First recipient of the Derrick Bragg Leadership Award announced

The Town Manager of Port au Choix, Lizeta Gould, has been presented with the first Derrick Bragg Leadership Award.

Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs Chris Tibbs presented the award on Saturday in Corner Brook.

Tibbs said, “I was honoured to present the first Derrick Bragg Leadership Award to Lizeta Gould, Town Manager with the Town of Port au Choix. Ms. Gould truly exemplifies everything that Derrick Bragg stood for and everything this leadership award stands for. Thank you to Professional Municipal Administrators of Newfoundland and Labrador for partnering with my department to create such a special award to honour one of our very own, the late Derrick Bragg.”

The memorial award was established to recognize a town clerk, town manager, town clerk/manager or chief administrative officer who makes significant and lasting contributions within the province’s professional municipal administration sector.

The Derrick Bragg Leadership Award honours the career of the late Derrick Bragg, who was deeply passionate about the sustainability of rural communities and improving the lives of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. He served 30 years as the Town Clerk-Manager of his hometown of Greenspond and was President of the Professional Municipal Administrators of Newfoundland and Labrador from 2009 to 2015. In 2015, he became a Member of the House of Assembly for Fogo Island-Cape Freels and acted as minister for various Provincial Government departments until 2023.

In the coming years, the annual Derrick Bragg Leadership Award will be presented at the Professional Municipal Administrators Fall Forum.