Sandra & Richard Pearson

In 1992, Blank Children’s Hospital started the campaign to raise funds for a Fire Safety House, a place that provides a hands-on learning tool that prepares children for the unexpected and frightening experiences of a fire. Contributions from numerous civic organizations and clubs, businesses and individuals helped to fund the Fire Safety House. The house was purchased and education began in the Des Moines area in 1994.

Rick Pearson, a retired professional firefighter and Fire Safety officer, and his wife, Sandy, former volunteer firefighter, missed the excitement of firefighting. To keep involved with fire safety/prevention, the two joined the hospital’s volunteer program to assist with the Fire Safety House in 1996. Since that time the two have volunteered more than 680 hours, educated more than 5,200 children and traveled approximately 6,000 miles in the state of Iowa providing hands-on learning to children.

The Fire Safety House is built on a trailer frame and measures 28 feet long, 8 feet wide and 16 ½ feet tall. There is a living room, kitchen and bedroom set up with props for the children to go through and find fire hazards. There is a control booth where the faux smoke is controlled and a telephone to answer when the children practice dialing 911.

In each community visited the Pearson’s train volunteers (firefighters, auxiliary personnel, teachers and parents) to assist with the education in the Fire Safety House. It takes approximately 6-7 volunteers to run the house—a volunteer is placed in each room of the house and different areas outside. Participating children watch a brief video featuring Ronald McDonald discussing fire safety and tips on how to get out alive. Groups of 7-8 children then enter the house where they identify and discuss the various hazards found. A faux fire is then simulated and children are taught techniques on how to get out safely.

The Pearson’s have traveled to many rural communities in the state. As they pull into the many communities, word travels fast that they are there. Parents and other adults attending the community events are encouraged to go through the house with the children. At every event, there is someone wanting the house to come to their community. The Pearson’s goal is to educate as many children as possible in the State of Iowa. They believe if the children remember one fire safety prevention technique; it will vastly decrease the amount of juvenile and adult injuries or deaths as a result of fire.

Peter Williams

Peter Williams is a valuable asset to the Surry County and Mount Airy City school systems. Williams is the Editor of the Mount Airy News and, for the past two years, has volunteered as a Partners in Education (P.I.E.) tutor and lunch buddy at Franklin Elementary in Surry County and Jones Elementary in the Mount Airy City school system. PIE is a mentoring program that serves the academic and social needs of at-risk children.

Williams was primarily assigned to one student at each school, but his love for children and his concern for their well-being has extended well beyond those two children. He has twice received the “Above and Beyond” award from the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce PIE program for the many hours he has dedicated to working with children.

Recently, Williams was working with a student who he discovered needed glasses. While trying to remedy the situation, the student moved to another school system. Through William’s persistence, the child received glasses with the help of his new school and a local church group. Also, Williams secured funds through a local business to help a student who was in need of dental work.

Williams planted a tree and placed a birdbath on campus in memory of a student killed in an accident. The students feel it is a special place they can go to visit their friend. On his own time, he has beautified the school campus. He has planted flowers, watered them throughout the summer months and placed a bird feeder where all students could enjoy watching the birds feed.

Williams sought parental permission to take students to purchase needed school supplies. Using personal funds, he purchased school supplies, as well as coats and shoes for several students. He also took students to the Nature Science Center and the zoo. Williams is described as reliable and a person who gives students an excellent role model for commitment. He not only uses his time and talent to be a volunteer; he uses other methods to encourage that role in others. Williams has written several editorials promoting the benefits of school volunteers for both students and the community.

Patrick Doyle

A professor of biology, Dr. Patrick Doyle has undertaken recycling for the campus community with such dedication that he has become synonymous with the effort. Since 1972, Dr. Doyle has been the impetus behind forming the recycling habit for faculty and staff and ensuring the pick-up and recycling of more than 9.5 million pounds of newspaper, 1 million pounds of office paper and 185,000 pounds of aluminum cans.

Through his efforts, the 9.5 million pounds of newspapers saved 89,250 trees. Each aluminum can recycled represents enough energy to power a television for three hours and will prevent three ounces of acid rain and 40 pounds of carbon dioxide from entering the environment. Additionally, Dr. Doyle’s recycling program has saved enough electricity to power 5,250 homes for six months, enough water to fill 80 Olympic-sized swimming pools and 15, 750 cubic yards of landfill space.

Dr. Doyle is described as a modest man with a true sense of commitment to the environment and his students. His work not only benefits the environment, but it directly affects the lives of Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) students. With proceeds from recycling, Dr. Doyle has invested in MTSU’s students through scholarship funds. More than 300 students have completed their education with assistance from the recycling scholarships. Students are rewarded with financial assistance and learn a sense of responsibility and stewardship for their environment as they volunteer their time to the program. Working tirelessly for the community, Dr. Doyle instills his convictions in his students.

As a pioneer in the field of recycling in the area, Dr. Doyle’s reputation as a founder of the program is widespread. He has assisted in organizing and managing recycling programs in Tennessee, Kentucky, New York, Florida, Kansas and Iowa. He has received requests for information from as far away as England and Nigeria.

What began 30 years ago, by encouraging individuals to bundle newspapers for pick up has flowered into many distinct accomplishments. Presently, he presides over a modest fleet of trucks, a cadre of diligent workers and receives release time to administer the campus-wide recycling program.

Club FRIEND

Club FRIEND (Friendly Relationships in Each New Day), a unique teen-directed mentoring program in Community Unit School District #300, places friends in the lives of children who might otherwise go home to empty houses. Introduced in 1993, the program taps the special interests and skills of its teen volunteers to build strong and supportive friendships with young elementary students they mentor in a safe, friendly and caring environment.

Club FRIEND’s teen volunteers, ranging in age from 13 to 18, develop structured prevention, recreational and educational after-school activities for elementary students aged five to 10. The teen volunteers commit two and a half hours a day for five days a week. To accommodate this requirement, they structure their high school schedules for a community service class, which meets the last period of the school day. This provides planning time for them as well as instructional time in leadership and other related skills.

The teens develop activities based on a weekly theme. The messages of wellness, education and positive education delivered to the children through the activities provides the vehicle for creating lasting friendships among teens and their young charges. The activities are multi-cultural and intergenerational and can be easily replicated by other communities. Family and community involvement represent strong components of the program.

The primary goal of Club FRIEND is the prevention of crime, violence and drug/alcohol use by the youth in District #300, a highly diverse district located 35 miles northwest of Chicago that educates 15,198 students from rural, suburban and urban settings. The teen volunteers benefit from the program as well. As they perform this valuable community service and explore career options, they learn leadership and communication skills, parenting skills, organization, commitment and responsibility. Many find lasting friendships that continue even after they leave the program.

Jamie Lynn Ridgely

At the age of nine, Jamie Ridgley became very concerned about children that did not have enough to eat. One day she got out her wagon and pushed it down her street collecting canned goods from neighbors. She expanded her food drive by collecting at school and sitting outside stores. Now she is almost 14 years old and is still finding many ways to help needy children.

Over the years, Jamie has collected food, warm clothing, school supplies and new toys at Christmas for these children. Additionally, she has held several raffles to raise money to buy food and milk for the local food bank. Some of the raffles include hard to find toys at Christmas, an autographed baseball card that was donated to her by Cal Ripken, Jr., and a lithograph that actor Tim Allen signed for her while he was in Carroll County, MD, making a movie.

Each charity drive that she organizes, she tries to get children of different ages in the community to help. Elementary schools help Jamie by posting what she is doing in their PTA notes. The town of Manchester helps her by advertising and being a collection point for proceeds. Jamie named her organization “Helpful Hands.” Every child that helps her with at least one charity drive gets their name added to the list of Helpful Hands. She also motivates children to help by giving out decals and pins imprinted with her organization’s name.

Last year she expanded her organization by offering help for the elderly. Children in her organization made 109 homemade Christmas cards and Jamie raised enough money to buy 109 Christmas gifts. She organized the cub scouts and members of Helpful Hands to put together a Christmas Show at a local nursing home. Jamie was pleased with the success of the program because the children enjoyed doing it just as much as the elderly enjoyed it. All of the children asked to help again this year. After Christmas, Jamie continued her efforts by collecting used suitcases for foster children in Carroll County.

Suffolk Fire Department, Station No. 40

The Whaleyville Fire Station No. 40 has been a Partner in Education (P.I.E.) with Robertson Elementary Schools for just two years, starting in the fall of 1997. Partnership activities focus on promoting student achievement in math and reading by serving as tutors to students in need of academic help. These students may not have qualified for special education services, but still need an extra push to help them improve their skills in basic academic areas.

Volunteers from the fire station tutor Robertson students for an hour every Tuesday and Wednesday, barring a fire emergency. “They are like clockwork,” said guidance counselor Murdley Hicks, “We can surely count on them to be there for the children. Sometimes it just takes another concerned person to tell the children how to do it. It takes a concerned community helping to develop our starts of tomorrow, our children.”

The firefighters find the time they spend with the kids rewarding, stating that, “their riches come from each time we help someone, help that not only comes during emergencies, but also while being mentors during this time when children are so vulnerable.”

The firefighters are also available for other school activities, such as field day, Jump Rope for Heart, and career day. They also judge various student contests and attend special programs. They provide the manpower to construct the booths for the school’s annual carnival. During Fire Prevention Week, they visit each classroom to assist with fire safety instruction. Besides making an academic difference with the students they are tutoring one-to-one, the firefighters have also made an impact as career role models.

The Washington Middle School Sign Language Club

In 1992, at Washington Middle School, Elizabeth Day created the Washington Middle School Sign Language Club. The club was comprised of 25 hearing students in grades 6 through 8 who learned 250 signs and performed two songs in the school concert.

Since 1992, more than 1,700 students have participated in the program. The group has performed all over Connecticut and still continues to strengthen its member’s knowledge of sign language. Once the group was formed, its sponsor not only began to teach sign language but also to help the students understand how volunteering enhances lives.

Every year, the group has developed programs to help its neighbors and community. They have supported a variety of local charities and national charities. The students have raised more than $15,000 in the last six years. They have sponsored benefits for St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, The New Children’s Medical Center, Muscular Dystrophy Association, and the Oklahoma City bombing victims and others. Every year, a new group of students contribute to these worthwhile causes.

Over the last seven years, the students have also participated in the nationally sponsored Make A Difference Day. In 1997, they developed and participated in their first annual Litter-Lift and Family Day. They raised more than $1,800 worth of food for Operation Pantry, cleaned more than 21 streets, fed more than 1,000 people in the community and mobilized some 60 organizations to become involved with their efforts.

The club has also adopted a nursing home through which its participants dedicate themselves to enriching the lives of the elderly community. Through seminars and research from experts in the field of aging, the students learned that 70% of the elderly are confined to a nursing facility and that only an estimated 10% are visited by a family member or friend. This statistic frightened many of the students who wondered how they could help those in isolation.

The students adopted Coccomo Memorial, a facility that houses approximately 100 patients. The students serve lunch, play games, read and talk walks with the elderly citizens. Additionally, they plan dances and special nights for the clients. The students regularly visit the home twice a month however, many students now volunteer on their own during the week.

Shelley Partlon

Mr. Shelley Partlon’s advocacy work on behalf of homeless children and families began more than 10 years ago. As a young teacher at Churchville Elementary School, he recognized the important role that a community can play in providing essential support to families in crisis and he challenged others to take action. With sensitivity and compassion, he has educated a district-wide school community about how individuals can directly assist the homeless to reach their goals of self-sufficiency and permanent housing.

Partlon’s efforts over the past decade have benefited hundreds of homeless shelter clients of the Bucks County Housing group and American Red Cross in southeastern Pennsylvania. While organizational funding addresses basic social service needs, Partlon’s efforts fill the void that exists due to budgetary constraints. Through ongoing, hands-on activities, Partlon and the volunteers he mobilizes provide homeless children and families with renewed self-esteem and critical community support and encouragement. He also provides recreation and comfort that they would ordinarily have to do without.

Under Partlon’s direction, the Churchville Elementary School students, parents and staff sponsor a monthly activity to benefit the homeless community. In 1998, Churchville sixth graders visited the homeless children many times, reaching out in the spirit of friendship. They worked together on craft activities, played board games and basketball, raked leaves in the fall and planted flower and vegetable gardens in the spring. Through Partlon’s example, they treated the shelter families with dignity, respect and kindness, all messages of empowerment. The school-wide community sponsored several drives for essential food and personal care items. A special staff fund created by Partlon was used to respond to specific client needs. The school Parent Teacher Organization and Girls Scouts made their own donations, reflecting the awareness campaign Partlon had mounted.

Creativity and innovation are always reflected in Partlon’s work. The school district raised several thousand dollars for the homeless community through “Blue Jean Day,” whereby staff members had to make a donation for the privilege of wearing blue jeans for the day. Outdoor basketball equipment was funded through the “Foul Shot Contest.” The shelter children earned incentive points and prizes for their accomplishments in school and at home through Partlon’s donations to the “Incentive Program.”

G’Anne Sparks

Henderson County has an estimated 8,300 illiterate and 18,000 low-literate adult residents. The Blue Ridge Literacy Council (BRLC) uses volunteers to provide their adults with free one-on-one literacy training. Since 1990, G’Anne Sparks, has volunteered for the BRLC. With her help, BRLC has grown from an organization serving 83 students per year to a thriving volunteer organization serving more than 300 students per year with an estimated 200 volunteer tutors.

Sparks first contributed her services by introducing computers to the organization. Databases and word processing capabilities allowed the council to provide more efficient student and volunteer support. Her work in obtaining a student computer and putting together software resources has resulted in more than 75 students making use of technology and BRLC being name one of the three top literacy councils for use of technology in North Carolina.

In 1991, Sparks helped to organize the first Western North Carolina Literacy Conference, bringing together adult literacy professionals, volunteers and students from Western NC and other neighboring states. Presenters at the conference offered training in subjects such as ESL, Learning Disabilities, student support groups and grant writing.

Sparks became the advisor of the Writing Project, formed at the third Western North Carolina Literacy Conference. Sparks works with students, facilitating their writing. She compiles their stories into an annually published book, which is widely distributed. She also writes grants, solicits donations and makes personal contributions to the program.

Sparks’ work on learning disabilities has led the BRLC to be chosen as one of six local project sites in North Carolina to participate in the National Learning Disabilities Training and Dissemination Project. In addition, she was chosen as one of three individuals to make up a State Training Corps. Sparks is, however, described as being most outstanding in her unwavering commitment to each individual student. From this commitment comes her desire, ability and dedication to serve, in any way possible, the adult literacy movement.

Our Friends’ Place

Our Friends’ Place provides a safe, homelike environment for an underserved population in the Dallas community, girls and young women. Entering the 12th year of service, Our Friends’ Place operates a therapeutic group home for girls, ages 10 to 17, and a transitional living center for young women ages 18 to 24.

Our Friends’ Place provides 24-7 care for the girls in the group home. The girls stay until they can be placed in an appropriate and safe environment, whether that can be accomplished in a few months or years. Our Friends’ Place also provides an environment with degreed professionals who live with the girls. The girls attend Dallas public schools and, when appropriate, participate in extracurricular activities such as band, basketball, cheerleading and Junior ROTC. The girls also receive individual, group and, sometimes, family therapy.

The transitional living center is also unique because young women, who are not pregnant, don’t have drug abuse and alcohol problems, and without children, are helped as well. These young women are without supportive families and are often asked to leave home upon turning 18. These women generally do not have the skills and the maturity to live successful, independent lives. Through the transitional living center program, they are required to work at part-time jobs, while attending community college, a 4 year college or vocational training.

The impact of Our Friends’ Place is not limited to the girls in the group home. Through family counseling, the organization gives families the opportunity to learn how to relate more effectively with other children in the home. In this way, the girls can become successful role models for their siblings and friends. Most importantly, the program helps to stop the cycle of abuse and reliance on state and social services that the girls often face. Our Friends’ Place relies heavily on volunteers. The board of directors is committed to making a positive difference in the lives of the girls and women it serves. There are volunteers who mentor and/or tutor both the girls and women. Other volunteers provide activities for the girls, and some help to maintain the homes.