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FEATUREFame two years ago. It officially opens onNovember 12, 2011, along with the displayareas of the museum. The rest of themuseum building, which is the entranceto Doon Heritage Village, opened on May1, 2010.Inductees from 2011 are on display inthe new Hall of Fame. Records for previousinductees are now stored electronicallyand can be accessed from computerterminals. Computer technology allowsfor more information to be stored inmuch less space and removes the need todisplay the more cumbersome panelsused in the previous facility.While the Waterloo Region Hall ofFame is not separately incorporated, itsactivities, including the annual inductions,are overseen by a Board of Governors.John Thompson is the current Chair,a role he has held since 2003. The formerexecutive director of United Way of Kitchener-Waterlooand the Townships ofWellesley, Wilmot and Woolwich, Thompsonhas been a member of the KitchenerSports Association for 35 years and helpsAs well as artifacts, achievements and events,we need information about people, we need to learn aboutthe most important people in our past.maintain the strong historical linkbetween the two organizations. The KSAstill makes an annual donation to helpcover the modest operating expenses ofthe WRHF.In explaining the governance structureof the WRHF, Thompson noted that thereare two standing committees that reportto the Board of Governors. They are theSports Research Committee and theCommunity/Pioneer Builders ResearchCommittee. Members of the Board ofGovernors are all also members of one ofthese committees along with severalother community volunteers.The role of the research committees isto identify and gather information aboutpotential inductees as well as to reviewnominations for that are received fromthe community. The Sports ResearchCommittee does this for athletes andsports builders. The Community/PioneerBuilders Committee does the same forother areas of endeavour such as business,politics, arts and culture, philanthropy,education and religion.Each autumn both committees recommendto the Board of Governors a list ofapproximately three or four people to beinducted the following year. Sports teamsand community organizations can alsobe inducted. The annual induction ceremonyhappens each year in May.On May 16, 2011 the induction ceremonywas held for the first time in thenew Waterloo Region Museum building.Eight individuals and two teams wereinducted. They were: Ray Alviano –Sports Builder; Lorna Bergey (deceased) –Heritage Preservation; Peter Brill – IceHockey; Mel Brown (deceased) – Musician;Stan Deckert (deceased) – CommunityService; Garnet (Bud) Koehler –Motorcycle Racing; Katherina Kubenk –Freestyle Skiing; Rabbi Philip Rosensweig(deceased) – Faith Community Leader;Breslau Merchants – Softball; Universityof Waterloo Warriors 1974/75 – Basketball.Members of the WRHF Board of Governorsand its Research Committees representthe geographic diversity of Waterloo18 | w w w . e x c h a n g e m a g a z i n e . c o m