CENTRE WELLINGTON – Elizabeth Kent, executive director of Victim Services Wellington, was named Crime Stoppers Guelph Wellington’s (CSGW) 2024 Cornerstone Award winner.
Kent, who was presented the award at the Jan. 8 CSGW appreciation dinner by board chair Dave Elloway, has been an avid supporter of CSGW for more than a decade, officials say.
She has not only been an advocate for the anonymous and confidential method of reporting crime, but has also given her time to various awareness campaigns, starting with “There Is No Victimless Crime” in 2015.
Kent has also impacted the program through her work around human trafficking awareness, hosting the community stakeholders’ workshop that introduced CSGW to this crime in 2017.
Additionally, Kent and her work with Victim Services has been a solid partner in grants and fraud and hate crime initiatives. She has also dedicated countless hours to working with CSGW in its mandate of crime prevention, specifically through the very popular Fraud Talk presentation.
Kent shares the realities of victims of fraud and helps reduce stigma around victims who are reluctant to come forward or share their experiences.
The CSGW board of directors makes the selection and presents the winner with the Cornerstone Award each January.
“I have known Liz Kent for many years, and I can attest to her commitment to making Guelph and Wellington County a safer place to live, work and play,” said CSGW chair Dave Elloway. “Liz has worked tirelessly on behalf of victims of crime and encouraging people to do the right thing.”
CSGW program coordinator Sarah Bowers-Peter noted the enthusiasm Kent has for Crime Stoppers.
“Having Elizabeth as a voice for victims is truly impactful, but beyond that, she understands the work we are doing and is always available for collaborations and new initiatives. That makes our program even more effective in our mandate of community safety,” said Bowers-Peter.
Bowers-Peter said CSGW has included contact information for Victim Services Wellington in each of its community presentations, to increase awareness of the work done by this organization, spearheaded by Kent.
“I am honoured to receive the Cornerstone Award, I want to thank Crime Stoppers for all the work they do in our community to provide education and public awareness but also give people a safe space to report crime,” said Kent.
“I have enjoyed working with Crime Stoppers in the past. I feel all the human trafficking and fraud presentations that we have worked on the last few years have been ones that have truly made a difference in Guelph Wellington.”
The Cornerstone Award, established in 2016, is presented annually to a business, organization or individual who demonstrates outstanding support of CSGW.
