METRO SEARCH AND RESCUE VOLUNTEERS

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s (LVMPD) Search and Rescue team consists of approximately seventy civilian volunteers. These men and women dedicate hundreds of ours each year to the community. The organization is broken into five groups who perform various functions for LVMPD.

The Mountain Rescue team performs High Angle Technical Rescue, Swiftwater Rescue, and searches. The thirty members of this team spend over one hundred and fifty hours training each year. The team responds to more than eighty rescues each year and save numerous lives. The team is responsible for rescues within the eight thousand square mile boundary of Clark County.

The Bloodhound team performs searches for lost or injured persons. This team of eight handlers and their dogs train a minimum of twelve hours each week. The team is on call to assist not only the Search and Rescue section, but also to assist other sections of the Police department. Most notably was the teams search for a missing seven-year-old girl, Karla Rodriguez.

The Logistics team is responsible for the upkeep and operation of the sections vehicles. They operate the sections mobile Command Post and provide food and water for searchers during a mission. Each member of this team donates four hours per month to maintain the vehicles and equipment.

The Dive team is responsible to provide assistance to the Search and Rescue section in Lake Mead as well as any other man-made water surface in Clark County. This team trains eight hours a month and has a total of twelve members. The team performs body recoveries as well as evidence collection.

The team not normally recognized as part of Search and Rescue is the Tactical Physicians. These nine men and women volunteer their time and expertise to provide immediate medical attention to SWAT Officers, citizens, and suspects. These physicians train as a team four hours per month. They are deployed at almost every SWAT mission and were requested on more than forty occasions in 2001.

Search and Rescue as we know it would not exist without the volunteers. The financial needs alone would make this team cost prohibitive for Clark County or the Police Department to operate. These men and women give of themselves and provide a much needed service to the community. At a moments notice they leave their families and their jobs to respond to Search and Rescue or S W AT missions. They risk their lives to make the community a safer place and provide comfort to members of the community who become lost or injured.

DONELSON PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH’S “GARDEN OF HOPE”

Since 1993, the Donelson Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee has donated over 10,000 pounds of fresh produce from their community garden, known as the “Garden of Hope,” to feed the hungry in their community. Nashville’s Table has been the grateful recipient of this abundant harvest. Nashville’s Table’s mission is to reduce hunger in the community by rescuing excess prepared and perishable food from those with abundance, and providing it, at no charge, to those in need. Currently, more than 120 Nashville-area no-profit agencies serving people in need are receiving food from Nashville’s Table.

In the summer of 1993, the “Field of Hope” was planted in an unused piece of land adjacent to the home of Sid Winek, Jr., the teenager who was responsible for the original idea for this community garden. Ever concerned about the plight of Nashville’s needy, Winek took his idea to the members of his church. He was concerned that Nashville’s Table was receiving a high percentage of processed food at the time, and he wanted to help improve the nutritional value of the food they offered by providing more fresh vegetables. He believed that with the use of his family’s land and the help of his fellow church members, he could do something to help. The members of Donelson Presbyterian Church immediately embraced his idea. In the beginning, over 40 church members stepped forward to volunteer their time to establish and tend the new garden.

The Winek property had to be sold in 1996, but church members were not willing to let the “Field of Hope” project come to an end. The Session of Donelson Presbyterian Church voted to move the garden to the church’s own property on Lebanon Road. The “Field of Hope” was renamed the “Garden of Hope,” and for the last six years, has occupied a place of honor adjacent to their sanctuary. Today, the church has over 280 members and volunteers of all ages help tend the garden. The Service Committee of the church donates money each year to purchase seeds and supplies. Members of the church take turns plowing, planting, weeding, watering and harvesting. The garden had become a place for church members to connect with each other and become a closer community of faith. The fact that the garden benefits those most in need makes their community garden even more special to the congregation.

Members of Donelson Presbyterian Church are committed not only to continuing their “Garden of Hope,” but also to encouraging other congregations to begin their own community gardens to feed the hungry. These volunteers are a shining example of how a group of everyday individuals can come together to make a significant difference in the lives of so many people.

DOROTHY LINKE

Dorothy Ruth Purkiss Linke was born on October 5,1921, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She earned her BA from Chatham College in Pittsburgh and her MS and EdS from Butler University in Indianapolis. She moved to Indianapolis in 1943. Until her retirement in 1982, she had been a teacher for 16 years, teaching at schools #33 and # 101 and then served as a reading consultant for 13 years with Indianapolis Public Schools.

When Dorothy retired, she promised herself that she would develop a daily and weekly schedule to provide a reason for living each hour of the day. What evolved is being a volunteer 1,000 + hours a year through organizations such as Lighthouse Mission, Alpha Delta Kappa, Beta Chapter (honorary teachers’ sorority); Historic Landmarks of Indiana, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Lutheran Brotherhood, and the American Legion Auxiliary.

Serving others began at an early age for Dorothy. She played the piano for Sunday school in Pittsburgh from age 10 until she entered college. She has taught Sunday school for over 40 years. She currently teaches Vacation Bible School at two Lutheran Churches during the summer. Linke is the altruistic chairman for Alpha Delta Kappa and thus spearheads the collection of many items and money for community service organizations.

Dorothy is always collecting items. She hands out lists to help others remember what service agencies can use. You will find her family room crowded with bags of sugar for Lighthouse Mission, earning her the title “Sugar lady” from Mission Director Bob Goodrum, personal hygiene items for the Salvation Army Shelter for battered women, or peanut butter for the John D. Hughes Community Center. When people pass away, their family members know that Dorothy will make the best disbursement of their clothing.

With Dorothy, nothing is wasted. Children at the Morris-Butler House turn greeting cards into Victorian Christmas ornaments. Campbell’s soup labels go to Cedar Lake Lodge in LaGrange, Kentucky to buy educational and recreational items for mentally challenged adults. Eyeglass lenses, frames and cases go to the Lion’s Club for those in need in Guatemala. Soft drink pull-tabs go to the Ronald McDonald House. Clients at Lighthouse Mission and Pathways to Recovery appreciate donated bath towels. When she asks the congregation of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church for change on Sunday mornings, she has a specific project in mind; Bibles for Good News Ministries or funds for God’s Gang Planting Dream on Chicago’s Southside. Her pastor, Dave Rushton, describes Dorothy as “a one woman mission team.”

Dorothy is never too busy to help and lives by the philosophy that we are here to serve others. She has been the recipient of the Mayor’s Volunteer Partnership Award and has also been recognized by the Lutheran Brotherhood as their 1995 Fraternalist of the Year.

She also has been honored with the Spirit of Women Award by Saint Francis Hospital and as the Senior Volunteer of the Year by the county Council on Aging. I believe Dorothy Linke is deserving of your consideration for a Daily Point of Light Award. She is an inspirational example of senior volunteerism and a life of service to our community. Her energy, devotion, compassion, and youthful enthusiasm make central Indiana a better place to live. “Others” is the word that best typifies Dorothy Linke.

THE CIRCLE PROGRAM

Since 1993, the Circle Program’s focus has been on the healthy development of at-risk New Hampshire girls between the ages of 9 and 12. The mission—to guide socially and economically disadvantaged girls during a crucial period in their development—is delivered through a unique combination of adult and peer support in a residential summer camp session and year-round mentoring program. Many of the girls referred to the Circle Program are subject to certain risk factors that are statistically correlated with substance abuse, dropping out of school, teen pregnancy, delinquency and violence. However, research has shown that risk factors can be mitigated by the intervention of adult mentors. The Circle Program is dedicated to the understanding that at-risk girls can overcome difficult circumstances by developing the friendship and support of a caring adult outside her immediate family and by belonging to a “Circle” of girls and women who provide support, guidance, and nurturing. The program begins with a two-week residential camp session in late summer of each year that builds a strong sense of community among Circle participants. It also provides a structured environment that encourages that development of leadership and decision-making skills, self-confidence, and positive social interaction. From September until June of the following year, the Circle Program provides one-on-one mentoring, matching each Circle girl with a female adult volunteer from her community. Circle Program girls meet with their mentors a minimum of twice each month. Whether they are serving holiday meals to senior citizens, going for a hike, doing arts and crafts, or splitting a pizza, the girls and their mentors build a relationship based on mutual respect and trust. Mentors, or “Follow-Up Friends,” continue to offer guidance on issues of self-care and personal responsibility that were introduced during the camp session. Mentors and Circle Program participants meet as a large group every other month to continue building on the sense of community and belonging that was established at the residential camp session. Activities range from recreational outings to participation as a group in community service. The heart and soul of the Circle Program is the corps of 35 volunteers who act as mentors. This is a dedicated group of women who believe that making the investment of spending time with a child in need now, means a lifetime of benefits in the future. They offer their friendship and trust to children who might otherwise slip through the cracks. Since 1993, more than 135 women have volunteered their time to be mentors. In 2001 alone, 35 volunteers made 529 visits, drove 19,571 miles, and spent close to 2,400 hours with their Circle girls. It is their commitment and compassion that makes the Circle Program what it is and that touches the lives of New Hampshire girls.

GOSPEL RESCUE MISSION

The Gospel Rescue Mission of Grants Pass, Oregon, is now in its 19th year of providing safe housing, clothing, food, counseling and other rehabilitation services to the 80,000 individuals living in Josephine County, Oregon.

In those 19 years, the Mission has established an award-winning Recycling and Salvage Work Rehabilitation Program, the Vossler Medical Dental Clinic, a Thrift Store that provides free clothing and household goods to an average of 120 individuals per month, a Community Recycling Center, and a Bicycle Salvage Program.

The Gospel Rescue Mission operates the only men’s residential recovery center for drug and alcohol abuse in Josephine County that does not charge for services.

The Community Recycling Program has been awarded “Recycler of the Year” in 1997, 1998, and again in 2001. It received the 1998 “Appreciation Award” from the Grants Pass Towne Center Association for “Outstanding Efforts” and was a 1999 Points of Light Citation finalist. On March 28, 2002, the mayor of Grants Pass Len Holzinger awarded the Mission with a proclamation making March 28th through May 5th “Gospel Rescue Mission Week.”

The Gospel Rescue Mission is soon to break ground on the most innovative concept in the field of rescue mission work by building the new Campus and Learning Center. This will be a state-of-the-art facility complete with a family shelter residence for up to 44 women and 16 children, and a learning center with 10 computer stations. The new facility will feature both a men’s and a women’s residential recovery center for drug and alcohol abuse. The men’s residential facility will have bed space available for up to 78 men. The ground floor of this 3-story building will have social service agency volunteers, medical help, crisis counseling, and job placement information. There will also be a clothing exchange booth and showers available to those who do not wish to stay at the Mission.

The community of Grants Pass has been instrumental in showing their support for this new development both verbally and in our fundraising campaign.

The Mayor and City Council agree that the Mission provides a valuable service to the community and the County. Last year 80% of those in daily residency at the Gospel Rescue Mission were from Josephine County. The Mission is currently averaging 44 men, 11 women, and 2 children each night in residency. More than 140 meals a day are served there from a 32-square-foot kitchen. It is always running at full capacity in all of the dorms as well.

HELEN SOUZA

Helen Souza, 83, has been working as an RSVP volunteer for 11 years. She has been tutoring at-risk students who are marginal readers in one-on-one and small group tutoring sessions for five plus at Sts. Peter and Paul School in Fall River, grades K through 3. The faculty, children and their parents love her there. She has helped to recruit and train several RSVP volunteers to be reading tutors, has improved the reading scores of those at-risk students, has helped to strengthen RSVP’s Literacy Programs and is an asset to all.

According to Kathy Burt, principal of the school, Souza serves as a role model to many young people and older people with disabilities. She said, “Helen greets the children as they arrive at school with a bug hug and a warm smile. The children appreciate Souza’s enthusiasm for the importance of reading and have benefited greatly from her one-on-one attention that she gives. She has become a vital part of the learning process at Sts. Peter and Paul.”

She recently completed a one-year assignment as an Americorps Vista volunteer during a Summer Reads Program. She completed the remainder of the year as a literacy coordinator for the RSVP Program. Because of failing eyesight that limits her ability to drive, she was unable to continue as an Americorps Vista volunteer. However, she continued to volunteer her services six hours a day, five days a week at Sts. Peter and Paul School.

According to Bill Leary, RSVP Program Director at Citizens for Citizens, “Helen has enthusiastically gone out to the public and has spoken to various groups in Greater Fall River about the benefits of volunteering in the community. Her goal is to continue speaking to civic organizations in the years to come. Helen Souza exemplifies the spirit of volunteerism in her manner and her performance. Not only is she delightful as a person, she is an effective classroom tutor who bridges the intergenerational divide.” She has helped to educate and build self-confidence in youth.

NEIGHBOR TO NEIGHBOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

Neighbor-to-Neighbor Community Development Corporation, Inc. (NNCDC, Inc.) is a private, non-profit, non-sectarian corporation established in 1995 to provide urgently needed community services to low-income/minority residents of eastern Delaware County and to express its commitment to social responsibility and community development.

Over two thousand five hundred (2,500) households receive services directly in southeast Delaware County through the NNCDC, Inc. Services delivered by the NNCDC, Inc. are designed to improve academic performance of youth and adult populations; decrease risk and unproductive behavior of youth; promote literacy; provide quality out-of-school care; promote the well-rounded development of youth and adult populations; improve self -esteem and socialization skills for youth.

They promote youth leadership and development, improve access to health care services and decrease health-related problems in the community; meet the nutritional needs of low-income households, counsel at-risk and prison populations and prepare them for productive, self-sufficient living in the community. NNCDC also delivers needed services/supplies to the homeless population and delivers needed/supportive services to elderly/homebound populations. These services include, but are not limited to: – After-School Enrichment Program – Community Health Services – Emergency Food Program – Employment & Training – Camp Joy (Summer Day Camp) – Friday Night at the Movies – Youth Mentoring Outreach Program – Youth Offender Program – Community Outreach & Homeless Programs – Computer Training/Instruction – Adult Literacy Services – Transportation – Learning Activities Through Community Help (LATCH-On) – Summer Swim Program – Community Recreation Programs – Homebound/Senior Services Program – Community Linkage/Networking – Community Service Volunteerism

Services provided by the NNCDC, Inc. are performed/conducted primarily by volunteers who are community residents and who possess all credentials and/or experience necessary to effectively assist the NNCDC, Inc. in the delivery of community services. In addition, these volunteers’ and staffs’ extensive knowledge of the community and issues facing low-income/ minority persons ensures maximum community and client impact with regard to service delivery. Additionally, NNCDC, Inc. receives funding support from a wide range of public, private, corporate, foundation and community sources, and coordinates with a variety of private and community organizations to efficiently and effectively provide needed community services.

CAJON HIGH SCHOOL

Cajon High School is tucked away in the foot hills of San Bernardino. With the Peer Leadership classes and Special Education teachers promoting volunteerism to their students, the word gets out at an early age that community service really does make a difference and volunteering is worthwhile for both the community and individual development.

Within this last year, 13 high schools in the Inland Empire were recognized for 435 students donating 55,449 hours of their time. Of that, 33, 000 hours were donated by 200 Cajon High School students. One such student is Chanise Scott, who said,”Volunteering has made a positive impact on my life. It allows me to show my true self, and that is caring for others.”

The students and staff at Cajon are not the only ones who see the difference their efforts have made. Ed Mauel, columnist for the San Bernardino Sun newspaper said, “Anybody who wants to make our world a better place needs simply to go to Cajon High School and learn what community service is all about.”

Cajon High School has worked with the Volunteer Center of the Inland Empire since 1989, promoting volunteerism and a concern for others within their student body. Principal Brett Killeen said, “ We are proud that our students and staff are being recognized for the selfless services they have provided to our community. The recognition is much appreciated, but given the caring nature of these people, it is certainly not expected. These students and staff represent the epitome of what goodness is.”

Geri Longfellow, Cajon’s Career Center Director, agreed that these students exemplify good citizenship. “The kids at Cajon are a good group; they have always excelled. Teachers stress getting involved within the community and the kids end up enjoying it, going above and beyond requirements and expectations.” The idea at Cajon is that if a young adult is exposed to opportunities and ways to make a difference, he or she will ultimately be familiar with the less fortunate and those in need, causing them to see beyond themselves.

Learning is about experience, not just classroom work. Students are coming out more prepared for the real world because they have had greater exposure, thus feeling a higher confidence level in the work force and a greater compassion for those that need it. Students have worked with churches, senior centers, hospitals, animal shelters, libraries, blood banks, homeless shelters, food and clothing distributions, and community cleanups, to just name a few.

“ Volunteering allows me to make a positive impact in the community, “ said Peer Leadership student Omeera Qadir. “ I enjoy working with the community because I know my efforts can and will help.” Qadir’s feelings reflect the Peer Leadership program’s motto, which is a quote from President George Bush – “ A life of service is a life of significance.”

D. WILLIAM MOREAU JR.

For nearly 10 years, many in Indianapolis have worked to serve the homeless of the city. There have been partnerships, collaborations, and new initiatives that have come and gone. Most were predicated on the speculation that funding from a variety of sources would come as a result of this combined effort. Few, if any of these ventures have been successful over the long haul. Turf issues, notoriety, cessation of funding, changes in staff, have all left the system in place to address the issue of homelessness in the city fragmented and lacking the continuum of care needed for the most vulnerable citizens. More than a year ago, this started to change. Under the competent leadership of Bill Moreau, the city began to develop a plan to comprehensively address the needs of the homeless population.

Moreau was instrumental in getting representatives of almost every agency that provides services to the homeless to come together for what is now know as the Blueprint to End Homelessness. This feat has never before been accomplished in the city. Faith based and non-faith based agencies, governmental agencies, those who provide medical care, mental health care, and job training worked collaboratively to submit a comprehensive Blueprint to the Indianapolis Housing Task Force and the Mayor in April of this year. It was at Moreau’s insistence that this planning process be as inclusive as possible.

When Moreau began his leadership of this monumental process, he knew little of the issue of homelessness, but he quickly learned. This Barnes and Thornburg attorney stood in line with hungry men, women, and children waiting to receive groceries at St. Vincent DePaul. He toured the Missions, meeting not only with the administration and front line staff, but also with those to whom the services are delivered. He participated in out of town trips to visit model programs to glean ideas for improvements that could be made in Indianapolis. Moreau allowed himself to be changed by this process into a staunch advocate for the homeless.

Although Moreau invited and even solicited input and involvement from the beginning of the Blueprint planning process, he was not a leader who simply showed up at the end of an arduous process to claim credit. Moreau immersed himself in his task. He gave up nights and weekends with his family to provide leadership in large and small group meetings. Though maintaining a hectic schedule with his law practice, Moreau took the time to personally lend his expertise to develop the Blueprint.

Director of Planning and Development for the Coalition of Homelessness Intervention (CHIP), Joe Fahy, made the following comment concerning Moreau’s participation in the Blueprint process, “throughout the Blueprint process, Moreau impressed all of us at CHIP with his leadership, vision, energy, and unfailing good humor. It is our emphatic belief that Moreau performed an outstanding service to the people of Indianapolis as chairman of the Blueprint to End Homelessness Committee.”

THOMAS STANKEN

Tom Stanken is actively involved with 7 different organizations, all on a weekly basis. His main devotion is helping needy adults and children. A big part of each day of his life is focused on meeting the needs of people who are less fortunate. After church, he stops by bakeries to pick up their day-old breads and baked goods to distribute to 3 pantries that serve the homeless. Anywhere he can find food, clothing, or toys, Stanken will be there. When he was working full time at Madison Office Supply in Covington, KY, people on the street got word that Stanken would try to help them. For 20 years, he has supplied food and clothing to people who were destitute and sought him out, even at work. He always takes time to find a way to help.

Every week, Stanken delivers food, clothing and/or cleaning supplies to the Church of God Hamilton Ohio Food Bank and to the Children’s Home in Barbersberg, KY, where he has been a board member for 8 years. Every month, he travels to Hope Emergency center in Fayetteville, OH to deliver food he has secured for their food bank. He contacted the Disney stores on behalf of the Mental Health Association of Northern KY for toys and clothes that were discontinued, marked down or damaged. He made an agreement to buy large skids and picks these items up 3 times a month. After repairing the many toys, buying lots of batteries for them, sewing the rips, cleaning, sorting and grading for appropriate ages, he brings the toys to teachers for children who have made an effort or have improved. As a result, the teachers have told him reading has greatly improved for some children, and sometimes it is the nicest gift these children have ever received. Stanken also delivers some of the toys to children and young adults who go to Hoxworth Blood Center to have special transfusions, in order to help ease some of the anxiety and fear they experience.

Additionally, Stanken has been in charge of hosting a Christmas Day dinner and celebration for 13 years for the needy and homeless. This is the largest event in the Tri-state that is held on Christmas Day. The day before Christmas, Stanken arranges to deploy men from Transitions, a halfway house for first time offenders in Covington. They help him set up the dinner and gifts for Christmas Day. He chooses this place purposely, knowing this experience will help these men and give them an opportunity to partake in a holiday event. Stanken works on this dinner almost all year round, including Christmas Eve and all of Christmas Day. Because of his leadership in this large event, everything works like clockwork and many people have a Christmas they wouldn’t have had if it were not for his efforts. In 1999, he was awarded the “Individual Award” from the State of Kentucky presented by the Lieutenant Governor for this Christmas Day event.

Over the course of one week, Stanken drives approximately 500 miles with his deliveries in Ohio and Kentucky. Besides working at a job 20 hours a week, he averages 35 hours a week doing volunteer work.