About Bev

Bev was actively involved with the AAPP for many, many years, as a member and a Director on the Board, constantly rising to the challenges and taking to task the recognition of the legal support profession by degrees of education, knowledge and experience.  She was a big advocate of access to justice and made it a point to provide her shared experience in a number of writings to bring awareness to the fundamental importance of the roles that Paralegals and legal support provide to the practice of law.

 

Bev started her legal career after graduating from Red Deer College in 1979, from the Law Clerk Program.  Bev was a dedicated legal support professional, for many years, having retired her long-term career as a Paralegal at Walsh LLP.  Bev was a loyal and strong supporter of the firm, its people, ethics and professionalism which she showcased with pride.

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Driven by her desire to leave the world better than she found it, Bev would seek out opportunities to support those around her and in her community. Her empathy knew no bounds; she was passionate about supporting women in need, funding affordable housing, and making law and justice accessible to all.

Bev would put in extra effort to make sure that women in need had the things that they wouldn't have otherwise.

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Her philanthropy efforts extended to affordable housing when her daughter was assigned a "Pay it Forward" school project, an assignment to plan and carry out an idea that would make a difference to the environment or community. Having been close to a single parent family that had experienced homelessness, Bev and her daughter were inspired to make a difference by addressing the lack of affordable housing in Calgary. As a single parent herself, Bev knew the challenges that separated families could face and she was determined to create something that would have a lasting impact. Using her paralegal knowledge and organizational abilities, Bev set up the Heartprints – KIDS for a Cause Foundation, incorporating it in March of 2008. 

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Bev has also always been passionate about access to justice, which makes it possible for those who with limited legal knowledge to have access to the information they need to move forward with a case or claim. She believed that law should be accessible for everyone and not just those with money to spare.

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Objective

To promote helpful acts of kindness in one's community by awarding and recognizing the value of one's time contribution while pursuing a career as a legal professional (legal assistant or paralegal).

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Goal

As the AAPP continues to grow, we, the Board of Directors and members, want to ensure that Bev's legacy in our industry and outside in the community is recognized.

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Eligibility Requirements

• This scholarship is open to single parent students enrolled in a legal assistant or paralegal program.

• Applicants cannot be an immediate family member of any current sitting board member of the AAPP.

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As a student you can volunteer in the legal community by volunteering in the AAPP and with Legal Aid for various opportunities in promoting support, education, and assistance amongst the membership of the Association and the community at large.

 

In your own community – clean up projects, homeless shelters, children’s school, children’s extracurricular activities, neighborhood snow removal, general acts of kindness.

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Selection Criteria

This award recognizes the student who “shine their light” by contributing to their communities through voluntary endeavors to promote access to justice, poverty reduction and/or family support.
 

A community clean up project, assistance at a shelter for vulnerable persons, programs at your children’s school, children’s extracurricular activities, and any general acts of kindness— something that makes a difference.

 

To apply for the Bev Boyden Heart for Justice Scholarship, please select from the following options to submit:

• A one-page written summary of your experience

• A series of photos (3-5) with 1-2 sentence descriptions for each photo

• A 1–5-minute video

 

Please choose one or more of the following topics:

• Describe a time when you went above and beyond to Pay it Forward to improve your community through volunteer work or any other means of philanthropy.

• Explain your understanding of access to justice and ways in which you have, or imagine you will, improve access to justice in your career.

• Describe how being a parent, or single parent, has changed or inspired the way you move through the world and empathize with those around you.

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Click here for the scholarship information packet

Click here for the scholarship application

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Submission Deadline:  June 30, 2024

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Please send your scholarship submission to:  scholarship@alberta-paralegal.com