high school and college student, then returned to teach English and Math. After obtaining his Master of Arts from Notre Dame University, he returned to St. Dunstan’s (later the University of Prince Edward Island) to teach English and Creative Writing. Frank Ledwell was appointed Chair of the English Department at that institution in the 1970's, and served as Dean of Arts from 1979 to 1983. He retired from teaching in 1996.

As a teacher, Frank Ledwell’s compassion for his students ran deeply. Thousands of students through the years came to view this modest, self-effacing man as not just a teacher and friend but a mentor. His work with promising Island writers continues to this day, and in his capacity as the Island’s Poet Laureate he has dedicated his efforts to celebrating and encouraging talented Islanders who take pen to paper and express our joys, our hopes, our fears, and our triumphs.

Frank Ledwell’s passion for this Island runs thickly in his blood. His stories of growing up in St. Peter’s Bay with such characters as Dr. Roddie MacDonald, lawyer Lester O’Donnell and many others have brought life to Island stories and provided an important link between the now and the before.

As a storyteller both in private life and on stages across the province, Frank Ledwell has celebrated the unique character of this Island and her people, using language and humour to create a window into the soul of this place. His published works of prose and poem are a written testament to his deep and abiding passion for his home.

In 1988 Frank J. Ledwell became the first recipient of the Prince Edward Island Council of the Arts Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Literary Arts in this province. In 2004 he received the Charlottetown Rotary’s Mentor Award for his encouragement of promising writers. In that same year he was named the Island’s second Poet Laureate, which honours individuals who have made a major contribution to the literary life of Prince Edward Island.

Beyond the written word, Frank’s contribution to the Island runs to decades of coaching in sports, working with 4H organizations, and active membership in his church. His commitment to youth and his dedication to the artistic and cultural life of this Island make Frank Ledwell a fitting recipient of the Order of Prince Edward Island.

Dorothy Lewis

If the term “Pillar of the Community” had not been invented, it would have to be coined anew for Dorothy Lewis. A mother, a grandmother, a great-grandmother; an entrepreneur; and a selfless volunteer for countless worthy causes, Dorothy Lewis is the epitome of the Island spirit of generosity and dedication to community.

As an entrepreneur, Dorothy Lewis joined with her husband Frank in creating and operating several tourism-related ventures, including Stanhope Ice House and (with partners Virden and Eva Robinson) Vacationland Travel Park. From 1969 to 1984, Vacationland became one of the most popular and beautiful camping facilities on Prince Edward Island.

As a volunteer, her dedication and tireless work have been nothing short of inspirational for generations of Islanders. Dorothy Lewis became a driving force in her community and beyond with her efforts on behalf of York United Church Women, the York Women’s Institute, The Queen Elizabeth Hospital Auxiliary, and the CIBC Run for the Cure. Despite exhausting battles of her own with cancer, her spirit and leadership have never flagged.

A member of Alpha York Women’s Institute since 1955, she has chaired countless committees and served many terms in every responsible position within the organization. Her efforts were recognized in 1979 when she was named Prince Edward Island Women’s Institute Woman of the Year, and again in 1985 when she was named one of the first recipients of the Adelaide Hoodless Award for outstanding service to the Women’s Institute. Her Honorary Life Membership in Women’s Institute is testament to the regard in which she is held by that organization.

Her work with the Women’s Institute went hand in hand with her efforts on behalf of York United Church and the York United Church Women. A former elder and financial officer of the Church, she also sang in the choir for more than four decades. With the York United Church Women, she held every officer position in the organization at one time or another since it was first established in 1962. With this organization as well, her efforts earned her an Honorary Life Membership. Dorothy Lewis has been a volunteer, organizer, and leader of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Auxiliary since 1990. Twice named President of the Auxiliary, she has served on countless important committees and volunteered almost 5000 hours to further the aims of the organization.

Dorothy Lewis continues to live and add value to the community of York. At a time when many would rest, and despite her own health issues, she continues to give to her community and the Island through her work with the CIBC Run for the Cure, QEH Auxiliary, Women’s Institute, UCW, and personal kindness so familiar to her friends and neighbours.

Prince Edward Island is proud of its well-earned reputation as a place where generosity, hard work, and indomitable spirit are valued. Dorothy Lewis is the embodiment of those qualities, and a richly deserving recipient of the Order of Merit.