Canadian fiction author Guy Vanderhaeghe is the recipient of the 25th Annual Distinguished Canadian Award.
The award, which is presented by the Seniors' University Group and the Seniors Education Centre of the University of Regina, will be given to Vanderhaeghe on May 6.
"We are very excited to have Guy Vanderhaeghe as the recipient of our 25th Distinguished Canadian Award" says Kerrie Strathy, Head of the Seniors Education Centre. "He has made outstanding contributions to Canadian literature, as evidenced by the two Governor General's Awards for Fiction that he has received, and he continues to mentor young writers."
The Distinguished Canadian Award was established by the Seniors' University Group in 1985 to recognize individuals who have made outstanding contributions to Canadian life. The award is intended to raise public awareness of the dynamic role older adults, specifically aged 55 and over, play in society.
Vanderhaeghe was raised in Esterhazy, Saskatchewan. He received a BA and MA in History from the University of Saskatchewan and a Bed from the University of Regina. He has won several awards including two Governor General Awards, the Faber Prize in Great Britain, was shortlisted for both the Giller Prize and International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, winner of the Saskatoon Book Award, the Saskatchewan Book Award and the Canadian Booksellers Association Libris Award.
Past Distinguished Canadian Award recipients include T.C. Douglas, John Archer, Roy Bonisteel, Allan Blakeney, Stephen Lewis, Sylvia Fedoruk, Adrienne Clarkson, Lloyd Barber, Shirley Douglas, Maria Campbell, Lynda Haverstock and Roy Romanow.
The ceremony will take place Wednesday, May 6 at the Delta Hotel in Regina with a reception starting at 5:30 and dinner and program at 6:30 p.m. Vanderhaeghe will be available for media interviews and photos prior to the event at 3:00 p.m. at the Delta Hotel.
The 25th Annual Distinguished Canadian Award Dinner is sponsored in part by Leader Post, Global TV, , Conexus Credit Union and Great-West Life/Canada Life/London Life.
For more information and ticket information visit www.uregina.ca/cce/seniors or call 585-5816.