Charlottetown woman 1st recipient of award to honour Toronto van attack victim

A Charlottetown woman is the first recipient of an award to honour one of the victims in the Toronto van attack. Sarah Flohr, an Invesco employee, was given the Anne Marie D'Amico award this month. 

The award was created by Invesco's Canadian Management Council, a group of senior leaders, to remember D'Amico.

D'Amico was an Invesco employee who was killed last year on April 23 when a man rammed his van into a crowd in north Toronto, killing 10 people and injuring 16 more.

She worked at Invesco's Canadian headquarters on Yonge Street. 

Just reflecting back on the person that Anne Marie was, it's just very touching.— Sarah Flohr, Anne Marie D'Amico award recipient

Flohr, a distribution capabilities analyst at Invesco in Charlottetown, said she was honoured to be recognized.  

"Just reflecting back on the person that Anne Marie was, it's just very touching … seeing what she did for the community and all the work that she did," she said.

"I was extremely … happy … just to be recognized in relation to who she was."

Andrew MacDonald, head of Invesco's Charlottetown office, said D'Amico was well-known and well-liked for her positive demeanor and selfless commitment to giving back. 

"And so, among the ways that Invesco wanted to remember Anne Marie and keep that spirit alive was by creating the Anne Marie D'Amico Memorial Award," he said. 

'She cares deeply about others'

MacDonald said the award would be given to one Canadian employee each year who demonstrated traits of altruism, generosity and the will to improving the lives of others.

"Sarah is a great ambassador for the community," he said.

"I'm so happy to see her be recognized and it's important for … Anne Marie's co-workers to be able to carry that spirit forward and keep those memories alive and honour her in this way."

MacDonald said the company sent an email out to all Canadian employees seeking peer nominations. 

Flohr's name was put forward by her colleague Karen Chin, who got to know Flohr through a running group.

"We started talking as we were running and she told me about her participation in the MS Foundation as well as her affliction with the … disease," she said.

"And so I was really touched by what she does on a daily basis — to bring … awareness to this disease. She goes through a lot."

I was extremely … happy … just to be recognized in relation to who she was.- Sarah Flohr, Anne Marie D'Amico award recipient

When asked why she thought Flohr would be a worthy recipient, Chin spoke of her leadership qualities and sense of self. 

"She cares deeply about others, she empowers others," she said. 

"Sarah displays a lot of the qualities that Anne Marie did."

'It was definitely tough to hear that own diagnosis'

As Chin recounts that day last year, she gets emotional. 

"It is still really fresh," she said. 

"And, to see you know, good being brought from a day like that day, where we've lost a ton of people and a very dear colleague who spent a lot of time doing good things in the world, to be taken from us so soon — it's good that … Invesco has this specific award that highlights people like Anne Marie, and Sarah has all those qualities." 

Flohr has been a long-time advocate for people with multiple sclerosis, caring for her mother who lives with the disease and finding out that at 26 years old, she also has it. 

"It was difficult, it definitely took some time to process everything, you know, seeing her and the condition she's in and how long she's struggled with the disease — it was definitely tough to hear that own diagnosis," she said.

"But … taking a step back and thinking OK, what can I do about this, how can I help others, how can I be involved, was really kind of what I moved towards."

'I hope there is a cure that's found'

Flohr has been involved with the cause for the last five years.

Benjamin Davis, the senior vice-president of mission for the MS Society of Canada, has known Flohr for about three years in her role as a volunteer for the society. 

"She is so thoughtful," he said.

"She deserves it … because she's such an outstanding individual who does so much for her community, for people she works with, for people she spends time with. She's just outstanding."

Davis said Flohr "does so much for the organization," from participating as a committee member on scientific grant review processes, to sharing her story to community groups. 

Flohr said this award in D'Amico's legacy will continue to motivate her in her advocacy work. 

"I think it just brings a little bit more of that enthusiasm to keep pushing forward and keep talking to individuals about MS and what it is, and really just a reminder that there's still a lot of work to be done within MS," Flohr said.

"I think the other thing is that in the future, I hope there is a cure that's found and I want to be a part of that to some extent."

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