Jan. 07, 2019
The CBE Legacy Award celebrates public education in Calgary and the individuals who have contributed to our communities.
Gordon Hoffman, a lawyer with Hoffman Dorchik LLP, received the award on Jan. 8, 2019.
Gordon Hoffman is a graduate of Central High School, which was renamed Central Memorial High School when it reopened on 50th Ave. S.W. in 1969.
He was nominated for the work he does every day to make a significant and lasting difference in our community and in the lives of countless Albertans.
Gordon has taken volunteerism to a whole new level. For four decades, he has been at the heart of the volunteer community in Calgary. He has served as chairman, co-chairman, director, and often the founder of close to 100 charitable and community organizations. These organizations support a broad spectrum of people and communities including:
- Troubled youth
- The homeless and those living in poverty
- Faith organizations
- People living with learning disabilities, brain injuries, or mental illness
- Senior citizens
- Amputees
- The sports community
- The arts community and so many more.
The list is long, and continues to grow.
His contributions to our city have been widely celebrated. After receiving the Legacy Award, Gordon will have chalked up 30 separate awards, including the City of Calgary Citizen of the Year Award, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal, the Calgary Catholic Community Shepherd Leadership Award and the Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award. He has also been recognized by the Calgary Herald as a compelling Calgarian, and by CTV as an inspired Albertan.
Of all the charitable societies, the ones closest to Gordon’s heart are those that he founded, and in some cases, still chairs. These societies are: Project Warmth, Operation Kickstart and Alberta Champions.
Gordon launched the Project Warmth Society more than 20 years ago. As the name implies, Project Warmth gathers boots, gloves, coats, sleeping bags and other necessities for those who need them. Since inception, thousands of items have been donated to our schools, their families and others in our community. Last year alone, over 100,000 items were distributed to those in need.
Operation Kickstart is all about helping people, particularly those new to Canada, to gain the skills they need to find meaningful work. Gordon founded this organization to address the need to educate and train individuals having difficulty entering, or re-entering the workforce.
The Alberta Champions Society is a unique initiative. The mission of the society is to commemorate, recognize and honour those Albertans that have made a significant contribution to Calgary and the surrounding area. The society does this through the “Fields of Fame,” which are groupings of structural steel that are designed and placed at prominent locations throughout the city. You can see these beautiful steel tributes in places like the Hyatt Regency Hotel, McDougall Centre and Heritage Park.
When Gordon is not chairing or founding new societies, he is mentoring others by showing them how to run a successful society or fundraiser. He truly inspires others to volunteer and to donate their time and money to help those in need.
He is truly a worthy recipient of the CBE Legacy Award.
Nominations for the Legacy Award are accepted year round. Click here to learn more.
