On December 4, 2022, two members of our community were presented with the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medals in the category of Citizen Community Builders. 

Dianne and Kelly Kimmett were nominated for the work they do as advocates against distracted driving and for the amount of money that has been raised in the community and beyond through the Lindsay Kimmett Memorial Foundation. They along with other outstanding Albertans received the medals for making a difference.

The Platinum Jubilee Medal commemorates the 70th anniversary of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the Throne as Queen of Canada. The medal is a tangible way for Alberta to honour Her Majesty’s service to Canada while recognizing Albertans who have made significant contributions to the province. 

The day after the devastatingly sudden and tragic death of their daughter, Lindsay, in 2008 her parents conceived the idea of the Lindsay Kimmett Memorial Foundation. Her family believes without a doubt that had Lindsay lived she would have continued to accomplish great things in her life and the foundation allows them to make a difference in the world in Lindsay’s name. Over the past 14 years, the Kimmett’s have been active supporters of Alberta’s distracted driving legislation. Through the foundation and fundraising efforts such as the Kimmett Cup and Monumental Tournament of Aces millions of dollars have been raised for various charities. To date, the foundation has raised $3.25 million dollars and that has gone to causes both locally and globally. Of that $3.25 million, $575,000 has gone to Cochrane causes. 

The pain of losing a loved one never goes away but the ache can be dulled by turning a bad situation into a good cause. When referring to the charity events the foundation supports Dianne says, "We say that you can almost feel Lindsay at these events. She was very fun-loving. Our sons say it helps their children to know who Lindsay was and what she stood for because there is so much goodness that surrounds these events in the community.  And I want to add we are very humbled because there are many great people in Cochrane.” 

Although they work hard for the Lindsay Kimmett Memorial Foundation, the Kimmett's have always been shy of the spotlight. Even when asked about the recognition they recently received with the medal presentation, Dianne shifts the spotlight by saying, “We are backed by an amazing community. When we did grief support after Lindsay was killed, we had other parents who said, you know people would just cross the street not to have to talk to us. We never once experienced that in Cochrane. This community has stood so firmly behind us and it has been a while now and they have just never ever wavered. So, it is not that we do this alone."

When asked about the ceremony at which they received their medals, Dianne speaks not of themselves but of the other award recipients, "We were really humbled to be in the midst of really ordinary people that do extraordinary things. So, the lady that was sitting next to Kelly was nominated because she had been delivering Meals on Wheels for 41 years and the only reason she stopped was that COVID stopped her. There was another lady who was pushing 90 who was nominated because for 40-some years she has walked around the community and did what needed to be done. She mows lawns and pulls weeds and shovels snow. So, there were a lot of interesting stories."