Outstanding Volunteers in Forsyth County Are Recognized
May 7, 2012
For Immediate Release
HandsOn Northwest North Carolina in partnership with the United Way of Forsyth County will present the 2012 Governor’s Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Service to eight recipients from across Forsyth County. HandsOn, which works to increase volunteerism and build the capacity of local nonprofits, will present the awards at a breakfast at 8am on Tuesday, May 8th at Salemtowne. Winners were selected by a volunteer committee from a diverse pool of nominations. Award recipients are: Patricia Ann Eckert (Individual Adult Volunteer), Robert Parrish (Senior Volunteer), BB&T (Corporate Volunteers), Dr. James Sifford (Lifetime Achievement Award), Calvary Baptist Church (Faith-Based Group Volunteers), The Kent Family (Family Volunteers), Christine Renee Brown (Outstanding Mentor), and the National Association of Letter Carriers Local 461--Winston-Salem Chapter (Group or Team Volunteers). The program will include addresses by Mayor Allen Joines and Secretary Linda Carlisle of the NC Department of Cultural Resources.
These volunteers give their time to a variety of different organizations and schools. Ms. Eckert won for providing and nurturing volunteer leadership within the Girl Scouts Carolinas Peaks to Piedmont region. Robert Parrish won for donating over 1,000 hours of service to Crisis Control Minsitry. BB&T was honored for their industry-leading Lighthouse Project, of which The Children’s Home has been an exceptional beneficiary. Dr. Sifford was recognized for a career of service within Second Harvest Food Bank of NWNC, moving them from paper to electronic record-keeping over the course of more than 20 years. For more than a decade, Local 461 of the National Association of Letter Carriers has held a food drive on the Saturday before Mother’s Day each year that has brought in more than 1 million pounds of food for local hunger organizations. Calvary Baptist Church won for their multi-faceted and expansive relationship with Forest Park Elementary School. Ms. Brown has gone out of her way to support Main Street Academy Alternative School, all while still mentoring two different students at two other high schools in the county. Lastly, the members of the Kent family, led by WXII news anchor Cameron Kent, were honored for their innovative fundraising efforts on behalf of Habitat for Humanity.
The Governor’s Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Service were first awarded by the Governor’s Office and its Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service in 1979. This year marks the 34th consecutive year of the award that honors people who have shown concern and compassion for their neighbors by making a significant contribution to their community through volunteer service. In Forsyth County, the awards were coordinated for over a dozen years by the United Way. Since 2007, the United Way and HandsOn NWNC have worked together to co-host the awards breakfast.
Please see a PDF of the attached program, which includes profiles of each winner and the names of the additional nominees, for more details. For more information, call HandsOn NWNC at 724-2866 or through e-mail to AmyLytle@HandsOnNWNC.org.
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HandsOn Northwest North Carolina Awarded Grant to Increase Volunteerism through Neighboring Collaborative
November 30, 2011
For Immediate Release
Winston-Salem, NC --- HandsOn Northwest North Carolina was recently awarded a $7,500 grant from Points of Light Institute to further its’ volunteer engagement efforts with Forest Park Elementary School and the surrounding Waughtown neighborhood. This program builds on HandsOn NWNC’s efforts to broaden and deepen volunteer efforts across the city.
The grant award will support its Neighboring Collaborative program efforts which aim to increase volunteerism through student, parent and neighbor-led projects. The funds will be used to support a contracted, part-time program specialist who will work in conjunction with the full-time AmeriCorps VISTA member from HandsOn dedicated to the project. Funds will also be used to purchase program supplies for various volunteer projects that will seek to increase literacy skills in Pre-K students and their families as well as other neighborhood-based volunteer projects. The grant will build upon already sustained efforts in the school and neighborhood.
If you would like to become involved or would like more information about HandsOn NWNC’s Neighboring Collaborative, please contact Morgan Smith, Neighboring AmeriCorps VISTA Member at 336-724-2866.
The mission of HandsOn Northwest North Carolina is to strengthen our community by building the capacity of local nonprofits and increasing volunteerism. We make it easy for both nonprofits and volunteers to make a difference in our community.
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Forest Park Elementary Youth Leadership Council to
Help Forsyth Humane Society
March 3, 2011
For Immediate Release
Winston-Salem, NC --- Forest Park Elementary School’s Youth Leadership Council will help the Forsyth Humane Society by making cat beds and puppy toys on Tuesday, March 8th from 3:20-4:20 pm at Forest Park Elementary School. Students involved with the Youth Leadership Council (YLC) have been planning their own service-learning project where the students learn about animal welfare and pet care while practicing math, reading, writing, computer, and leadership skills. The YLC is a program created and led by HandsOn Northwest North Carolina in collaboration with Forest Park Elementary teacher advisors, and volunteers from the Campus Kitchens Project of Wake Forest University.
Fourteen third through fifth grade students participate in the Youth Leadership Council where they are developing their leadership skills through creating and implementing service-learning projects in the community. In addition to creating the cat blankets and puppy toys, YLC students created and distributed a survey to 190 fellow Forest Park students to investigate what those students know about pet care. They will report results as well as other information they have learned in an informational brochure that will be distributed throughout the school/neighborhood when the project is completed.
The Youth Leadership Council builds students’ self-confidence and gives them the opportunity to make a difference in their community. Volunteers from the neighborhood and larger Winston-Salem community are invited to be Mentor Buddies for the kids each Tuesday afternoon when the YLC meets. For more information on ways you can be involved, please contact HandsOn at 336-724-2866 or via email at info@handsonnwnc.org.
The mission of HandsOn Northwest North Carolina is to strengthen our community by building the capacity of local nonprofits and increasing volunteerism. We make it easy for both nonprofits and volunteers to make a difference in our community.
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