edward lau, winner of the King Charles III Coronation Medal

Edward Lau received the King Charles III Coronation Medal in recommendation from the Deputy Minister (DM) of Transport, Arun Thangarj, and the Associate Deputy Minister (ADM) of Transport, Brigitte Diogo.  

The medal was presented to Edward from the Associate Assistant Deputy Minister (AADM), the Ontario Regional Director General (ORDG), and the Regional Director (RD) of Transportation Security Operations on May 26, 2025.  The DM and ADM's letter to Edward dated March 10, 2025 stated that,

"Created by the Sovereign and administered by the Chancellery of Honours, the medal marks the coronation of King Charles III, which took place on May 6, 2023. More information on the medal can be found at King Charles III Coronation Medal | The Governor General of Canada.

This prestigious medal is awarded to individuals like you who have made a profound impact on their community and on Canada as a whole. Your remarkable contributions, dedication, and service have set you apart, and we are thrilled to acknowledge the difference you have made in shaping the Canada we know today. As one of the 30,000 recipients of this historic medal, your achievements stand as a testament to your unwavering commitment to excellence, whether in your professional endeavors, volunteer work, or efforts that have brought credit to Canada both domestically and abroad."

A Summary of Edward Lau's Public Servant and Community Services Career:

Edward began his public servant career at Transport Canada (TC) as a summer student in 1999 for civil aviation.  His work training and the mentorship he received from his Regional Director (RD) had enabled him to advance in his public sector and community work careers.  The public services’ values and ethics code had guided and continue to guide Edward through the opportunities and challenges that he encountered at work and at community services.

In 2013, with the support from the TC DM, ORDG and RD, and through the same vetting process, Edward was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in celebration of her Majesty’s 60th anniversary.  

With that achievement and in conjunction of other community work Edward did, Edward became a board of director at Community Living Toronto where he contributed to the governance conversations pertaining to land development, management labor relations, governance structure, bylaws review, corporate finances, strategic planning, CEO recruitment, legal discussions, succession planning and much more.  After serving 9 years on this board with specific support to governance, finance and audit, Edward and his wife, Michelle, received the Jim Turner Memorial Award for Outstanding Voluntarism in 2023.   Michelle is also a long severing community leader for people with special needs and youth from the marginalized communities.

Levering on Edward's TC training and work on accessibility, equity, diversity and inclusion as well as his board experience at Community Living Toronto, Edward also became a board of director Community Living York South (CLYS) and the APTUS Treatment Centre to help these two organizations to navigate through COVID, finance, housing and the recruitment of an Executive Director.  Edward served as a board of director at Community Living Ontario and a member of their finance committee from 2023 to 2025.

In 2021, Edward joined the City of Markham's Accessibility Advisory Committee (MAAC) and became the MAAC Chair in 2023.  During his tenure as the Chair, Edward helped to rebuild MAAC's governance culture.  Under his leadership, MAAC's members guided the staff and their consultant to complete the City of Markham Multi-Year Accessibility Plan 2025-2029.  The strategy and the technique Edward used for leading this committee were the skillsets he acquired from delivering and managing TC programs.

Edward and Michelle founded the ME & Lau Family Foundation (ME) in 2017 to fund local charitable events for people with intellectual disabilities. ME receives its private charitable foundation status in 2025.  Through ME, Edward and Michelle fund and organize free income tax filing clinics for people with disabilities and families with low to mid range income.  They provide a minimum of two $1200 scholarship awards annually to students for attending higher post-secondary education with financial needs and outstanding volunteering experience.  Edward and Michelle also fund the ME String Music Arts Exhibition for artists with intellectual disabilities and orchestra music supporters. 

When encountering difficult challenges, Edward leverage on his practice of the values and ethics code for public sector to guide him to solutions.  Edward and Michelle ensure their decisions and actions reflect the principles of diversity, include, equity and accessibilities.

Edward is especially graceful to TC for supporting his career development and to Michelle for supporting him in everything.  A thank you to John Lau, Maggie Lau, Jasmine Lau and Braydon Lau.

Edward also want to thank all his good friends and supporters who have helped him and walked the path with him on his lifelong journey of community services.