Assiniboine Community College announces 2017 alumni award recipients

This year’s recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award is Lance Barkley. The award is presented annually to a graduate of the college who has distinguished themselves in both their chosen profession and their community.

Barkley is a lifelong resident of the Virden, Man. community and graduated from the college in 2001 with his Red Seal Certificate from the Construction Electrician Apprenticeship program. He is a proud business owner in Virden, MB, including his first initiative, LRB Electric Ltd. Since that business he has gone on to open LRB Consulting Inc. – an electrical and mechanical design and consulting service, and LED Light Source, a LED lighting franchise.

The Community Service Award recognizes a graduate of ACC who has positively impacted the quality of people’s lives through the service of others. The Alumni Association is pleased to announce that Sarah-Jane Speers is this year’s recipient.

Speers was born and raised in Alexander, Man., and graduated from Assiniboine’s Environmental Technologies Land & Water Management program in 2012, followed by a diploma in GIS specialization in 2013. From an early age, Sarah-Jane has had a strong sense of volunteerism and community involvement. Most notably though, might be her efforts put forth in bringing the Westman community together during the Fort McMurray wild fires, having collected donated bottles of water, pillows, blankets and even graduation dresses for those affected by the fires. She then coordinated two trips out west to deliver the donations.

The One to Watch Award honours a graduate who is 30 years of age or younger at the time of nomination and has made exceptional achievements and significant contributions to his or her profession and community. The Alumni Association is pleased to announce that Camilla Timmer is this year’s recipient.

Timmer graduated with a Business Administration diploma from Assiniboine in 2012 with a specialization in Human Resources. Upon graduation, she was hired as a Recruitment Specialist with West-Can Human Resource Solution in Brandon and has since become a Partner with the organization.

The Excellence in Teaching Award honours a faculty member for extraordinary contributions to teaching and the student experience. Practical Nursing instructor Crystal Jensen is the recipient of this year’s award. Originally from Moosomin, Sask., Jensen moved to Brandon to attend the college’s Practical Nursing program herself. In 2001, she began a lengthy career with the Brandon Regional Health Authority and in 2009 she started her career with Assiniboine.