First Afro-Canadian Appointed Citizenship Judge Born, St. Mary, Jamaica, Pamela Appelt was raised in her home village by her maternal grandmother after her parents left for England to complete their education. Spending school holidays and her university years in England where her father worked for the BBC and her mother ran a printing business, Pamela, 1965, travelled to Montreal on holiday, and liked Canada so much that she applied for landed immigrant status. Working first as a biochemist, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Montreal, she then worked as a researcher in medical biochemistry, McGill University. After marrying lawyer David Appelt, they moved to Oakville, Ontario, 1979, raising two children, Melanie and Michael. In 1987, Pamela was appointed to the Court of Canadian Citizenship, the first female Judge of Afro-Canadian descent to be so named. A cultural bridge builder, especially since her recent retirement as a Citizenship Judge, Pamela serves on many volunteer committees. She is the recent Chairperson of the allocation committee on violence against women with the United Way of Greater Toronto. She is also a member of the Custody Review Board whose role is one of negotiation and dispute resolution. An energetic and enthusiastic volunteer, Pamela was a Canadian Delegate to the United Nations’ Decade for Women Conference, Nairobi, Kenya, 1985. A community activist, she has served on numerous boards, including the Community Foundation of Oakville, the Canadian Multiculturalism Council, the B’nai Brith League of Human Rights, Annual Harry Jerome Awards, and the Black Business and Professional Association. In this view, she is shown being congratulated by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, 1987, on the occasion of her being appointed a Canadian Citizenship Judge. [Photo, courtesy Pamela Appelt]

Building Social Safety Nets After graduating from the College of Science and Technology, Kingston, Jamaica, Alvin Curling, born, 1939, was actively involved in youth work and had a career in housing management and land settlement before immigrating to Canada, 1965. In Ontario, both these skills were recognized when, as the first Liberal M.P.P. elected in the riding of Scarborough-Rouge River, he was named Minister of Housing 1985-1987, Minister of Skills Development, and member of the Premier’s Council on Science and Technology, 1987-89, and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, 1990. On arriving in Canada, Mr. Curling worked for several companies: White Motors, Go Transit, Confederation Assurance, and Prudential Insurance, besides being a volunteer immigration counsellor. Alvin also attended Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology and York University. In 1972 he joined Seneca as Director of Student Services and remained there until his election, 1985, a seat he has held since. Dedicated to improving literacy at all levels, Mr. Curling was President, World Literacy of Canada, 1981-84, and continues to take an active role in that organization as well as the Jamaican Canadian Association. In 1997-98, he was Chair, Advisory Board to the Caribana Cultural Committee. [Photo, courtesy Alvin Curling, M.P.P]