SHARING THE LIMELIGHT

Posted By DAVID NESSETH

For the first time ever, Cornwall's Citizen of the Year is not a person, it's a couple.

In some ways, too, it's a family. One with deep roots that has enlivened the community for decades.

There are many ways to discover what someone stands for, but when it comes to Tom and Gail Kaneb, the 2008 winners, what their children are doing speaks volumes about the 50-something couple.

George, 30, teaches underprivileged children in England; Paige, 27, lives near San Francisco as a lawyer on the Innocence Project, which fights for the wrongfully convicted; Ali, 25, works in the world of executive recruiting, following in her parents' highly successful business footsteps.

In April, the entire family will head to Senegal as part of Tostan, an organization that fights horrors like female genital cutting.

It empowers African communities to bring about sustainable development and positive social transformation based on respect for human rights.

"When one speaks about commitment, volunteerism and philanthropy, our Citizen of the Year could well be a poster child, yet ironically, the average Cornwallite would be totally unaware of the innumerable achievements our winner has made," said Scott Armstrong, Cornwall and Area Chamber of Commerce president. "In truth, our winner prefers it that way.

"It is a sound tribute to their modesty."

As the award was set to be unveiled Saturday night at the 1920s-themed banquet, Tom steadied his camera, set to capture his wife Gail's surprise.

He had been told she'd won the award, while she'd been told she was there to honour the late Nick Kaneb, Tom's uncle and former mayor of Cornwall.

"I fell for it," Tom admitted to the who's who crowd of local business leaders and politicians.

Tom, who has had great success with businesses like Universal Terminals and SigmaPoint Technologies, spoke of his father George Kaneb as an inspiration to him.

Though George moved away from Cornwall, he eventually came back in his thirties because he loved it so much, Tom explained.

"It was what he created and what he did for the community that really inspired us to live the life that we've lived, to help out in whatever small way we can."

Ask Tom and Gail about why they've stayed in Cornwall when they can afford to move anywhere in the world, and the answer comes quickly: The people.

For Tom, Cornwall has a "unique soul", one that believes in itself, he says. And to Gail, Cornwallites are "loyal and able to overcome adversity."

It's why the couple has been so generous to the community with huge donations towards the Cornwall Community Hospital's 'Our Hospital, Our Future' fundraising campaign and the construction of the Hospice Cornwall project. Just to name a couple.

"When people are terminally ill, they and their family need all the support they can get," Gail said last October about the new hospice.

Gail, now a successful business consultant, was the first female to be hired as a new account marketing representative for IBM in Boston. When she and Tom were married in 1976, they moved to Alberta to open a fibreglass bath tub and shower plant. They lived there for the next two years before relocating to Cornwall in 1978 when she was seven months pregnant with their first child.

"He's loving, a cheerleader, and a great father," Gail said from her home Sunday. "He's willing to put those he cares about before himself. And he's great fun to be with."

During his acceptance speech, Tom described Gail as an "absolutely incredible partner in life." Over the phone Sunday, he had the chance to be more specific.

 "It's her warmth, generosity and humanity that she shows to her family and people in general," Tom said. "She has such a positive view of the world. It's amazing to be with someone like that."

Tom and Gail acknowledged there are lots of role models to be found in those who have previously won the city's greatest honour.  

The 2007 Citizen of the Year was Louise McLellan, a long-time volunteer with the MS Society and the English public school board.