Perth-Wellington MP presents King Charles III Coronation Medal to 20 recipients

Perth-Wellington MP John Nater presented the King Charles III Coronation Medal to 20 recipients from the riding, including 14 from Perth County.

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The commemorative medal was first awarded last year in the United Kingdom to mark the coronation of King Charles III, and Canada followed suit in 2024. The recipients were selected following an open nomination process in May and June when residents of Perth-Wellington were asked to nominate outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to their communities and country.

“These recipients were nominated by their communities – their neighbors, co-workers, friends and fellow volunteers,” Nater said. “They come from all nine municipalities in Perth-Wellington and embody different backgrounds, careers and interests, but each of them holds one important thing in common – a commitment to their community and country.”

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The following are recipients from Perth County:

Richard Boon (Stratford)

As the ranks of Canada’s Second World War veterans unfold, the duty of remembrance falls to the next generation. For his entire life, Boon learned the value of service from one of the best. Much of Boon’s life has been dedicated to young people as a coach and referee, and he has helped children and youth achieve their full potential. Throughout his 30 years as an educator, Boon ensured that Remembrance Day and the service of Canada’s veterans was appropriately honored.

Julie Docker-Johnson (St. Marys)

Docker-Johnson lives by the mantra “better together.” As the community connector at The Local Community Food Center in Stratford, she thrives on helping members of the community connect with the resources they need to improve their lives and those around them. Docker-Johnson has been actively involved as a longtime member of the board and supporter of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in St. Marys. More recently, she played a leading role in supporting the Rotary Hospice of Stratford Perth and its annual Hike for Hospice. In 2017, Docker-Johnson co-founded the Giving Tuesday Initiative to help not only raise funds for community projects but also to foster a greater sense of community and togetherness.

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Stewart Grant (St. Marys)

In a constantly evolving digital world, the importance of local journalism is more important than ever. For Grant, that means doing the heavy lifting to ensure the community knows what is happening from the goings on at town hall to the puck drop at the arena. Grant is the owner and publisher of various community newspapers, and his hope is to restore small-town journalism that helps connect and promote communities across the region. In addition to journalism, he’s a member of the Rotary Club of St Marys and is involved with the St Marys Lincolns.

Michael Grosz (North Perth)

Grosz is currently the logistics co-ordinator with Perth County paramedics services. His career as a paramedic started in 1988. Over the course of his career, which spans more than 35 years, Grosz rose in the ranks to platoon commander. He’s served as a firefighter with the Listowel-North Perth fire department. Beginning as a volunteer firefighter in 1997, he went on to be promoted to captain, Listowel station deputy chief, and finally the Listowel station district chief in 2009.

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Charles Hammond (St. Marys)

Hammond has been a loyal and productive member of the Rotary Club of St Marys for over 30 years. He has served as president of the club and has been recognized with the distinction of being a Paul Harris Fellow, a program set up as a legacy for the founder of the Rotary Club, Paul Harris. Through Rotary, Hammond has supported important causes at home and internationally. He’s been active in providing leadership within the St. Marys BIA and promoting the town, and he was part of the group to successfully bring the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame to St Marys.

Dianne Josling (West Perth)

Josling is a lifelong resident of West Perth and has been a dedicated volunteer in the community for the past 40 years. She’s not only an active volunteer with the local Mitchell Optimist Club, where she is a charter member, but also with Optimist International and as president of the Canadian Children’s Optimist Foundation that helps to promote their belief in bringing out the best in youth. The retired elementary school teacher dedicates much of her time co-ordinating the annual Mitchell Music Festival. Previously, she volunteered with the International Plowing Match, Mitchell Hawks, Retired Teachers’ Association, a board member at the Ritz Villa and canvassing for local charities.

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Ruth Kneider (Stratford)

Together with her husband Richard, you will find Kneider scooping ice cream, serving pizza, handing out turkeys and making Christmas special. Kneider’s compassion and love makes the community a desirable place to live. The Simple Dreams Ministry co-founder said its purpose is to “help those in the community who have dreams or needs that don’t seem achievable.” Every year, the Kneiders host the highly popular To Stratford with Love Christmas banquet, which brings together the community for an evening of food, fellowship, and fun.

Mary McIntosh (Perth South)

McIntosh’s community involvement dates back nearly half a century when she and her husband John became foster parents for the very first time. Since then, she has shared her time and talent for countless causes and activities, including being a 4-H leader and being involved with Junior Farmers. She served as president of the board of directors of the Perth County Children’s Aid Society and the Perth County Federation of Agriculture. McIntosh was also a director for the Ontario Federation of Agriculture and the Perth Environmental Farm Plan co-ordinator.

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John Miller (Stratford)

Miller is known as a man of music. In 2001, with a team of local volunteers, he created Stratford Summer Music to bring music back to Stratford. He retired in 2018 as its founder and artistic director emeritus. Under Miller’s leadership, the festival has grown to six weeks of dynamic indoor and outdoor concerts and events, with international praise for Stratford Summer Music’s variety of performers from five continents and across Canada. Miller’s arts and culture career began with the Stratford Festival in 1980, and he went on to become national director for the Canadian Music Center and executive director of the Glenn Gould Foundation. He’s also helped lead the artistic programming of the Huron Waves Music Festival.

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Cameron Porteous (St. Marys)

Porteous’s Canadian theater career has taken him across Canada, including stops at the Vancouver Playhouse and the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake. His work has spanned across Canadian television, film, and the stage over five decades. Porteous now serves as the St. Marys Station Gallery curator. Among his own artistic undertakings, Porteous has displayed his own work, The Battle of Queenston Heights, at the gallery, and he was pivotal in ensuring the gallery’s exhibits were available on an online platform for everyone to enjoy.

Debora Ritchie (North Perth)

Ritchie’s lifelong passion to volunteer started at an early age and continues today as an engaged member of the community and sharing her resources to help local charities, schools and service clubs. Among her contributions, Ritchie has volunteered with the Stratford Perth Community Foundation, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Listowel, the Salvation Army, Perth Meadows and the North Perth Women of Distinction committee. Since 2000, Ritchie has raised almost $10 million for local charities, schools, organizations and those in need.

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Jean Smelski (Perth East)

Many will recognize the Smelski family farm from their 20 years of pumpkin sales at their property along Highway 7/8 in Perth East. Smelski is a longtime member of the Stratford Probus Club, where she ensures that club members can engage with one another and with interesting and insightful speakers. She is also a dedicated volunteer and serves as a trustee on the Stratford General Hospital Foundation’s board of trustees. To honor their retirement from the pumpkin farm, Ritchie and her family provided financial support to the hospital foundation. Together with her husband Richard, the Smelksi Family Fund was created within the Perth East Smart and Caring Community Fund at the Stratford Perth Community Foundation.

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Bernard Van Herk (Stratford)

Anyone who drove by his Van Herk’s home on Huron Street in Stratford would recognize the great gardens and displays in front of his home, complete with a statue of William Shakespeare. His gardens would celebrate local and national events. Van Herk is well known as a dedicated and avid volunteer at the Ted Blowes Memorial Pollinator Peace Garden, and he’s passionate about sharing his knowledge with others. Van Herk is one of the youngest recipients, having celebrated his 22nd birthday on Feb. 29 of this year. Like he has done on every leap year, this past Feb. 29 he was at the Stratford General Hospital – where he also worked for more than 30 years – with cards and money for each baby born on that day.

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Donna Yundt (West Perth)

For more than 20 years, Yundt has been leading the charge in support of those living with cystic fibrosis and their families. She’s been the driving force in support of the annual Perth County Walk to Make CF History and has made sure that next year it will expand its locations to engage more communities. She has served on the executive committee for the Hope Chapter of Cystic Fibrosis Canada and has been instrumental in organizing the Christmas 50/50 fundraiser. Yundt lost her son Baydon in 2019, but her work will help ensure that children born today with CF will live long and healthy lives.

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