Mercedes Orellana, the recently retired Executive Director of the Service d’aide aux Néo-Canadiens (SANC), was celebrated in a special ceremony on Tuesday afternoon by Sherbrooke’s Member of Parliament Élisabeth Brière.
Brière presented Orellana with la médaille de la députée, a medal minted in recognition of Sherbrooke residents whose engagement in their community is deemed exceptional by the MP.
In Orellana’s case, the presentation recognizes her nearly 30 years of work welcoming immigrants and refugees to Sherbrooke and helping them to integrate with the local community. She was given the medal at her former workplace, in the company of her former colleauges, friends, and family.