For Heather Lamb, winning the Bridget Moran Award was a surprise. In fact, when she showed up to the event, it wasn’t until halfway through the speech that she realized the speaker was talking about her.

“I grew up in Prince George and read Stoney Creek Woman at an early age,” explains Lamb. “Though I wasn't planning to go into Social Work then, Bridget Moran's books made a strong impact on me. To be selected by my social work colleagues to receive an award named after her and with her social work ideals as part of the criteria is humbling.”

The Bridget Moran Award is presented annually by the BC Association of Social Workers, Northern Branch (BCASW) to a northern social worker who has made significant contributions to social work and Northern B.C. It was named after the fiery and passionate BC social worker who criticized government for neglecting the most vulnerable and marginalized people, and who went on to work for School District No. 57.

Dawn Hemmingway, UNBC School of Social Work Chair and an executive member of the BCASW Northern branch, presented the award to Lamb.

“Heather is one of those incredible, humble, activist women who contributes hugely but does so quietly, with no fanfare and no expectation of recognition,” says Hemmingway. “She has made a huge contribution to the lives of so many and is a selfless social worker contributing in the spirit of Bridget Moran."

Heather earned a Master’s in Social Work in 2013. She is an Information Resource Specialist with Spinal Cord Injury BC, and was recently named one of Prince George’s Top 40 Under 40, in part due to her work in social work, as well as being a member of the Lions Club, serving on the local and provincial boards of the CNIB, and as a strong voice and advocate on the City of Prince George’s Accessibility Committee.

“I came into social work a bit later than most people do and from a background in journalism with work experience in the disability field,” says Lamb. “UNBC was a great place to do my Masters because I was able to focus on disability issues in social work while studying the structural nature of the issues that impact individual clients. This prepared me well for advocacy work.”

Hemingway says it was a privilege to be Lamb’s academic supervisor.
“I saw up close and from many different angles her passion, her commitment, her strong ethics and her determined, focused, meaningful advocacy and activism.”