Pathway of Fame, Peterborough, ON (2026)

08/31/2026

With our annual Induction night coming up this year on Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace (7pm, doors open at 6) let's introduce you to our honoured inductees for the Class of 2026 - so you may get to know them a little bit better! A new one every Sunday, and perhaps an extra here and there...

MARION GRIFFIN (Dramatic Arts)

If there’s a function, aspect or feature of the Peterborough Theatre Guild that doesn’t have Marion Griffin’s fingerprints all over it, it is yet to be found.

Chair and president of the community theatre company for six years now, Griffin has brought to that role a treasure trove of experience rooted in her five decades of committed involvement at the Guild Hall in Peterborough’s East City.

Over the years, she has served as musical director for several musicals, produced a number of family productions, welcomed audiences on opening nights and thanked cast and crew on closing nights. Griffin has also served as Master of Ceremonies for Eastern Ontario Drama League (EODL) adjudications hosted by the guild.

As an accomplished musician who plays piano and organ, Griffin has also provided background music for stage productions.

Behind the scenes, Griffin has been no less busy and productive, meeting with producers to review the process of producing, while ensuring due diligence for the necessary criminal record checks as well as adherence to anti-harassment protocols. Along the way, if there’s a set to be painted, Griffin is all in.

Also on Griffin’s lengthy to-do list is the organizing and facilitating of AGM and board meetings, the reviewing and updating of producer and stage manager manuals, and the creation of newsletters for guild patrons and members.

Currently sitting on the EODL board as its secretary, Griffin fills that same role for BJChoirs, comprised of the Jubilaires ladies’ chorus and the Bonachords men’s chorus. She also works on governance for both the guild and BJChoirs.

Musically, Griffin is just as active and equally passionate.

Along with singing as a member of the Kawartha Lakes Singers, Griffin conducts the Buckhorn Chorus and the Jubilation Choir, both of which regularly entertain retirement home residents and hospital patients. In addition, she serves as the organist and choir director for Greenwood United Church in Douro-Dummer, for which she composed and conducted its 2025 Christmas cantata and is penciled in as music director of its 2026 panto.

If this isn’t quite enough, since her retirement from teaching 10 years ago, Griffin has put her proficiency in math to very good use, tutoring students in mathematics, as well as other subjects.

The Energizer bunny personified. That’s our inductee, Marion Griffin.

The Pathway of Fame annual Induction Gala is set for the evening of Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace Performance Center. The event will take place upstairs on the Main Stage of the Erica Cherney Theatre. Doors open at 6pm with the ceremony beginning at 7pm and all are welcome to attend...it is a free, public event and friends, family members of the inductees as well as all community members are invited, Completely open to the public. There will also be live music from the main stage prior to the event as well, so please come early. Hope to see you there!

08/23/2026

With our annual Induction night coming up this year on Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace (7pm, doors open at 6) let's introduce you to our honoured inductees for the Class of 2026 - so you may get to know them a little bit better! A new one every Sunday, and perhaps an extra here and there...

ALEX DENYS (Communtiy Builder)

When a devastating spinal cord injury left Douro-Dummer native Alec Denys paralyzed from the waist down at age 29, he could have retreated, wallowing in self-pity with the question ‘Why me?’ running constantly through his mind.

Yes, he could have – but he instead forged a path lined with volunteer service, lived leadership, mentorship, advocacy and athletic achievement to build connection, reduce isolation, expand accessibility and create opportunity for countless others spanning multiple generations. The result has been a full life that is an inspiring example of resilience, determination and full-on empathy.

Truth be known, Denys’ athletic achievements alone could have brought him to the Pathway of Fame on their own.

An archer who represented Canada at five Paralympic Games from 1984 to 2000, Denys competed in more than 30 international tournaments, won gold and helped set a world team archery record in 2012, as well as establishing Canadian records in swimming and javelin. All very impressive, for sure, but it’s Denys’ work and dedication out of the sports arena that sets him apart.

For more than 15 years as a peer mentor and support leader with Spinal Cord Injury Ontario (SPIO), Denys has helped individuals and families navigate one of the most difficult and emotional transitions imaginable.

For having developed and sustained a peer support network serving some 40 participants monthly in Peterborough County, Denys received the organization’s Peer Volunteer of the Year Award as well as Peterborough’s Holnbeck Award in recognition of his contributions to improving quality of life for people with disabilities.

A member of the Peterborough County Joint Accessibility Advisory Committee, Denys is a founding member and chair of the Active Together Program offered through the Council for Persons with Disabilities, helping create recreational opportunities for those with both visible and hidden disabilities. If this isn’t enough, Denys also sits as president of the Douro-Dummer Seniors Club, and is vice-president of the Peterborough Curling Club.

While each of his volunteer roles has been a focus, Denys has never strayed far from the sport he loves.

As part of the Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games Torch Relay, he carried the torch into Del Crary Park where he proudly lit the community cauldron. With Archery Canada, Denys has held senior leadership roles, including chair of the High-Performance Committee. And holding true to the path his life has followed, he has mentored others involved in the sport, a list that includes Canadian Paralympic gold medalist Jon Thurston.

When all is said and done, we’re left with a man who transformed adversity into service, achievement into opportunity, and lived experience into lasting impact.

The Pathway of Fame annual Induction Gala is set for the evening of Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace Performance Center. The event will take place upstairs on the Main Stage of the Erica Cherney Theatre. Doors open at 6pm with the ceremony beginning at 7pm and all are welcome to attend...it is a free, public event and friends, family members of the inductees as well as all community members are invited, Completely open to the public. There will also be live music from the main stage prior to the event as well, so please come early. Hope to see you there!

08/16/2026

With our annual Induction night coming up this year on Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace (7pm, doors open at 6) let's introduce you to our honoured inductees for the Class of 2026 - so you may get to know them a little bit better! A new one every Sunday, and perhaps an extra here and there...

KEITH DALTON AND ELAINE ORGILL - Communtiy Builders

While it’s proven true that many hands make light work, there’s some question around just how many hands are required to get the job done, and in a most significant way.

Keith Dalton and Elaine Orgill are here to tell us that four hands are enough and, further, that the combined result of their volunteer efforts extends far beyond simply lightening the work.

The grateful benefactors of their extensive voluntarism number two in the form of Peterborough Action for Tiny Homes (PATH) and the Peterborough Theatre Guild, but the effect in terms of both entities’ success and continued vitality has been, and remains, boundless.

For PATH, Dalton and Orgill have been hard at it since 2021 – Dalton as project manager, to which he brought his professional engineering and managerial skills, and as the lead for the organization’s Land Acquisition Group; and Orgill as a fundraising coordinator who, with Dalton, has done much to elevate PATH’s community outreach.

Specifically, Dalton’s expertise was key in PATH’s initial 2022 city council application to locate on property at Park and Lansdowne; the partnership with Cleary Homes to facilitate the building of a model cabin and the storage of nine unassembled cabins; collaborations with building material suppliers; and negotiations with Habitat for Humanity which led to PATH’S rental of the property at its current location on Lansdowne Street East.

Orgill, meanwhile, took the fundraising lead for PATH, through Delta Bingo and her arranging for a 2023 Market Hall benefit featuring the Peterborough Concert Band – an ensemble in which she performs, alongside Dalton. To these efforts, Orgill has brought an extensive background in voluntarism, including work on behalf of Jamaican Self-Help and Grandmothers to Grandmothers.

As for the Peterborough Theatre Guild part of this joint equation, both have gone far and beyond to the great benefit of the community theatre troupe.

Over the past 30 years, Dalton has built sets for guild productions, bringing to that work his skills as an architect, designer and carpenter, while Orgill has served as the production manager for a number of the guild’s stagings over the years.

As passionate advocates for social justice, Dalton and Orgill have acted on their convictions time and time again, the result seen not only in the continued vitality and sustainability of the organizations they’re associated with, but in the Peterborough community as a whole where the selfless gift of their time and talents is a shining example of the impact of saying “I can do that…and will.”

The Pathway of Fame annual Induction Gala is set for the evening of Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace Performance Center. The event will take place upstairs on the Main Stage of the Erica Cherney Theatre. Doors open at 6pm with the ceremony beginning at 7pm and all are welcome to attend...it is a free, public event and friends, family members of the inductees as well as all community members are invited, Completely open to the public. There will also be live music from the main stage prior to the event as well, so please come early. Hope to see you there!

08/09/2026

With our annual Induction night coming up this year on Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace (7pm, doors open at 6) let's introduce you to our honoured inductees for the Class of 2026 - so you may get to know them a little bit better! A new one every Sunday, and perhaps an extra here and there...

Dr. KIM CURTIN - COMMUNITY BUILDER

The term ‘trailblazer’ is applied with far too much abandon, but there are times when it’s absolutely the perfect descriptor for one who, tasked with an unprecedented challenge, not only acts decisively to meet it – but also toils to ensure its success in the face of obstacles.

In the late 2000s, Peterborough’s standing as an established medical education hub was a mere notion, as opposed to a reality. Any thought of building a robust teaching program outside of that offered by a traditional academic hub was viewed with much skepticism.

Enter Dr. Kim Curtin who, in response to a 2008 request from Queen’s University in Kingston, took on the challenge of developing a two-year family medicine residency program in Peterborough.

Faced with the task of recruiting physicians to participate as educators, Dr. Curtin was immediately up against it. Many she approached had chosen to work in Peterborough to avoid any academic-related involvement. That, however, did little to staunch Dr. Curtin’s commitment, the result being a small team of family medicine and specialty preceptors in place come 2010.

The early years were precarious; a time when the most minor of setbacks threatened to derail the program, but Dr. Curtin’s determination and perseverance anchored the Peterborough Family Residency Program’s growth in size, strength and reputation. Today, the program consistently attracts residents who contribute significantly to patient care and medical education.

If that’s not enough, there has been the broader impact on Peterborough’s evolution as a thriving medical education hub.

Over the past 15 years, many of the program’s graduates have chosen to practice family medicine in Peterborough city, and county. Of note, the majority of those contribute to care provided at the Peterborough Regional Health Centre in areas such as emergency medicine, obstetrics and palliative care.

Beyond the traditional medical care realm, program graduates have, via their involvement with the Rapid Access Addiction Medicine Clinic, The Street Health Care Team and the Peterborough Community Health Centre, been key in the provision of services to the community’s most vulnerable.

Dr. Curtin’s leadership and sheer determination to succeed gave new life to an entire medical community which, in turn, has led to wholly-accessible and exceptional health care for countless residents. Today, the Peterborough Family Residency Program is largely led by graduates of the program, each continuing Dr. Curtin’s vision while maintaining a culture rooted in mentorship, collaboration and excellence that she worked so very hard to foster.

The Pathway of Fame annual Induction Gala is set for the evening of Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace Performance Center. The event will take place upstairs on the Main Stage of the Erica Cherney Theatre. Doors open at 6pm with the ceremony beginning at 7pm and all are welcome to attend...it is a free, public event and friends, family members of the inductees as well as all community members are invited, Completely open to the public. There will also be live music from the main stage prior to the event as well, so please come early.

06/19/2026

Our honoured Class of 2026! Thanks to Global News Peterborough for covering the announcement!

06/18/2026

Mark your calendars for Tuesday, September 15th at 7pm at Showplace for the Class of 2026 Induction Gala!

06/18/2026

Today's the Day!

05/31/2026

As we await the announcement of the Class of 2026 in the coming weeks, this week we mourn the loss of artist, businessman and gallery owner Peer Christensen, who passed away at Hospice May 25th after a battle with glioblastoma (brain cancer), with which he was diagnosed last year.

Peer was 72 and a Pathway of Fame Inductee (Class of 2013).

We remember Mr. Christensen this week in POSTCARDS FROM THE PATHWAY as we revisit Peer's profile from www.ptbopathwayoffame.ca

Peer Christensen was an influential professional artist based in Peterborough since 1985. He founded local art galleries: Williamson House Gallery, 1986-95; Hunter West Gallery, 1995-2006; Christensen Fine Art Gallery, 2006 to the present.

He founded the Starving Artist Framing Outlet.

He has been the featured artist in solo exhibits, 2002 and 2010 at The Art Gallery of Peterborough; and with his wife, Lori was honorary chair for the Art Gallery of Peterborough Fundraising Gala in 2011.

His art is housed in several private, and corporate art collections and has been featured in fundraising events for several organizations. He has served on the PRHC Foundation Volunteer Art Committee from the outset. He had a great track record for getting involved in projects important to the local arts community and seeing them through.

Some of his most striking work captures the changeability of nature and the impact of the industrial landscape.
According to Peterborough This Week, “Self taught in drawing and watercolour, Christensen works primarily as an oil painter, his immense classical-based talent clearly evident and his work respected well beyond the city’s borders.”

Photo courtesy Lance Anderson, Peterborough This Week / Metroland / MYKawatha

Peer Christensen passed away May 25th, 2026

For complete information on the more than 300 inductees currently on The Pathway, please visit the Pathway of Fame, Peterborough and District online for all our inductees. The database is searchable by year, or name.
https://ptbopathwayoffame.ca/
The Pathway of Fame, Peterborough and District gratefully acknowledges the ongoing support of NEXICOM for website support, and KAWARTHA TV AND STEREO for promotional consideration.

The Pathway of Fame Class of 2026 will be announced in June, with the annual Induction Ceremony taking place on the evening of Tuesday, September 15th at Showplace Performance Center, down Peterborough.

05/04/2026

The nominations are in, and we thank the community for submitting again this year. And as we always say - "no one gets onto The Pathway without a nomination from the community.'

As we await the announcement - coming in June - as to those who will be inducted as part of the Class of 2026, it's time for another installment of 'Postcards from the Pathway!'

And today, from the Class of 2011: MICHAEL PETERMAN (Literary)

Michael A. Peterman, Professor Emeritus of English Literature, Trent University, is named in 2006 as Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. It’s peer recognition of his exceptional research accomplishments.

Working with various colleagues he researched archival records and original writings of several writers with links to the Peterborough area bringing them, and their work, to life in no fewer than 13 books, 100+ articles and countless speeches and papers. He’s a leading authority on Willa Cather, Susanna Moodie, Catharine Parr Traill, Robertson Davies, James McCarroll and Isabella Valancy Crawford. Thanks to his efforts, their works are now studied at schools and universities here, and abroad.

At Trent, he taught its most popular courses in American and Canadian Literature. With the Peterborough Historical Society, Michael Peterman – a past president – chaired its Publications Committee for more than 20 years and actively supported the Hutchison House Museum.

Michael Peterman is singularly successful in diligently researching, and imaginatively reconstructing the lives and times of writers he admires. He also generously shares what he learns.

For complete information on the more than 300 inductees currently on The Pathway, please visit the Pathway of Fame, Peterborough and District online for all our inductees. The database is searchable by year, or name.
https://ptbopathwayoffame.ca/
The Pathway of Fame, Peterborough and District gratefully acknowledges the ongoing support of NEXICOM for website support, and KAWARTHA TV AND STEREO for promotional consideration.

photo courtesy Clifford Skarstedt, The Peterborough Examiner

04/26/2026

'Postcards from The Pathway.'

This weekend, it's P.S.B. Wilson, who was fondly remembered over the weekend. Paul Wilson died in January.

"To become acquainted with Paul Wilson is to know an individual who never stops promoting, supporting and contributing to the betterment of his community in so many ways.

Paul’s cheerful and outgoing manner makes him one of the best ambassadors the Peterborough area has ever had.
His position as the first Athletic Director at Trent University was characterized by his “sports for all” philosophy resulting in a special tribute wall in the University’s Athletic Building.

But it is in recognition of Paul Wilson’s selfless involvement in the Peterborough community which is being hailed by the Pathway of Fame.

Paul’s decade of service on City Council was marked by a civility combined with a constructive sense of humour to the workings of Council. His contribution to the well-being of Peterborough citizens is legendary. Paul Wilson left an admirable legacy of achievement to many areas of the City. He is also a skillful, bright emcee who, over many years devoted his time to countless events for non-profit organizations.

Paul’s volunteer work with Cogeco Television (now Your TV, and well over 50 broadcasts a year) is well-known and respected for the fairness and common sense he contributes to the programs in which he is involved. David Feely, as of 2016 the Manager Programming and Community Relations unreservedly states, “(Your TV) is grateful to Paul for his dedication to the organization.”

His wife Gillian’s (Inducted 2003) immersion in Peterborough theatre has seen Paul become a great supporter as well. Paul, himself has brightened the stage in plays and revues, from time to time.

In so many areas of volunteer service Paul’s readiness to give of himself to the betterment of his community is an example to be emulated and admired.

Paul P.S. (PSB) Wilson died in January 2026 in his 87th year."

THIS IS THE FINAL WEEK TO NOMINATE SOMEONE DESERVING FOR THE PATHWAY OF FAME. Nominations close at the end of day Thursday, April 30th. While you CAN nominate people throughout the year, nominations to the current class (2026) end on April 30th to give us enough time to go through the nominations with our selection committee, and determine the successful inductees from all nominations received. It's our annual Pathway Push through the month of April, and it's quickly coming to a close for this year.

** If you would like to nominate someone for The Pathway of Fame, download the one-page nomination form from ptobpathwayoffame.ca. Each nomination costs $10 with instructions for payment on the nomination form.

Deadline Thursday!

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