A Delhi filmmaker who documents life in Norfolk County and a broadcaster who grew up near Langton are among the first inductees into the Grand Erie District School Board’s Alumni Hall of Distinction.
The board is recognizing Daryl Granger, a graduate of Delhi District Secondary School, and Annette Hamm, a graduate of Valley Heights Secondary School. The new honour recognizes former students for sustained leadership and contributions to their fields and communities.
Granger is an award-winning filmmaker and photographer who operated Rose Le Studio with his wife, Karen, for many years. His documentaries Netting the Waters, Young Farmer and The Showmen turn the camera on the people, industries and culture of Norfolk County.
Those films have earned nominations and awards in Canada and abroad. In announcing his induction, the board highlighted his work as a solo filmmaker and the example he sets for young artists looking to build careers in their own communities.
Hamm grew up on a tobacco farm outside Langton and graduated from Valley Heights in 1985. She studied broadcast journalism at Mohawk College and joined CHCH News as a crime reporter before going on to co-host CHCH Morning Live for 21 years.
Her honours include a YWCA Hamilton Women of Distinction Award in Public Affairs and Mohawk College’s Alumni of Distinction Award. She has also served on the boards of organizations including the Hamilton-Burlington SPCA, the gritLIT literary festival and Theatre Aquarius.
Inductees are considered through a community nomination process.
To qualify, nominees must have graduated at least 10 years earlier from a Grand Erie secondary school or one operated by a predecessor board.
You can read more about the other inductees here.