Congrats to the Winners of the 2026 Sammy Gehue Achievement and Scholarship Awards!

The final winners of the Sammy Gehue Achievement and Scholarship Awards celebrated their many accomplishments with friends and families with the Confederacy of Mi’kmaw Nations (CMN), at an August 10th gathering.

The awards gathering was a time of gratitude and respect for Sammy’s legacy, living on in the accomplishments of many Indigenous youth from across Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia), and the passion, work ethic and pride in their communities that got them there.

“Sammy passed away in 1993, at just seven years old. He was here when the very first award was presented, and that is something I will always treasure,” said Ginger Gehue, Sammy’s mother, who has been present at every awards ceremony since the first one in the nineties.

With gratitude, Ginger told guests that the awards have been a means of keeping Sammy’s memory alive over the years, saying, “Each recipient has become a part of Sammy’s story, and for that, I will always be thankful.”

The milestone was bittersweet for Ginger, who told guests that time had come to retire the awards. As a grieving mother and daughter, the awards made the loss of Sammy and other family members, difficult to bear.

“Retiring this award does not mean that I am letting go of Sammy. I could never let go of my son. He is part of who I am. He is a part of our family, and he always will be,” Ginger said.

The end of the formal awards ceremonies means she will find another way to carry the memory of hers son – one allowing her to remember him with love, without continuously revisiting the pain of his loss.

“I want to sincerely thank everyone who has helped honour Sammy throughout these years,” Ginger said. “Thank you for remembering him; thank you for giving his name a place in our communities; and thank you for allowing me to share his memory with you.”

Recipients

Dedication is the quality that all the Sammy Gehue Award winners have in common, CMN Executive Director Angie Gills told guests in a speech before the awards were handed out.

“This year’s recipients have demonstrated a tenacious commitment to their chosen fields. They have challenged themselves, pursued their goals and contributed to their communities and shown us what it is possible when talent is matched with determination” Angie said.

“Today, we celebrate not only what they have accomplished, but the potential of what lies ahead. Every young person we have honoured today has their own story, their own journey, their own accomplishments worthy of recognition. That is what makes this celebration so meaningful.”

This year’s award recipients – the final winners of the Sammy Gehue Achievement and Scholarship Awards – include the following:

• Drax Gehue-Knockwood – Drax earned his award for his passion playing hockey and softball. His love for the game and versatile playstyle on the ice saw him playing with the U13AA East Hants Penguins and scouted for a AAA youth hockey team in Ontario. Drax has been a regular participant in the Every Child Matters Hockey Tournament for the last three years, and his summers are spent at the softball diamond, with U13 East Hants Mastodons, as third-baseman, outfielder and catcher. He was instrumental in the team winning provincials last season and even tried out to play on his school team.
  
• Rayann Brooks-DeWolfe – Rayann has been an exemplary role model to her peers, and younger students. Despite great personal adversity, she has learned, grown and shown great leadership in academics and many areas in life. With a mature, positive attitude and smile on her face all the while, Rayann is an exemplary, helpful role model for her fellow students at Shubenacadie Elementary School.
  
• Janessa Gehue – Janessa’s award recognizes comes from her academic excellence and passion for dancing. Janessa has been enrolled in competitive dance she since was three years old. With the Energy Pre-Troupe Plus at the Dance Zone Performing Arts Centre, Janessa’s dancing runs a gamut that includes jazz, tap, hip-hop, contemporary, modern and Jr production classes. She attends three competitions per year and made it to finals – events she prepared for with a broken arm, earning perfect attendance. Janessa has plans for a new solo, duo and trio routine, and to enter into more competitions in the coming season.
  
• Ezra Maloney – Ezra’s leadership, determination, pride and sportsmanship on and off the ice earned him accolades that include the All-Star Forward and MVP honours at the Peter and Mary Agnes and Wally Bernard Tournaments, along with four back-to-back U11 championship banners, and a U13 championship banner. Ezra’s sportsmanship shines through in its high-level hockey and baseball, as do his teamwork and respect toward others. Often, the sole Indigenous player on his teams, Ezra represents his community with confidence, resilience and positivity, balancing the demands of hockey and softball, with strong academic performance in school. Ezra also channeled his love for the game to help honour the legacy of a family member, helping to plan and support the memorial hockey tournament dedicated to his uncle Tyson.

• Jessalynn Jones – Jessalynn’s Sammy Gehue Award was the result of her dedication, talent and respect for Mi’kmaw traditions, stories and traditional dance. These qualities shine through in her participation in Powwow Pal cultural dance classes. Partaking in traditional dance requires respect, focus, listening and emotional maturity – qualities she has demonstrated time and time again. Jessalynn’s ability to listen and master complex steps with a mind for their cultural significance have made her excel in traditional dance. Her skills as a natural leader have earned her lasting friendships with her peers, showing them patience, while always being ready to lend a helping hand.
  
  
• Lily Beth Fisher – Lily Beth earned her recognition at the Sammy Gehue Achievement Awards – and her scholarship – with her impeccable academic success. Lily Beth completed Grade 11 with honours in the International Baccalaureate program and qualified for an $8,000 scholarship to study at Acadia University, in the Bachelor of Arts in Law and Society Program. Lily Beth is also winner of a pervious Sammy Gehue Award for her accomplishments while in elementary school.

Legacy

“Coming into this role, I knew that this achievement awards ceremony was more than just a shiny gold star and a name etched on a plaque. These awards embody a legacy fueled by a mother’s unwavering love and the shouldered weight of grief for the loss of a child,” noted CMN Education Advisor Audriana Paul.

Audriana, who has coordinated the last five years’ Sammy Gehue Awards noted that, “Organizing this event has been a collaborative effort of CMN staff, summer students, Sammy’s family, and past honourees, and I extent my heartfelt gratitude to everyone involved. To all past recipients of the achievement awards, your hard work and determination have set a powerful example for today’s youth. And to all recipients from this final year, congratulations! I look forward to seeing you grow into strong community leaders. Lastly, to Ginger and family – Paqsitpi wela’lioq for trusting me with Sammy’s memory. This milestone achievement would be nothing without your continued support, love, and selflessness.”

Awards

More than three decades later, Sammy’s legacy continues, even with the conclusion of the awards, recognizing the academic, humanitarian, environmental, musical, artistic and other achievements of Mi’kmaq youth.The Sammy Gehue Awards are dedicated to the memory of Sammy, and to his tenacity and courage in the face of extraordinary difficulty. He was a Mi’kmaq boy from Sipekne’katik, diagnosed with Fanconi’s anemia, an incurable condition. He courageously fought the condition until he passed in 1993.