Vaughn Dickie has dedicated more than 60 years volunteering in his community.
Vaughn, a retired dairy farmer, has been coming to the Nova Scotia Provincial Exhibition in Truro since he was nine years old. Now in his 80s, he hasn’t missed a single exhibition.
For over 60 years, he has been willing to take on any job at the exhibition.
“Vaughn’s not just a fixture here, he’s an icon,” says family friend Lisa Patton. “He’s looked after the dairy show here for years. The agri-dome here, that we’re standing in, is something that he takes pride in. He helps organize the agri-dome.”
Exhibition officials say Vaughn is an ideal example of the volunteer spirit the facility needs to succeed.
“It’s in his heart and I’m glad he does it,” says general manager Stephen Pottie. “He truly, truly cares about this facility and he’s done so many things with this facility over the years.”
Vaughn says being a part of the exhibition is an important part of his life.
“You know, exhibition is in the blood, gets in the blood and stays there,” says Vaughn. “Cattle was in the family, that’s what we done, is show cattle and I was here as a kid, looking to help look after the cattle and so on and as the years went on, I went on to the board.”
Lisa says Vaughn’s volunteerism sets a great example for the community.
“When I see someone 82-years-old working as hard as he does, I want to live up to that. I want to follow in his footsteps.”
Vaughn’s dedication also led to the Onslow Belmont Fire Brigade. As a founding member, he served the community for 52 years.
“He means a lot to the brigade, because he, like, he’s always there when we need him,” says Fire Chief Greg Muise. “He brings stuff to the brigade that makes a lot of sense a lot of times and it’s quite an honour to have Vaughn.”
Vaughn says all his volunteer work helps keep him young.
“Do you know why? I would die. Nothing to do, I couldn’t do that.”
Congratulations to Vaughn Dickie, our Maritimer of the Week!
If you know someone deserving of our Maritimer of the Week award, we want to hear about it.
It doesn’t matter how old they are, the nature of the good deed they’ve done, or what part of the region they live in – we want your ideas!
Please send your nomination to:
maritimer@ctv.ca
or
Maritimer of the Week
P.O. Box 1653
Halifax, N.S.
B3J 2Z4
