Flex joins Scarborough Walk of Fame

By Gerald V. Paul; 

Farley Flex with Mitzie Hunter, Ontario Associate Minister of Finance (Ontario Retirement Pension Plan) and Sports honouree Cherie Piper gather at the Walk of Fame. Gerald V. Paul photo.
Farley Flex with Mitzie Hunter, Ontario Associate Minister of Finance (Ontario Retirement Pension Plan) and Sports honouree Cherie Piper gather at the Walk of Fame. Gerald V. Paul photo.

Farley flex reflected on his early days growing up in Malvern and his Mom working at the Scarborough Hospital as he was inducted into the 2015 Scarborough Walk of Fame for his contribution in the field of entertainment.

It was a time for celebrating community, recognizing achievement and inspiring tomorrow’s leadership.

“I feel very humbled by the honour,” said Flex who grew up in Malvern where he ran youth programs and continues to serve the community.

Flex was instrumental in positioning FLOW 93.5, the first urban music format radio station in Canada where he served as music director, on-air personality and vice-president of business development. But the Scarborough-raised, music promoter, artist manager and motivational speaker is best known for his work on Canadian Idol.

He reminded the packed audience at Scarborough Town Centre at the Walk of Fame event (in cooperation with Scarborough Hospital Foundation), “As the manager of Maestro Fresh-Wes, we had some glorious days, as the team earned two Juno Awards and released several platinum and gold recordings.”

As a leading motivational speaker internationally, Flex has done extensive work motivating First Nations youth, inner city and other marginalized communities. He founded the not-for-profit R.E.A.L. (Reality Education and Applied Lifeskills), an innovative youth social responsibility initiative, mentoring platform and student engagement tool.

Flex, blessed with a tremendous passion for community development, has gained international recognition as a social activist, master mentor and humanitarian. Indeed, Flex is committed to bringing high quality inclusive content to the Canadian entertainment industry.

“Today we are celebrating the world-class care that The Scarborough Hospital provides to our global community with a particular focus on the hospital’s diagnostic imaging department. Diagnostic imaging is at the heart of the hospital. When people get diagnosed quickly, they get the care and treatment they need sooner,” said Earl Campbell, president and chair, Scarborough Walk of Fame.

He noted they are proud to honour the 2015 Scarborough Walk of Fame inductees who share the hospital’s commitment to excellence and community service. The extraordinary contributions of the Scarborough Walk of Fame inductees have raised Scarborough’s profile and strengthen the community, he said.

Other 2015 inductees are Cherie Piper, Sports; Mike Holmes, Business / Entertainment; Dr. Sophie Hofstader, Health and Science and Betty Carr, Community.