Abe Oudshoorn
Ms. Peggy Sattler: I rise today to honour London West constituent and Western University nursing professor Abe Oudshoorn, this year’s recipient of the Western Humanitarian Award. This $5,000 annual award recognizes Western faculty, staff and students who are working to improve quality of life for people in communities around the world with the funds directed to the support of humanitarian efforts.
As the 2016 recipient, Abe is donating his $5,000 award to the local agency, All Our Sisters, to help bring women with lived experience of homelessness to the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness Conference, which held in London this November.
I offer my profound thanks and congratulations to Western, Abe Oudshoorn and All Our Sisters. First to Western University for having the foresight and the vision to harness the passion for change and the dedication of faculty staff and students to building a fairer, more just society.
Second to Abe for his leadership as chair of the London Homeless Coalition and his unwavering commitment to putting knowledge into action. He is an inspiration to his students and Londoners, showing what can be achieved when communities come together to tackle the complex health and social challenges of our time.
Finally to All Our Sisters for empowering women who have survived homelessness to become part of the solution, sharing knowledge, expertise and ideas that will help others out of marginalization and into stable housing. You are all heroes, and we salute you all.