Windsor resident Sheila Patricia Barker was one of 20 Ontario residents presented with a 2023 Ontario Senior Achievement Award on Thursday.
Barker was honoured for her community activism and work with newcomers to the community.
"Sheila Patricia Barker is a community activist in the areas of health, human rights, employment standards and policing services in Ontario. She has made outstanding contributions to individuals, groups, and organizations in Windsor-Essex. Sheila has also been very effective in her community as an advocate for social justice, a voice for the less fortunate, including black women, youth and girls, and a promoter of Canadian values," reads the citation from the province.
She first came to Canada from Jamaica in 1959. She worked as a public health nurse after studying at the Montreal General Hospital School of Nursing and McGill University.
She was also one of the founding members of Women's Enterprise Skills Training of Windsor, an organization that helps newcomers in the community gain work skills.
"I am delighted to help present the Ontario Senior Achievement Awards to a remarkable group of recipients,” said the Honourable Edith Dumont, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. “It is important that we continue to recognize the contributions of seniors in our society, and I am so glad to have this opportunity to shine a light on the work of 20 impressive Ontarians, who have done so much to uplift and support their communities.”
In 2018, Barker was recognized as one of the 100 Accomplished Black Canadian Women.