Dartmouth Rotary and Dartmouth East Rotary Clubs Recognize Three Outstanding Members For Paul Harris Awards

Dartmouth East Rotary Paul Harris Awards Rotary Club of Dartmouth Awards

DARTMOUTH, N.S. — The 2025 Paul Harris Award ceremony was held Monday, December 8, at the Brightwood Golf & Country Club, 227 School Street. Rotary Clubs of Dartmouth and Dartmouth East partners together to honour individuals who embody Rotary’s guiding principle of “service above self.”

                 Left to right: In this photo, L-R: Deputy Mayor Tony Mancini,Paul Harris Fellow Magali Grégoire, , Rotary District North Atlantic Governor Marcel Gervais, MLA Claudia Chender, MLA Susan Leblanc,Paul Harris Fellow Gerry Post, Isabella Bruni, RYE, Ash Anderson,RYE,Paul Harris Fellow Rayleen Hill, Awards Event Chair Don Penwell

L-R: Deputy Mayor Tony Mancini, Paul Harris Fellow Magali Grégoire, Rotary District North Atlantic Governor Marcel Gervais, MLA Claudia Chender, MLA Susan Leblanc,Paul Harris Fellow Gerry Post, RYE Isabella Bruni, RYE Ash Anderson, Paul Harris Fellow Rayleen Hill, Awards Event Chair Don Penwell

This year, the clubs recognized the following community members for their outstanding contributions:

 

 

Magali Gregoire - Executive Director and Founder of the Back to the Sea Society 

Magali began working on Back to the Sea as a passion project in 2015, before the Society was officially founded in 2016. Back to the Sea educates young people and adults about the importance of our marine ecology through their “touch tank” facility in Downtown Dartmouth and a variety of outreach programs. Over the past 10 years, she has also been a Board Member of the Canadian Network for Ocean Education and the Eastern Passage and Area Business Association. She has served as Chair of the Communications Committee for the Fishermen and Scientists Research Society and sits on the Port Community Liaison Committee for the Port of Halifax. She routinely visits school and university classes to speak about marine ecology and education.
 
 

                Left to right: Awards Event Chair. Don Penwell, Paul Harris Fellow Magali Grégoire and Rotary District North Atlantic Governor Marcel Gervais

L-R: Awards Event Chair. Don Penwell, Paul Harris Fellow Magali Grégoire and Rotary District North Atlantic Governor Marcel Gervais

Magali describes herself as a "museologist, biologist, and informal educator with a passion for making people fall in love with creepy crawlers". She holds a B.Sc. in Biology from McGill University and an M.A. in Museum Studies from the University of Quebec at Montreal.
 

Rayleen Hill - Principal RHAD Architects

Rayleen obtained her Master's in Architect studies from Dalhousie University and hasn’t looked back since! Since establishing her own boutique practice in 2010, she has worked on a wide variety of design challenges, and she has received accolades, including one from Nova Scotia’s Lieutenant Governor for urban design.
 
           Left to right: Rotary District North Atlantic Governor Marcel Gervais, Paul Harris Fellow Rayleen Hill, Doug Hill and Don Penwell\
 
L-R: Rotary District North Atlantic Governor Marcel Gervais, Paul Harris Fellow Rayleen Hill, Doug Hill and Don Penwell
 
Some of her projects include:
  • 100 Anniversary Markers of the Halifax Explosion
  • Lake Banook Canoe and Kayak Races Judges Tower
  • New Kiwanis Park building at Graham’s Grove
  • The Beatty Centre for Marine Biology on Oxford Street in Halifax
  • An addition to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax
 

Gerry Post; Accessibility Advocate

After moving to Nova Scotia in 1976, Gerry Post served as Director of Planning for Hants County before launching a successful consulting career advising organizations across the globe—from Bolivia to Bangladesh. While living in the Middle East, he co-founded the Amman Institute for Urban Development, a think tank that advised governments throughout the Middle East.

         Left to right: Marcel Gervais, Paul Harris Fellow Gerry Post, Lui Greco, and Don Penwell

               L-R: Marcel Gervais, Paul Harris Fellow Gerry Post, Lui Greco, and Don Penwell

 

In 2013, an illness left Gerry paralyzed and using a wheelchair—an experience that sparked his deep commitment to advancing accessibility.

He played a leading volunteer role in developing Nova Scotia’s Accessibility Act, which was adopted unanimously by the Legislature. He was then appointed the province’s inaugural Executive Director of Accessibility, where he established the NS Accessibility Directorate within the Department of Justice and launched the Access by Design 2030 strategy.

The Paul Harris Awards were established by Rotary International to recognize significant contributions to our communities around the globe. As part of this process, a donation to the Rotary International Foundation will be made on behalf of each of the above recipients. The Foundation will use these funds to support clubs like those in Dartmouth to expand the charitable reach of Rotary locally and internationally.
 
Club Presidents Will Julian of Dartmouth and Linda Smardon of Dartmouth East are pleased to present these Paul Harris Awards together each year. According to Will Julian, “the selection process is always an interesting one for our members, and there are no shortages of individuals who give back to their communities through their vocations, service, and advocacy.
 
 

Read more about the Paul Harris Awards here.