VOLUNTEER AWARDS

HandsOn Volunteer Network of the Valley, formerly known as Volunteer Services Agency, honored five area people as 2009 Volunteers of the Year. There were 17 nominated for the award. They are:

Antonio DiTommaso and Carpenters Local 171, nominated by Youngstown/Mahoning Valley United Way. DiTommaso, of Hubbard, helped collect some 1,700 coats from trade union members as part of their “Button Up Coat Drive,” transported the coats to the dry cleaners and then delivered them to Williamson Elementary School, the Salvation Army and Emmanuel Community Care Center for distribution to needy children and families. He also worked with union carpenters to build wheelchair ramps in Mahoning and Trumbull counties, and led the effort to get the materials donated.

“In speaking with Tony about his nomination, he was quick to point out that none of these projects could have been done without his fellow AFL-CIO colleagues,” said Cheryl Lewis of Youngstown/Mahoning Valley United Way.

Mahoning County Career & Technical Center hospitality program students, nominated by the MCCTC staff. Junior students volunteer at Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley, Big Reach Center of Hope, Habitat for Humanity ReStore, Omni West Assisted Living and the Green Team. Seniors volunteer four days a week. “We talk in our classroom about ‘Paying it Forward,’ passing on acts of kindness, and I ask what they can do today to change the world. Our MCCTC students are very caring, and are always willing to pass on an extra act of kindness by volunteering throughout the year,” said Mary Beth White of the MCCTC.

Barbara Clark, nominated by the Rescue Mission of Mahoning Valley. Clark, of Masury, has been a volunteer for more than 17 years at the Rescue Mission of the Mahoning Valley. She has been devoted to helping others in spite of serious illnesses, multiple surgeries and inoperable cancerous brain tumors. Clark started volunteering several days a week in the early 1990’s, after she saw how the Rescue Mission helped a sister in need. Through the years she’s washed dishes, and sorted, folded, hung and arranged donated clothing, shoes and household items. She says she people at the Rescue Mission as an extended family. Linda Sherrard, the Rescue Mission’s public relations director, called Barb “the epitome of a servant’s heart. She is quiet by nature but shows her love through action.”

Earl Baker, nominated by the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program at the Area Agency on Aging. Baker, of Canfield, strives to ensure that the frail and elderly in long term care are empowered and educated about their rights, that they receive the best quality of care and are afforded autonomy and self-determination. As an ombudsman, he advocates for the residents and their rights at Parkside Nursing Home, and in the past for Briarfield Manor Nursing Home and Assisted Living. “Earl not only talks to clients and listens to their concerns, he then contacts the staff to have the complaints resolved. He is a strong, determined voice for the residents, and as an Ambassador of the Long Term Care Ombudsman Volunteer Program, is relentless in his drive to promote change in legislative law and rule development,” said Brenda Burbick of the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program.

Pat Russo, nominated by the Beatitude House Potter’s Wheel Program. Russo, of Boardman, has volunteered his time and talents for the last two years as a math tutor for program clients, helping them pass GED or college entrance exams, and showing them that math is something they need not fear. “He has made a positive impact on so many of the clients with his infectious love of math and his desire to show the clients that math, and is the exemplar of what a volunteer should be: generous, compassionate, patient, and willing to go the extra mile to help their clients succeed in math,” said Vera Ellis of the Potter’s Wheel Program.

Source: HandsOn Volunteer Network of the Valley