A Frontier resident obtained special recognition yesterday for his 65 years and counting of volunteering.

Earl Swarbrick received the Saskatchewan Volunteer Medal in Regina presented by Lieutenant Governor Russ Mirasty. 

Swarbrick's volunteering resume commenced shortly after he moved to the village in the spring of 1958 when he was transferred by Beaver Lumber.

"That fall I went to the board of trade meeting and first thing you know I got elected secretary/treasurer of the board of trade," he said. "That's when it started, just blossoming from there."

He wasted no time kickstarting a baseball program in the community for kids aged 10-14 the following summer and was even taken aback by the participation levels.

"There were 35 kids that showed up," he said. "I had to break them into two groups, like 10, 11, and 12 and 13 and 14. I had three out of my own family that went through that system too and that ended in 1986."   

Swarbrick served on Frontier's town council at one point including a seven-year stint as mayor. He also spent time on various boards over the years including the Union Hospital, Cypress Hills Health District, and Lion's Club. 

His most recent and longest-standing volunteering venture has him performing as the treasurer for the Frontier Senior Citizens Group which he's held since 1991. 

The province has only handed out 249 of these medals since it was created in 1995. Swarbrick was one of the 11 recipients of the 2022 edition.