“Taking it easy” aren’t words that are in Mathilde Gravelle-Bazinet’s vocabulary.
Gravelle-Bazinet is a dedicated, passionate and hard-working member of the North Bay community and was heavily involved in the creation of the Nipissing Serenity Hospice.
In 2006, while serving as the founding Chair of the North East Local Health Integration Network (NE LHIN), Gravelle-Bazinet experienced the exceptional end-of-life care that her brother and his family received in a residential hospice in Chambly, Québec. This made her realize how beneficial it would be to have a peaceful residential hospice for Nipissing residents.
From that day forward she made it her goal to get one built.
From 2011 to 2020, as the founding Chair of the Board of Directors of the Nipissing Serenity Hospice-Maison Sérénité du Nipissing, (NSH-MSN), she dedicated her time and energy to recruiting a team of community leaders who shared her dream.
After gaining the support of volunteers and politicians, January 2020 marked the opening of the 10-room, bilingual residential hospice now known as Nipissing Serenity Hospice.
Gravelle-Bazinet was grateful to hear the news of her Community Builders Award win in the Healthcare category.
“I’m really appreciative for having been named the winner of this award,” she said.
“Being able to get a hospice built for our community was the epitome of my volunteer work and one of the most exciting moments of my life,” she shared.
Because of Gravelle-Bazinet’s relentless work and volunteerism, she was the recipient of a Senate award in 2017, recognizing the work she does to improve the lives of others and promote the community. In 2023, she received the prestigious honour of becoming one of the 85 new appointees to the Order of Canada.
She puts in a tremendous amount of time, dedication and commitment to all of the projects that she’s involved in.
“I have had the privilege of knowing Mathilde for four years, and throughout this period, I have witnessed firsthand her commitment to making our community a better place,” said Gil Pharand, executive director at Nipissing Serenity Hospice.
The Health Care award goes to an individual or group that has had an important impact on the health care of the community. It could be as straight forward as a health-care professional who has gone beyond the call of duty, or the individual who helped establish a health care program that wouldn’t exist without his or her leadership.
Congratulations, Mathilde!
This award is proudly sponsored by Ashley HomeStore North.
