BEN FRANDSEN

Ben Frandsen, currently a senior at La Canada High School, was appointed to the Youth Council by our City Council, from a competitive field of candidates. Subsequently, he was nominated by his Youth Council peers to chair the Youth Council this past year. The honor of chairing the Youth Council is fitting, as Ben constantly is the first to volunteer to take the lead on projects, and is always present at community volunteer events. As the city staff liaison to the Youth Council, I’ve had the pleasure of watching his efforts during the past year. He has taken the expectations of Youth Council members to a new level during his two-year term, which expires on May 31st, 2005.

Ben is an exemplary young individual who has mobilized his community in a positive direction. He has identified youth needs in La Canada Flintridge (LCF) and has initiated and actively participated in programs to address those needs. A description of some of his programs that he’s been instrumental during his Youth Council tenure include:

Teen WORCS Fair. He represented the city at the LCF Work Opportunity Resources and Community Services (WORCS) fair, which the Youth Council co-sponsored with the local YMCA and Roger Barkley Community Center. This fair show cased community service organizations and local businesses, allowing local youths to identify volunteer opportunities with local organizations. Ben and the Youth Council, as well as local community groups, identified a need for this program as youths were having trouble finding such opportunities. This first time fair, that will become an annual event, included over 30 community service groups and was well attended by the local youths.

FlintFest. This first time teen film festival, held in May 2005, allowed local youths (ages 13-19) to enter their student produced films for showcasing and awards competition. Ben, who is active in his high school arts department at La Canada High School, was instrumental in securing the support of his high school’s drama department in the film festival. FlintFest was a great success and drew a crowd of over five hundred. Ben has also stated that his drama arts teacher felt the event was such a great success that his teacher is now motivating his students to do their best work on their semester projects and submit them to the up.

Youth Master Plan. Ben serves on the Youth Council Master Plan Sub-Committee. He is in the continual process of revising and improving the Youth Master Plan – a plan that lays out short and long-term goals to facilitate programs, events and activities to improve the quality of life for the youths of LCF. The sub-committee enlisted the input from over 40 community groups and a survey of over 2,200 local students; this input was used to revise the plan for which Ben presented before the City Council for adoption.

Youth Talent Show. Ben and his fellow Youth Council members are in the process of implementing the first city sponsored Youth Talent Show. The show will be held in conjunction with the city’s Music-in-the-Park Summer Series, which is organized by the city’s park and recreation commission. Ben has played a substantial role in developing the program and also received a positive reaction from his presentation of the concept to the parks and recreation commission.

Not only is Ben Frandsen an exemplary Youth Council Member, he also excels in his academic efforts. He received the highest SAT score at his high school and is a straight A student. Beyond academics, Ben is also a valuable member of his high school’s soccer and water polo teams. Additionally, he is an active member of his school’s Math Club, German Club and KEY (Kiwanis) Club.

SARA E. WAGNER

Sara E. Wagner’s leadership encompasses her school, the East Pennsboro Township Community, and the South Central region of Pennsylvania. She has been a student volunteer and a leader in the high school service program during her four years in high school. She epitomizes the concept of the “Renaissance” person. She is multi-talented and is able to multi-task very effectively for a young lady.

Sara is the Student Coordinator for the high school service program that includes approximately 300 students from 9th through 12th grade. The program successfully completes between 16,000 to 30,000 hours of volunteer service per year. She administrates the program, recruits for the program, and coordinates the program’s many requests for student assistance as a clearinghouse for the region. She coordinates seven ongoing high school volunteer programs: Classroom Companions, Special Friends and Office Helpers at the middle school; a senior citizen program at the community center; a student assisted Head Start Program; as well as fulfilling many requests for students at numerous events throughout the school year and summer.

While successfully accomplishing the above, Sara is a very accomplished and well-rounded individual. As a sophomore, she received the Hugh O’ Brian Youth Leadership Conference Award. She has received high scores on her Advance Placement Honors course work. Sara assisted in finding volunteers and providing a young person’s point of view for the successful completion of the township’s October weekend pumpkin festival that attracted nearly 20,000 people. She has been the President of the Tri-County Youth Alliance for the past two years. The organization this past year had a toy drive for the Easter Seals of York, Pennsylvania and collected 3500 toys and raised $1,500. She is a student member of the Governor’s Office of Citizen Service-Youth Advisory Board. She was awarded the opportunity to attend the Rotary Youth Leaders’ Conference. She has been the Student Council Treasurer and a peer mediator, both since the 9th grade, a member of the Principal’s Advisory Council, as a senior, the treasurer of the local National Honor Society, works part-time, and plays two varsity sports. Sara has been a Who’s Who’s Among American High School Students for three years. She accomplishes all the preceding and ranks first in her class with a GPA of 101.69%.

Sara’s future plans are to earn a Business Degree and work for a nonprofit agency. She serves as an inspiration to all who come in contact with her. She is an optimist that establishes no limitations upon her present and future. She encourages her team regardless of capacity to work towards successful solution and will try over and over to achieve the best results she is capable rather than quit or give up on a task.

DORRIE MOON

Mrs. Dorrie Moon is a teacher’s aide at Marion Sarah Peyton Elementary School (MSP) in Marion, Maryland. In the fall of 2003, there were 10 boys at MSP who were taking up approximately 80 percent of the principal’s time for discipline reasons. Dorrie volunteered to start an alternative suspension program for these 10 boys, known as the Boy’s Club. Her work with the Boy’s Club has gone above and beyond the typical duties and working hours of a teacher’s aide. Many of the original members of the Boy’s Club have moved on to middle school and she finds time to visit them each week to make sure they are doing well in school. Each day they meet with her for morning homeroom where they set daily goals. At the end of the day, they meet to assess how they did and what they can do to improve. Over that school year, she saw a steady increase in progress and a decrease in office referrals. The love and care that Dorrie showed these boys made them realize they can strive for more and reach success. Their whole lives, they were targeted as the “bad kids” and they continued to see themselves as that. Once she made them realize they can work towards losing that stigma, they began to turn their lives around.

Community Needs and Solutions Many families in the Marion area are of low-income status and broken homes; the 10 boys in the Boy’s Club are perfect examples of this. One student was homeless and often did not come to school; other students are living with aunts or grandparents. A major community concern in Marion is working with these types of families. Dorrie has started a unique program that addresses some of these issues and makes the kids work towards the long-term goal of graduating high school.

Connection Building Dorrie has volunteered her time to do community service projects with the kids. It is very important to her to show the kids how to give back to others.

Ongoing Involvement This is the second year for the Boy’s Club and due to the success of it, she has started the Rose Buds for the girls at MSP.

Impact The impact Dorrie has made on these students can be seen on the schools’ graphs and charts. It shows where the increase is on progress and a decrease in failures.

Innovation Dorrie has implemented a new and unique sub-program into her two programs at MSP, known as Kids of Honor. Kids of Honor encourages youths, especially those a risk of failing, to reach for success and seeks to have more young people successfully complete high school. Our mission is to instill in young people the will to finish high school through a simple rewards program that reinforces positive feelings of achievement, encourages personal success and helps establish habits of responsibility to last a lifetime. Unlike stand-alone programs, Kids of Honor links and leverages community resources to enhance existing programs and work with struggling kids.

MARY PAMELA HUME

Mary Pamela Hume is one of the most selfless and kind women I have known. She works for the downtrodden and for those most in need within our community. “Pam”, as she prefers to be called, was a Roman Catholic nun who after many years of service to her church, as a nun/social worker in Mississippi, to helping the neediest in our country, had to leave her vocation to take care of her elderly mother and her infirm aunt. But leaving her position as a nun has never stopped Pam’s zest for life, her love of humanity and charity towards others.

Pam is herself debilitated with a terribly painful illness that would render most bedridden and, despite and maybe because of this disease, she stills continues to give 1000% of herself to the indigent and bereft in our community. Our community lost hundreds of human lives on 9/11 and because of the horrific personal losses to so many families in our community and surrounding areas of Brooklyn, our parish community had a real need for social service help. We as most were ill prepared and unsuited to deal with so many losses of young mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers. As a community, we were really at a disadvantage to help the bereft families with so many looking to their faith based communities for assistance and guidance during the days after 9/11 and years later.

Through the guidance of our parish priest, Father Kenneth Calder, of Our Lady of Angels Church in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, Pam began the Ministry of Consolation; an all volunteer ministry that provides consolation and guidance to all who experience the death of a beloved friend or family member in our community. It is Pam who does the outreach and helps friends and family members plan funerals, attending funerals with the family and friends, sometimes being the only other person in attendance if an elderly person has predeceased all other living relatives. When the family is often too overwrought, her ministry prepares a mass booklet in memory of the deceased, or does the aftercare for the families and friends when they need to file insurance papers or get death certificates.

Pam is the beacon of sunshine who gives total love with no judgment. She truly goes the “extra mile” on a daily basis and because of her determination and compassion, she has inspired so many on our community to want to be like her. She has a good group of volunteers who attend to the needs of the grieving with her, but Pam does most of her work voluntarily and on a daily basis. Hers is not a ministry of sorrow but one filled with love, offering a guiding heart and loving smile to those most vulnerable and in need. She runs a quiet, compassionate and unassuming group.

I lovingly nominate Pam Hume for this award not because she would ever want the recognition, but because her life of service to others can be held up as an example for others to strive for in this great country of ours.

CHIRAG BIHESH PATEL

During Chirag’s 1997 freshman orientation, his dorm arrived to a service project, only to find out that it had not been planned. Being the self-starter that he is, Chirag created the Freshman Day of Service (FDS) to mobilize students into their new home away from home. Unpaid but also uncompromising, Chirag worked throughout summer 1999 to actively explore community needs and solicit financial support for FDS. From distributing supplies to recruiting project leaders, Chirag was able to single-handily accomplish the work of several individuals. More impressive was Chirag’s inventive use of each community agency’s resources. For example, rather than purchasing wheelbarrows and pickaxes for a tree-planting project, Chirag borrowed them from the Parks and People Department. What a creative and powerful way to build lasting connections throughout the community!

When I entered John Hopkins University (JHU) in 2000, I experienced first-hand the fruits of Chirag’s continued labor. That summer, Chirag arranged 27 service projects and mobilized 600 freshmen to actively engage in their new community. From playing cards with nursing home residents, to building houses with Habitat for Humanity, to painting a mural on the side of a freeway on-ramp, Chirag’s goal was to expose each participant to the unlimited possibilities for community action around JHU.

In order to ensure the sustainability of FDS, Chirag created a guide that documented all of the steps he had taken to plan projects and solicit funding. As a result, subsequent FDS organizers were able to build on the success of previous executions of FDS. Since Chirag founded FDS in 1999, it has become an annual orientation event and more than 3,000 JHU students have volunteered as a result. Because of my experience during FDS, I have developed a passion for community service. I know Chirag’s innovative approach to making community service fun has led to countless students volunteering throughout their time at JHU, leaving a long-term impact both on campus and in the community. Chirag is convinced that volunteerism and service-learning should be the norm amongst the youth of today, who will grow up to be the conscientious, responsible, and engaged adults of tomorrow.

Even though he is now a busy medical student in Houston, Chirag continues to take part in programs that mobilize young people to volunteer. Last year, he helped organize the United to Serve (U2S) volunteer day in medical school, where 235 volunteers interacted with patients at the nine participating hospitals. Chirag is on the Steering Committee again this year, determined to make U2S another sustainable volunteer day. Chirag also makes time to personally volunteer with young people, in his capacity as a medical student. Whether educating kids about the current epidemic of childhood obesity of visiting local underprivileged high schools to motivate the students to aim high, Chirag’s passion for mentoring is clear.

NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES

Our program encourages a strong partnership and participation between government, business and volunteers to enhance the quality of life within our community. Through our city’s support and coordination of this program, through the monetary support of our local businesses in funding and providing necessary materials, and through the efforts of our citizen volunteers and nonprofits, our program exemplifies a “community of caring for those in need.”

The “Neighborhood Initiative Program” was started in January 2004. This program was spawned from our City Council’s desire to start a program that would assist in achieving their local goals of “quality development,” “redevelopment” and “quality of life amenities.”

In developing this program, we did away with the conventional code enforcement techniques of issuing citations to residents who often cannot afford to pay them. Code officers and Neighborhood Initiative volunteers now identify those in need within neighborhoods and help them with basic property maintenance, while enhancing neighborhoods beyond minimum standards.

Since the inception of the “Neighborhood Initiative Program” we have completed over 50 neighborhood projects. Approximately 16 businesses, Texas State Senator Jane Nelson, and 200 volunteers have contributed money, supplies and time to assist the elderly, low-income, single parents, handicapped, and those who just need a little helping hand. Projects we have completed include removing junk and debris from properties, replacing rotting wood and painting homes, demolishing substandard structures and simple yard maintenance. All of the work is completed at no cost to the recipient, and all time spent on each project are volunteered hours. Helping those who cannot help themselves has drawn our community closer together and has improved the quality of life for everyone.

The Neighborhood Initiative is an excellent example of a successful public-private partnership. By working together we have provided real cost-effective solutions to code enforcement problems. We have not only helped individuals in need, we have made neighborhoods safer and more livable. There are very few cities that have pulled together the support of their business community, citizens and nonprofit organizations to work together in helping those who are in need.

KATHRYN STEWART STOKES

Choosing whether or not to smoke is one of the first choices a teen will make. Teens Against Tobacco Use (T.A.T.U.) is a nationally recognized organization and health campaign sponsored by the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, and the American Cancer Society.

For the past five years, Stewart has been a spokesperson for the Teens Against Tobacco Use program in the North and Central Alabama areas. In 2002, the Huntsville City Board of Education received a $22,000 grant from the Alabama Department of Public Health for tobacco free youth. This grant was made possible because of the work Stewart did with the T.A.T.U. program in the city of Huntsville.

Stewart has impressed many with her ability to reach out to teens. She realizes that tobacco use is not a popular topic of discussion among adults, however it is a main topic of discussion among teens. She shares her knowledge by speaking to students in elementary and middle schools. Stewart discusses with these students the peer pressure they will face in life and how to deal with it. However, the most important issue she speaks about is making the choice not to smoke. She has designed and continues to maintain an informational website, www.TATUonline.com, for others to access information pertaining to the T.A.T.U. campaign. On this website you will find everything from articles about smoking, to pictures from all of the schools that she has visited.

As a young person herself, Stewart has been able to reach younger children more effectively, serving as a role model for them. She also uses her commitment to be tobacco-free to encourage youth to make the healthy choice not to smoke. Stewart realizes that these teens are old enough to make their own decisions, however they are not old enough to understand the consequences and long term heath risks of these decisions. It is her desire that this anti-smoking campaign will help our youth believe in themselves, accept responsibility, and feel confident about the choices they will continue to make.

Stewart believes it is important to have a positive message that counteracts the negative influences that our youth are being exposed to today. Her message is simple, “Through my efforts, I hope to empower the youth of Alabama to make healthy life choices. I want them to understand that they do not have to smoke to be ‘cool’ or accepted.”

If you spend five minutes with Stewart, you will find that she is genuine and committed to making a difference in the lives of teens. Stewart embodies the qualities of a true role model. She is experienced, dedicated and has given over 1,500 hours of community service, while holding two jobs and being a full time student.

FREDERICK & PATRICIA DOUBLEDAY

For over 50 years my father was a volunteer fireman for the Woodstock Fire Department. My mother volunteered for a wildlife center. For the past 20 years, together they have volunteered for the program “Meals on Wheels,” often providing service to people much younger than they are (my dad is 90 and my mom is 88). They continue to volunteer even though their age and health seem to creep up on them.

“…know that they don’t feel they need to be recognized, but it would (be nice)…”

“Fred has been a mainstay asset to the Woodstock Area Council on Aging, Edwin J. Thompson Senior Center. He has been delivering meals to citizens of our community for as long as this Center has been offering Meals-On-Wheels. My best estimate would be twenty years.

It is amazing to realize your father delivers meals to individuals who are younger than he is. Your father has been a faithful volunteer. I cannot recall a time when he missed his weekly route. He is always willing to switch or fill in for another volunteer who cannot do the route. He is an amazing man with an amazing wife, who accompanies him on his weekly route.

It is important to note that this is not an easy task, especially with the inclement weather Vermont is known for (mud season, snow, ice and subzero temperatures.) There have been times when he is the only one to do the route, which takes a minimum of three drivers. He never complains and handles the route single handedly, which is over 86 miles long. There is no reimbursement for mileage or gas. Yes, he is an amazing man and he always has a smile on his face.”

DOROTHY K. ROEDER

Dorothy Roeder continually impacts others in Southwest Montana through volunteer service with the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP). She frequently promotes RSVP by explaining through volunteer work she has, “a reason to get up each morning” and others can experience the same. She especially seeks out those who have recently moved to the area to assist these individuals in developing a network of social support. She embraces each individual encouraging volunteer service with several organizations. Dorothy is in charge of the RSVP Handcrafters. This group of volunteers make baby caps for newborns, caps and scarves for Head Start Children, small quilts for animal adoptions, quilts and afghans for local families displaced from their homes, lap robes for nursing home residents, and caps for troops overseas. Dorothy delights in sharing the community with others. Each summer she staffs the Chamber of Commerce Information booth educating tourists who come through the area enlightening them about unique attractions. Dorothy delivers meals on wheels each week and impacts those she visits with friendly greeting and familiar face. She delivers senior commodities for the local food bank and she is always available helping Big Brothers Big Sisters with fundraisers, assisting medical students in experiencing personal interviews with seniors, contributing to special events for numerous nonprofit organizations, and calling to see how someone is feeling, or recovering, or why they haven’t been around in a while.

Dorothy has been a member of RSVP’s Advisory Council for six years. She has a unique perspective since she is RSVP’s most prolific volunteer, continually recruits new volunteers, and checks in with volunteers to assess their experiences. Dorothy oversees a group of about 30 women who produce handcrafts. This group of “Handcrafters” is a wonderful, inclusive, very productive bunch. Dorothy assigns tasks as needed and arranges sales at the local farmer’s market, fair, and craft shows with proceeds going to benefit local organizations. Dorothy takes every opportunity to tell others about RSVP and the benefits of being meaningfully occupied in the later years of life. Tourists from around the country have placed special orders for hand embroidered dish towels and Dorothy sees that each one is filled! A member of “Handcrafters” suffered a stroke and Dorothy kept encouraging her to return to the group which meets each week. Recently this woman and her daughter shared that this encouragement from Dorothy was very significant in her recovery and socialization even though her speech is now limited. Dorothy persuades each volunteer with “Handcrafters” to learn new things and to contribute according to their potential.

Dorothy is a “people person!” She seeks out others and draws them out of their shells. Dorothy’s organizational skills shine as she oversees the weekly booth at the farmer’s market and other shows throughout the year. In addition, Dorothy’s skills of knitting, embroidering, crocheting, quilting and sewing are vital to “Handcrafters.”

HAZEL GOODING

Choctaw resident Hazel Gooding is a true champion. If you observed her active lifestyle and deep involvement in her community, you’d probably be surprised to learn that Hazel recently celebrated her 82nd birthday. Hazel has been a member of RSVP of Central Oklahoma, Inc. for more than 21 years, and has contributed over 7,600 hours of volunteer time. Hazel could easily be a candidate for all three categories of this award. She inspires others with her unwavering commitment to her projects, and it is safe to say that the community of Choctaw would not be the same without her.

Hazel was instrumental in reviving activities at the Choctaw Senior Center. She organized and promoted new activities at the center, increasing attendance and providing socialization opportunities for the aging. She also successfully initiated a congregate and mobile meal program in the Senior Center. As a result, volunteers prepare and deliver meals to lower income and homebound elderly individuals five days a week. As a member of RSVP of Central OK, Inc. Hazel participates in many activities, including the TRIAD program in Choctaw, a cooperative effort with the Sheriff’s Department and local law enforcement agencies to address to address crime prevention strategies for seniors.

Hazel continues to provide leadership for the citizens of Choctaw. Over the past 20 years, Hazel has brought 24 new members to RSVP, and countless others to different volunteer opportunities. Recently, Hazel saw a new need in her community and took it upon herself to address that need. Children are often found at homes where “meth labs” are present, and taken into protective custody by police officers. Before the kids can leave the home, they must remove all of their clothing and be washed to insure they are not contaminated by any of the dangerous substances from the meth lab. Hazel has recruited several volunteers, including the mayor of Choctaw, to make over 200 cloth bags to be filled with supplies and given to these children by the police. Hazel’s group is also making blankets to put in the bags, as well as securing donated toys and clothes.

Hazel is constantly looking for different ways to give back to her community, and her energy level is envied by people half her age. When she tore a knee ligament in January, she called the RSVP office to request extra projects that could be done in her home to “keep her busy during the down time.” Hazel sees her work as an opportunity to help those in her community who are less fortunate. Her days are filled with tasks that are geared towards helping others, and she shows no signs of slowing down. Hazel’s enthusiasm is infectious, and her persistence unwavering. She has made a tremendous difference in the quality of the lives of Choctaw’s senior population, and is an inspiration to all.