LAURIE WEIR

He gave his time freely, made friends easily, and never stopped helping people. In recognition of his legacy, John “Bud” Fawcett’s name will now grace the town’s senior activity centre.

Smiths Falls council has officially voted to rename the town’s Seniors Activity Building in honour of longtime community volunteer and advocate.

During its regular meeting on Monday, June 23, council supported renaming the municipal facility to the Bud Fawcett Memorial Senior Activity Centre, located at 61 Cornelia St. W., following a formal naming process that included public and staff consultation.

Clerk Kerry Costello noted that four public submissions were received in favour of naming the facility the Bud Fawcett Seniors Centre, two preferred Bud Fawcett Memorial Senior Activity Centre, and one submission supported the name Bud Fawcett and Friends Senior Activity Centre.

Coun. Jennifer Miller noted the family’s preference for that name. “I’ve received word from Bud’s family that their choice would be the Bud Fawcett Memorial Senior Activity Centre, and I want to honour that,” she said.

Coun. Jay Brennan echoed her remarks, adding that others in the community had expressed the same preference, including Ronnie Hughes, a close friend of the Fawcett family who was in attendance at the meeting.

The decision capped off a month-long process launched after a request was submitted to rename the building in recognition of Fawcett, who passed away in April. The application was reviewed under the town’s Municipal Facility & Asset Naming Policy, which outlines specific criteria for naming public assets.

Fawcett’s contributions to the community included more than 33 years of service at Hershey Canada and decades of volunteerism with seniors’ organizations. He served as president of the Smiths Falls Golden Age Bowling and 55 Plus Bowlers, Harmony Club Seniors, and the Seniors Activity Centre. He was a past recipient of the Charles Gilhuly Award, was inducted into the Recreational Hall of Fame in 2017, and was nominated for Citizen of the Year in 2023.

Just last year he was pushing the town to get more room for the seniors as they had outgrown the facility. He was pushing for safety upgrades and more space for pickleball users. 

Council voted unanimously in favour of the name change. A ceremony to celebrate the renaming is expected to be planned in partnership with the Fawcett family later this year.

“It’s very fitting that we’re doing this in June,” said Brennan, who indicated that Fawcett spent at least 50 hours a week at the activity centre. He was Fawcett’s neighbour. 

“I know that anybody I’ve talked to about this thinks it’s a great thing for the town to do.”

Also, Mayor Shawn Pankow noted that on Sunday, June 22 a memorial stone was placed on Evergreen Avenue in Victoria Park for Fawcett. “It’s nice to see back-to-back recognition,” Pankow said. “A very fitting tribute.”