Rotary Club of Powell River past president Kelly Keil presented a Paul Harris Fellow award to Terry Peters at a recent weekly meeting.
“Today, we are delighted to honour someone whose lifetime of service has touched nearly every part of this community, and quite a few well beyond it,” said Keil.
Peters dedicated most of his career to emergency services. He served as Powell River’s fire chief, but his path started humbly: delivering newspapers for the Powell River News, landscaping at Zimmers Nursery, and working as a labourer, security guard and first aid attendant at the MacMillan Bloedel pulp and paper mill. From there, he went on to serve as a BC paramedic and a deputy sheriff, before ultimately devoting 37 years to the fire service.
In 2005, Peters and his family embarked on an international firefighter exchange in Tasmania, Australia. His reputation quickly spread—even the Rotarian fire chief there put Peters to work, sending him to speak at four Rotary clubs as the visiting Canadian firefighter.
Back home, Peters’ dedication to training firefighters earned him the Provincial Award for Outstanding Achievement from the Justice Institute of BC and BC’s Firefighter Training Officers Association in 2011.
Even in retirement, Peters hasn’t slowed down. He has been a driving force in making this community safer and greener by promoting the FireSmart program, co-founding the local Broombusters group, and serving on the Powell River and qathet Invasive Species Committee. His efforts have been recognized province-wide, culminating in his election to the board of directors of the Invasive Species Council of British Columbia just last year.
When he’s not tackling broom or advocating for fire prevention, Peters is active in the Vintage Car Club of Canada, representing Powell River as governor and keeping classic car enthusiasts connected.
Most recently, he coordinated more than 150 volunteers for Powell River Salmon Society’s coho clipping campaign—setting a BC record by clipping 300,000 hatchery coho in just three weeks.
“No one in fisheries believed we could achieve that goal,” Peters said later. “They had allocated us a shorter number of days than we requested. We started out under our daily goal of 20,000 because it was so new to everyone. But in the end, we were able to meet it and more. Powell River is the poster child for such a project.”
Beyond all these professional and volunteer contributions, Peters is a devoted husband to Lori for 37 years, a proud father and grandfather, a lover of motorcycles, rock concerts and his 1969 Chevelle, and a perfect example of Rotary’s motto: Service Above Self, said Keil, at the meeting.
“It is with tremendous respect and gratitude that we present you with this Paul Harris Fellow,” she added. “Thank you for everything you have done and continue to do to make this community stronger, safer and more connected.”
Peters said he was humbled to receive the honour, adding that he always surrounds himself with like-minded people and Rotarians are good people.
Rotary International is a service club with 1.4 million members in 49,000 clubs in more than 200 countries. It was founded by Paul Harris in 1905 and 52 years later the Paul Harris Fellow was set up. It is one of the highest honours in Rotary, signifying a commitment to service above self and recognizing significant contributions to communities and beyond.
When a club contributes $1,000 US to the Rotary Foundation, a request can be made for an individual to be recognized as a Paul Harris Fellow.
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