Calgary Outlink: Centre for Gender and Sexual Diversity announced this week the nominees for the Heart of Excellence 2017 LGBTQ+ Award nominees.

The Heart of Excellence is an awards ceremony and gala fund raiser for Calgary Outlink. The Awards Ceremonies will take place at Studio Bell, Canada’s National Music Centre, on April 28^th at 7pm. It will honour outstanding individuals in Calgary's LGBTQ+ community by paying tribute to their contribution to community service, leadership, business, arts, and mentorship in Alberta.

1. The Grand Heart, an LGBTQ+ Human Right Award. The most prestigious award is the "Grand Heart," It is for a person(s) who have demonstrated in the past 12 months distinguished actions to help advance LGBTQ+ rights and liberties in Calgary (and/or in Alberta or Canada that impacts LGBTQ+ life in our city). The winner of the Grand Heart may be nominated by the committee for the Governor General Award of Canada.

2. The Dr. Gary Sanders Youth Heart. The LGBTQ+ Youth of the Year,

This award is for a youth(s) who have demonstrated in the past 12 months distinguished actions to better the lives of LGBTQ+ youth in Calgary. It could be for work anywhere in their community, in their schools, in their cultural settings, in places of worship, or other settings where youth spend their lives.

?

3. The Service Heart. The LGBTQ+ Community Organization of the Year,

This award is for a person(s) within a community organization who have demonstrated in the past 12 months distinguished actions to better the lives of LGBTQ+ people in Calgary. It could be for development of innovative services, provision of exemplary services, and/or engagement among service providers to ensure needed services to LGBTQ+ people in Calgary.

?

?

4. The Resilient Heart. The LGBTQ+ Community Volunteer of the Year,

This award is for a volunteer(s) in any organization who have demonstrated in the past 12 months distinguished actions to better the lives of LGBTQ+ people in Calgary. It could be for volunteerism or community development anywhere in their community or cultures devoted to ensuring the lives of LGBTQ+ people are accepted, open, healthy, and resilient.

?

5. The Artistic Heart. The LGBTQ+ Artist of the Year,

This award is for an artist in visual arts, music, film, digital arts or another arts media who have demonstrated in the past 12 months distinguished actions to better the lives of LGBTQ+ people in Calgary. It could be for their art or performance, and/or for their personal community work, that was devoted to ensuring the lives of LGBTQ+ people are accepted, open, healthy, and resilient.

?

?

6. The Entrepreneurial Heart. The LGBTQ+ Business / Entrepreneur of the Year.

This award is for a person(s) within a business who have demonstrated in the past 12 months distinguished actions to better the working lives of LGBTQ+ people in Calgary. It could be for development programs within businesses to foster LGBTQ+ people to work openly, for development of community engagement programs between business and the LGBTQ+ community, and/or philanthropic work to foster better lives for LGBTQ+ people in the community.

The awards are made possible through the generous Premier Sponsorship of TD Bank Group. We are also supported by Calgary Outlink Partners, Hypemedia Marketing and Event Management, Wentworth Family Dental, and FS Financial. Our media sponsors are GayCalgary Magazine and CJSW. Thank you to Esso for providing volunteers.