Laurence Martin Cashin, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
Governor General's Caring Canadian Award
The father of a deaf child, Laurence Martin Cashin helped found the first school for the deaf in his province, and served on the Newfoundland Parents Association for Hearing Handicapped Children. He focused on enabling students to keep their ties to family living in remote areas and to gain work experience. From 1974 to 1990, Mr. Cashin headed the Newfoundland Coordinating Council on Deafness, which provides employment counselling, training and job placements for the deaf. In 1981, he helped establish the right of deaf Newfoundlanders to publicly funded interpreters in court and when receiving medical care. He also persuaded the RCMP to provide free emergency 911 service for deaf people in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Mr. Cashin's dedication has helped to improve the lives of many in his province.
