George Weber first Canadian to receive international humanitarian award

Topics: National, Worldwide
November 15, 2013

Ottawa, November 15, 2013 – Today, at a ceremony held at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre in Sydney Australia, George Weber, President and CEO of the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group and long-time Red Cross contributor was presented with the Henry Davison Award by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). The Henry Davison Award, named after the IFRC's founder, recognizes outstanding service in improving the lives of vulnerable people.

George Weber is the first Canadian to receive this international honor. He is being recognized for his many years of distinguished service with the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement, which have spanned four decades, and for his outstanding record of achievement.

George Weber first joined the Movement in 1973 as a field delegate in Vietnam, and then worked as Chief Delegate and Disaster Relief Officer in Rwanda, Mauritius, Cap Verde, Nepal and the Philippines. In this capacity, he worked tirelessly to improve relief operations in these disaster-stricken countries, and he led disaster preparedness programs. He joined the Canadian Red Cross in 1976 as its National Director of International Services and then came to lead the organization, when he was appointed Secretary General and CEO in 1983. He left the Canadian Red Cross in 1992 to become Secretary General and CEO of the IFRC. Among his many accomplishments, he was successful in gaining permanent observer status for the IFRC with the United Nations. Following his departure in 2000, he continued with his life’s work with the Red Cross as a volunteer advisor.

“George Weber is motivated by a deep and long-standing commitment to improving the lives of the most vulnerable,” said Conrad Sauvé, Secretary General and CEO of the Canadian Red Cross. “There is no one more deserving of this award.”
 

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