I rise today to pay tribute to a dear friend, Colleen Wake. As the youngest of six siblings, she was lovingly referred to by her family as the baby sister. Her sons, Alex and Collin, along with her family, are deeply saddened by the loss of their beloved mother and sister.

Colleen joined Kinsmen London club in 1996. She immediately took on roles of leadership in public speaking, was elected to an executive level and then as a governor. Under her leadership, the district 1 team launched Portraits of Honour. As well, the Kin team received the Decew-Phee district award for outstanding leadership and administration.

In 2022, she received the Kin lifetime membership.

Beyond her volunteer work, Colleen was an NDP supporter. Colleen worked at CAMI automotive. At work, she learned sign language to support a colleague with hearing challenges to demonstrate her dedication to her co-workers. Her many accomplishments reflected her heart, her hard work, intelligence and fun-loving spirit.

Despite her leadership qualities, Colleen always said she wouldn’t run for politics. She would tell me, “I can’t put up with that stuff.” Our thing was going to movie nights, and that was filled with laughter. I always bought a noisy bag of licorice candy to open during the movie because she would shush me, and that was a joke between us.

If she knew I was making this statement about her, she’d say, “Don’t make a big deal about me.” And I would say to her, “You meant so much to everyone you connected with, and you changed lives without even knowing. Your kindness and willingness to help others and your relentless honesty, whether we wanted to hear it or not, made a difference.”

Colleen never gave up on people and never gave up on love. Rest in peace, my dear friend.