Jackie Sloan
Christina Principato
Andrew Castellano
Andrew Castellano is a native New Mexican who switched careers as a retail salesman to a AmeriCorps VISTA member. Feeling frustrated with his stymied career path, Andrew decided to focus his time and energy on giving back to his community.
Andrew started his first year with AmeriCorps with the New Mexico Hispanic Medical Association (NMHMA), a nonprofit that aims to make health care accessible and affordable to all New Mexicans. At the beginning of Andrew’s service, the NMHMA was on the verge of launching the New Mexico Medical Card, a medical discount program.
Applying his business administration and marketing skills, Andrew promoted the New Mexico Medical Card by creating flyers, posting the materials at community centers, and creating partnerships with local news media sources. In addition to managing the program, Andrew provided administrative support to the NMHMA’s Board of Directors by attending monthly meetings and recording minutes.
He also assisted with the management of the Pre-Medical Prep program for rural New Mexican college students seeking a medical career. His involvement entailed printing materials for recruitment events and coordinating education panels to provide information to students. Andrew now serves as a VISTA Cadre Project leader with the New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community.
Despite his heavy workload as a VISTA leader, Andrew continues to provide assistance to the NMHMA as its Spanish-speaking community liaison. Andrew is the main contact for Spanish speakers interested in enrolling in the New Mexico Medical Card program. His continued role with the NMHMA is extremely valuable because the NMHMA serves a large Spanish speaking population.
With Andrew’s help, the NMHMA has made significant strides in developing a viable and affordable product for the medically uninsured.
Joseph DeVizia
Elenora Walls
Ed Walenga
Robert Zagorski
Maria Precht
Maria Precht has dedicated 900 hours to the Junior League of Annapolis, a non-profit organization comprised of women committed to promoting civic action. Maria’s service is largely spent with children and homeless families.
She recently distributed 1,000 bags of school supplies to children at local schools through the League’s Book Bag program. To raise awareness about childhood obesity, Maria taught healthy eating choices to kids in her community. She has prepared and served meals for homeless people, provided assistance with transitional housing options, and offered skills-based job readiness training.
Maria has focused on issues that currently affect society. She is providing individuals of all ages with tools to make informed decisions and improve their lives. Maria is addressing childhood obesity by teaching children healthy eating habits and encouraging them to make smart decisions. She is increasing students’ chances of success in school and providing them with a sense of pride.
She also serves as the Junior League’s Vice-President of the Finance committee. She is charged with developing funds to keep the organization viable to provide valuable programs to the community. Maria was voted the 2010 C&S Wholesale Grocers Volunteer of the Year based upon her strong commitment to volunteerism and service. She truly cares about the people that her organization is helping and understands how important her work is.
Maria is extremely enthusiastic and dedicated to volunteering and making a difference in her community. In spite of her demanding job at C&S Wholesale Grocers, she had made volunteering a priority in her life.