We’d like to present Tony Berlier with the 2020 Ontario Alliance of Climbers Service Award. As you enjoy expanded access to Ontario crags, be sure to thank Tony for his essential contributions!
Tony has been the man holding together the OAC from before its inception, serving as co-chair from 2009 through 2019. He took on a ton of unglamourous behind-the-scenes administrative work to make sure the OAC continues to exist and to advocate for access for Ontario climbers. For a long time, he welcomed us to Board meetings in his backyard and organized the meetings (which is a ton of work). Tony chaired AGMs, maintained the membership database, and emailed all members with AGM notices. He did the day-to-day financial transactions to keep the OAC running — all of the boring, but necessary, tasks.
The final test of one’s success at a task is being able to hand it off to one’s successors, and Tony has managed to pass on essentially all of his tasks to the next generation of OAC volunteers, while giving us occasional advice. Thanks for everything Tony!