Recently, I attended a very special celebration.

It was a gathering unlike most celebrations—not for a business achievement, a retirement, or an award, but to honor a life devoted to serving others.

The catalyst for the event was Warren Creates, a remarkable community leader whose favorite color is orange. To him, orange symbolizes passion, strength, optimism, and an enduring energy that keeps moving life forward.

It couldn’t have been a more fitting theme.

From the decorations to the flowers and the smallest details, the room radiated the warmth and vitality of orange.

As one of the organizing committee members, I happily wore my favorite orange dress and matching shoes to celebrate a man whose life has inspired so many people.

Friends, family, colleagues, and longtime partners gathered to celebrate Warren Creates and his more than three decades of unwavering commitment to community service and philanthropy. Throughout the evening, people shared stories of their friendships with Warren, the projects they had built together, and the many lives he had touched.

As I listened, one thought kept returning to me:

Some people seem to have lived ten lifetimes in one.

What moved me most wasn’t simply how much Warren had accomplished.

It was the extraordinary vitality that radiated from him.

It made me ask myself:

What is true vitality?

When I was younger, I thought vitality meant being physically healthy, energetic, and constantly busy.

Now I think differently.

Some people are young but have already lost their enthusiasm for life.

Others have gray hair but still carry a sparkle in their eyes and genuine excitement for tomorrow.

I first met Warren through the Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival. A friend recommended me to join the Board of Directors, where Warren was serving as Chair.

At the time, I knew very little about him. I simply sensed that he possessed remarkable enthusiasm, inspired everyone around him, and was deeply respected by the community.

Only later did I discover that he was one of the founders of the Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival.

More than thirty years ago, he and a group of visionary volunteers introduced dragon boating to Ottawa. What began as a small community event has grown into one of the largest dragon boat festivals in North America. Today, it is one of Ottawa’s signature events and has raised more than six million dollars for local charities and community organizations.

Thirty years!

Many businesses/organizations lose momentum after just a few years.

Many projects disappear once the excitement fades.

Yet Warren devoted more than three decades to one vision.

That kind of commitment requires far more than passion.

It requires enduring vitality.

As I got to know him better, I discovered another dimension of his life. He also helped establish the Can-Go Afar Foundation, which has been supporting Indigenous communities in Africa through education and community development.

There was never much publicity.

No pursuit of recognition.

No expectation of personal gain.

Simply the quiet conviction that the work mattered.

The longer I’ve known Warren, the more fascinating I find his journey.

As a distinguished lawyer, he had already built an impressive career.

Yet he never allowed his profession to define him.

He served his community.

He championed humanitarian causes.

He organized major public events.

He connected people across cultures, professions, and generations.

Every conversation with him reveals another story.

And I often find myself wondering:

Why do some people live such remarkably rich lives?

Eventually, I realized the answer isn’t how much money they have or how many experiences they’ve accumulated.

It’s because they never lose their curiosity.

They never stop creating.

They never stop growing.

Perhaps that is what true vitality really is.

Vitality is not age.

It is not wealth.

It is not even perfect health.

Vitality is an upward force.

It is the courage to begin again after disappointment.

It is the generosity to remain kind after witnessing life’s complexities.

It is the willingness to stay curious when the future remains uncertain.

And increasingly, I believe vitality has one defining characteristic:

Creation.

When we’re young, much of life is about completing tasks.

Finishing school.

Building a career.

Meeting other people’s expectations.

But as I’ve grown older, I’ve discovered that what truly excites me is no longer simply completing something.

It is creating something.

Creating a company.

Creating a product.

Creating a charitable initiative.

Creating a new way of living.

Creating possibilities that didn’t exist before.

Creation is one of the purest expressions of vitality.

Because to create is to believe in the future.

It is believing that the seeds we plant today will one day blossom.

It is choosing hope and action even when the destination remains unknown.

Over the past year, I have consistently written my bi-weekly blog, From Helen’s Heart (唐博心语).

People often ask why I continue writing despite my very busy schedule.

The answer is simple.

Writing is also an act of creation.

Every article captures a moment of reflection.

Every story creates a connection.

Every honest experience has the potential to encourage someone searching for answers.

Perhaps I will never create something that transforms an entire city like the Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival.

But I can still create ideas.

Create conversations.

Create connections.

Create hope.

When I look back at the people I admire most—entrepreneurs, scientists, philanthropists, and community leaders like Warren—they all seem to share one thing in common:

They never stop creating.

They create value.

They create opportunities.

They create connections.

They create hope.

Our bodies will age.

Careers will rise and fall.

Fortunes will come and go.

But vitality can continue growing throughout our lives.

You can see it in someone’s eyes.

You can hear it in the way they speak about the future.

You can recognize it in their willingness to continue investing themselves in something larger than themselves.

 As I drove home after the celebration, I kept thinking about Warren’s story.

Perhaps the greatest measure of success is not how much wealth we accumulate or how many titles we earn.

Perhaps it is this:

Decades later, when people remember us, they remember what we created, whom we helped, and what we changed for the better.

That is the lasting imprint of a life filled with vitality.

May each of us create something worth leaving behind.

Whether it is a business, a project, a social cause, a piece of writing, or simply a story that brought warmth into another person’s life.

Because creation itself is the most beautiful expression of a vibrant life.

If you have a story about vitality—or if you’re creating something meaningful—I would love to hear from you. Email me at:
Helen@HTRealty.ca

Your story may become the inspiration for a future edition of “From Helen’s Heart”.