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Celebrating Community Spirit

The United Way Spirit Awards is an annual celebration recognizing the individuals, workplaces, and community partners whose generosity and leadership make a lasting difference across Waterloo Region. The spirit of giving comes alive as we gather to honour those who support United Way’s mission and drive meaningful change—bringing us together for an inspiring evening of recognition, connection, and community pride in true UNITED spirit.

EVENT DETAILS

Thursday April 16th

2026

5:00 PM - 8:30 PM

Doors open at 5:00PM, Awards Ceremony begins at 6:45PM

Tapestry Hall

74 Grand Ave S, Cambridge, ON N1S 2L9

Ticket Price

TBA

Event Sponsors

Spirit Awards Categories

Spirit of Community Award

The Spirit of Community Award honours an individual, group, or organization that personifies exceptional community spirit, teamwork, and generosity through their significant partnership with United Way, thereby deepening our community-building partnerships.

The Community Impact Award

The Community Impact Award is presented to a funded partner that, through their collaborative efforts with United Way, demonstrates outstanding leadership and dedication while continuing to drive change and impact in the community.

The Volunteer of the Year Award

The Volunteer of the Year Award honours an individual or group for outstanding volunteer service, celebrating the selfless spirit that characterizes their volunteerism.  

The Outstanding Workplace Campaign Award

(Small - Mid-Size)

The Outstanding Workplace Campaign Award (Small – Mid-Size) recognizes the Employee Campaign Manager and workplace that have demonstrated exceptional dedication in engaging and informing employees, while also increasing donations in a smaller workplace setting, defined as having 200 or less local employees. 

The Outstanding Workplace Campaign Award

(Large)

The Outstanding Workplace Campaign Award (Large) recognizes the Employee Campaign Manager and workplace that have demonstrated exceptional dedication in engaging and informing employees, while also increasing donations in a large workplace setting, defined as having 200 or more local employees. 

The Ken Seiling Community Leaders Award

The Ken Seiling Community Leaders Award recognizes exemplary public leaders who, through extraordinary contributions and outstanding commitment, has driven the spirit of community through personal involvement in community and with United Way Waterloo Region Communities.

Sponsorship opportunities

The Spirit Awards is our annual Spring Celebration, where we close out the campaign season by honouring outstanding community members, workplaces, and individuals for their remarkable support.

This dinner and awards ceremony brings together local champions who drive meaningful change, offering an inspiring evening of recognition, connection, and community pride.

For more information, please contact:

Leslie Hendrickson,
Sponsorship & Events Lead
lhendrickosn@uwaywrc.ca | 519-888-6100 ext 216

Video by Onward Media Group