I was awarded the King Charles III Coronation Medal today from the Government of Canada

I was awarded The King Charles III Coronation Medal earlier than expected today from the Government of Canada. I am truly honoured by this and a huge thanks to Cos van Wermeskerken and Yousif Attia for writing their MPs about me and for MP Tako van Popta for nominating me to the Governor General and to the Governor General, Mary Simon, for approving me as a recipient. The medal is administered by the Chancellery of Honours at Rideau Hall in Ottawa. It was a true honour to be awarded the medal today in the company of other amazing and worthy recipients. I was the youngest recipient present. I wish my parents had lived to see the day and I sure missed seeing them smiling back at me in the audience. 

I will say again how truly honoured I am to have received this medal. It is the highest award I have ever received and it touched me to hear my work and accomplishments read aloud in front of the audience. Here is the bio the MP read in part:

 “Melissa Hafting makes exceptional and significant sustained contributions to bird conservation, mentoring youth, and promoting mental health in British Columbia and beyond. In 2014, Melissa founded the BC Young Birders Program, which aims to bring together diverse youth aged 12-18 in an inclusive welcoming environment teaching youth about science, biology and the importance of bird conservation, while encouraging healthy outdoor living. Further public engagement includes directorship in the youth-oriented Frontiers in Ornithology Association and the Wild Bird Trust of BC and her ongoing efforts to promote ethical birding. Melissa has maintained the BC Rare Bird Alert website since 2015, was a lead in the 2020 CBC Documentary “Rare Bird Alert” and judged the 2022 and 2023 Audubon Photography Awards. Since 2019, she has volunteered countless hours every week as an eBird data quality reviewer for BC. eBird Canada is a global citizen-science program of Birds Canada and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Her dedication to scientific accuracy and selfless mentoring to birders is outstanding. Her initiatives include successful petitions in several municipalities, which led to a province-wide ban of SGAR rodenticides because of their toxic effects to birds of prey, and the construction and maintenance of Purple Martin and Tree Swallow nesting boxes in the Fraser River Estuary Key Biodiversity Area.  Melissa is dedicated to advocating the mental health benefits of birding and published the 2024 book “Dare to Bird: Exploring the Joy and Healing Power of Birds”, connecting the resiliency of birds with human struggles and fostering inclusivity in birding and nature photography.

Melissa is recipient of the Greater Vancouver 2024 Alan Duncan Bird Conservation Award and the BC Nature’s 2021 Daphne Solecki Award for contributing to nature education for children in British Columbia, and was a finalist for the 2021 Nature Inspiration Awards (Canadian Museum of Nature).”

I had some tears, as it was so overwhelming and moving to me to win this medal. I won't ever forget this day. Hope my mother and father were watching from above.

Comments

  1. AnonymousFebruary 28, 2025 at 6:32 AM

    Congratulations on such an amazing achievement!! Truly deserved for all your work!

    ReplyDelete
  2. MegFebruary 28, 2025 at 6:32 AM

    Congratulations!! This is a very deserved award and I’m so glad that you were chosen for all your hard work!

    ReplyDelete
  3. BarryFebruary 28, 2025 at 9:51 AM

    You deserve all the acclaim, Mel. Great work that you put your soul into. Look forward to new goals that you can put your amazing energy into in the future.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa HaftingMarch 1, 2025 at 8:27 AM

      thank you Barry for your kindness it means a lot

      Delete
  4. Keith & Margaret RidingFebruary 28, 2025 at 5:18 PM

    Hearty congratulations, Mel. You deserve all the credits.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa HaftingMarch 1, 2025 at 8:25 AM

      Thank you very much Keith and Margaret very kind

      Delete
  5. AnonymousFebruary 28, 2025 at 5:44 PM

    Success is delivered to the deserving. Congratulations Mel.

    ReplyDelete
  6. JimFebruary 28, 2025 at 9:41 PM

    Amazing! So well deserved for all of your hard work. =)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Hawk Identification Tips from every angle (Sharpie vs Cooper and Red-tailed Subspecies)

Image
I get several questions about the difference between accipiters. The most common ones are between Sharp-shinned Hawks and Cooper's Hawks and between Cooper's Hawks vs Northern Goshawks (to a lesser degree). Next, I get many questions dealing with a certain race of buteos the Western Red-tailed Hawk and Harlan's. So I thought I would do a post on these to help answer those questions. I will deal with Cooper's and Sharpies and not Goshawks because they are much more common here and look much more alike. My friend John Reynolds inspired me to write this up. COOPER'S AND SHARP-SHINNED HAWKS EYE COLOUR - YELLOW OR ORANGE? RED? Normally a juvenile Cooper's hawk has a bright yellow eye and a Juvie Sharpie has a orange eye but some cooper's can have a dull yellow eye that looks a bit orangish. Cooper's Hawks usually only transition to the orange eye colour when they are sub adults, so in good light, it's a very very reliable feature. However you ...
Read more

Dowitcher Identification

Image
Birders notoriously find it difficult to tell Short-billed and Long-billed Dowitchers apart. I have got a request to do an identification explanation on them so here goes, I hope it will be helpful. Short-billed Dowitchers and Long-billed look so similar. Using their habitat is helpful but not diagnostic. Short-billed Dowitchers tend to prefer Salt water and brackish water and Long-billed Dowitchers tend to prefer fresh water. However, I have OFTEN seen Short-billeds in freshwater and Long-billeds in brackish and salt water. Therefore, DO NOT rely on habitat. Another feature many people will tell you to rely on is spotting on the side of the flanks of Short-billeds and barring on the side of Long-billeds. Usually this is a mark that you can use but it is not always as distinct as you like. I have seen Short-billeds with a barred appearance to the flanks. It is only at the side of the breast where you have to look for this diagnostic feature for the spots on a Short-billed and t...
Read more

STINT IDENTIFICATION

Image
As per request, here are some tips that I hope will be helpful in identifying and differentiating Red-necked Stint from Little Stint. I will also do a brief intro on Long-toed and Temminck's Stint... if you build it they will come right?😉 Red-necked and Little Stints look very much alike in worn breeding plumage. The amount of Red on the face, throat and breast in Red-necked Stint is vary variable). They look even more alike in non-breeding plumage, that is why it is essential to learn structural differences to separate the two. They are similar to Semipalmated Sandpipers as well as Sanderlings. Both species are often confused for Red-necked Stints. Little Stints rarely get confused with Sanderling because they have a hind toe which helps differentiate it from this species. Sanderlings in breeding or worn breeding are usually confused with Red-necked Stints but they are much larger than Red-necked Stints. Let's first start with Bills in this complicated ID proces...
Read more

*Updated - The most famous Red-tailed Hawk is eating fish on the ground just like a Bald Eagle!

Image
Update - There are plans in the works to make a documentary film on this young Red-tailed Hawk who thinks he's an Eagle. You can read the latest news about that on CBC HERE . Watch this incredible footage of the little Red-tailed Hawk who grew up in a family of three Eaglets and 2 Bald Eagle Parents. He is imprinted now on Bald Eagles. He looks and acts just like one, as you can see here in the video below. He is standing over a large salmon carcass, just like a Bald Eagle would and he's eating the decaying flesh. Red-tailed Hawks like to eat voles and rabbits etc. not fish! Imprinting is usually irreversible according to raptor expert David Bird. However, I hope it's reversible so that he doesn't attempt to mate with a Bald Eagle, as the Eagle would kill him because it would view him as a Hawk. Eagle expert David Hancock said that the bird will likely starve and get killed by an eagle. He said this possibly can be prevented if someone grabs it and takes it to O...
Read more

1 year since I lost my father

Image
My dad and I whom I miss terribly. One year on since I lost him. Today would have been my mother's bday. Her name was Valerie and it is also the first year anniversary of the death of my beloved father, Arne. There is not a day that goes by where I don't think of them. Now for ever more the day of his death will be connected to her birthday, a very sad day but in a way that connection is beautiful to tie them together. My beautiful family before we lost both parents. I put flowers down at their grave to celebrate them both today. I hate that it is one year since I told him I loved him and hugged him. I miss him so very much. I miss his voice, his love and guidance and support. The ground for me feels shakier without his guidance and safety. I hate I will never see him again or talk to him again. Can't believe how quick time passes. This is why it is so important we treasure every single day to the fullest and tell those we love them. I will never forget the day he passed aw...
Read more