Provincial award honours local veteran
Lisha Van Nieuwenhove
Sgt. James (Jim) Parks receives an Ontario Seniors Achievement Award from Lieutenant-Governor Edith Dumont, and Minister for Seniors and Accessibility Raymond Cho. Photo submitted by Tish MacDonald
An Uxbridge-area veteran was recently honoured with the 2023 Ontario Senior Achievement Award. Joseph James (Jim) Parks, a resident of Mount Albert, received the award namely for being, according to the citation given at the ceremony, “relentlessly committed to sharing his stories and keeping the memories alive of other Canadians who fought these battles, ensuring their valuable fight for our freedom is never forgotten.”
Parks, 99, was one of 20 Ontario seniors who received the award on Feb. 29, at a ceremony that was presided over by Lieutenant-Governor Edith Dumont, and Minister for Seniors and Accessibility Raymond Cho. The annual ceremony recognizes noteworthy seniors throughout the province who have helped improve the lives of Ontarians through community service and humanitarian activities, such as volunteering, fundraising, advocacy work and more.
Parks is a member of the Uxbridge Honour Them Well Veterans Outreach Program, run by Tish MacDonald.
“We were delighted to see Jim honoured with an Ontario Senior Achievement Award,” says MacDonald. “Jim has always been a passionate advocate for remembrance education. He is a treasured member of our program, and we have been humbled to host him on many occasions at local schools, where he shared his story of service with our students.”
According to the Honour Them Well website (Parks’s photo is on a banner that is part of the Honour Them Well banner program), Parks was born and grew up in Winnipeg, the son of a First World War soldier. He joined Army Cadets at 10, enlisted with the NPAM (Reserves) with the Winnipeg Rifles and then the Active Force Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders at 15 years of age, and was transferred soon after to the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, with whom he remained for the duration of his wartime service.
Sgt. James (Jim) Parks Submitted photo
He sailed to England in August 1941 aboard the SS Orbita, and on June 6, 1944, he landed on Juno Beach at Courseulles-sur-Mer. He fought battles in France, Germany and Holland, and on numerous occasions, narrowly escaped with his life.
Parks finished the war in Emsden, Germany, as a sergeant. He spent time in the Netherlands and in England before boarding the ships to return to Canada. He returned to Winnipeg, where he worked with a fire department, and then in government jobs at both the provincial and federal levels.
As an advocate for remembrance, Parks has spent time travelling and speaking at schools on behalf of the Royal Canadian Legion. He has taken part in several veterans’ memory programs, and raised more than $20,000 for the Juno Beach Centre.