Washington, D.C. — The Corporation for National and Community Service will honor 12 volunteers and national service participants from across the country at an awards ceremony to be held on Sunday, June 6, at the 2004 National Conference on Community Volunteering and National Service in Kansas City. Each honoree will receive a Spirit of Service Award in recognition of their outstanding service and contributions to their communities.

"These individuals have gone above and beyond the call to serve their nation," said David Eisner, CEO of the Corporation, a co-sponsor of the annual conference. As we mark our 10th anniversary, we at the Corporation for National and Community Service take great pride in our vital role in supporting America's voluntary sector. Our programs, with the help of individuals like our Spirit of Service Award winners, work hand in glove with the volunteer world to deepen the ability of the more than 63 million Americans who volunteer each year to make a real difference in their communities."

Participants from each of the Corporation's three programs-Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America-will be honored. Hailing from around the country, they range in age from 18 to 89. This year's recipients are:
 

SENIOR CORPS

Lucille Williams — Kent County Senior Companion Program, Grand Rapids, MI At 89, Ms. Lucille Williams-or "Momma Lucy," as she likes to be referred to-has served as a Senior Companion for 19 years. At Friendship Place Adult Day Care Center, she provides exemplary service to clients suffering from dementia, Alzheimer's, or other form of serious illnesses or disabilities. On a daily basis, Momma Lucy works tirelessly to put a smile on their faces, even for a short time, and lets them know there is someone who cares.

Margaret Banks — Montgomery County Foster Grandparents, Pottstown, PA At 74, Margaret Banks has been a resident of Pottstown, PA, for the last 50 years and believes wholeheartedly that you need to get involved in your community as a volunteer to make it a better place for everyone to live. Mrs. Banks does just that by volunteering with the Pottstown Town Watch, working election polls, reading to Head Start children, coordinating Summer Adventure Camp with the local park system, supporting Families and Schools Together (FAST), a school-based collaborative designed to strengthen families, and leading a Girl Scout troop.

Gabriel Chavez — RSVP, Las Cruces, NM With the help of his team of 22 volunteers, Gabriel Chavez's gleaning efforts make it possible for fruit, breads, and vegetables to be distributed to the homeless and to nonprofit agencies throughout the county and in Mexico. As a food specialist for the American Red Cross Disaster Unit, Chavez and his team also prepare and deliver food to nearly 250 firefighters who are controlling forest fires blazes. Chavez also heads the Empty Bowl annual fundraiser, which raises $15,000 for the El Caldito Soup Kitchen.
 

Leroy and Mildred Kuykendall — RSVP, Sacramento, CA Through their church involvement, Leroy and Mildred Kuykendall have been finding needs to fill for most of their lives. As members of Cordova Lutheran Church, Leroy and Mildred have raised funds for more than 150 local projects - including setting up a homeless shelter, purchasing food for a local meals program, renovating local senior centers, sending children to camp, building homes through Habitat for Humanity, and covering medical expenses for the poor. In addition, Leroy delivers meals and transports homebound seniors to a local meals program, and Mildred quilts blankets for small children in trauma treatment.

Harriet McClelland — RSVP, Mandan, ND Harriet McClelland spends six weekends a year leading 30 inmates through a process to empower them to lead nonviolent lives through affirmation, community building, cooperation, and trust. She has contributed more than 1,300 hours of her time and skill to the inmates over the past nine years. Harriet has compassion, and a willingness to try and change these men's lives. One inmate scheduled for parole on a Wednesday aked if he could pospone his release until the following Monday, so that he could complete Harriet's course that weekend. In addition to her prison work, Harriet delivers meals to homebound, sick, and frail elderly people.
 

AMERICORPS

Katrina "Katie" Teske — Children's Cabinet at Incline Village, NV Katie serves with The Parasol Community Foundation's Together for a Better Community AmeriCorps program. Katie has helped hundreds of area low-income children and families in a variety of ways - from initiating a dental health program to developing a Girl Scout empowerment program at three different sites. She also has started ESL classes for the Hispanic community in which she serves.

Silver Two Team — NCCC Southeast Region, Charleston, SC, campus In a team-based organization, the most successful teams function as one. AmeriCorps*NCCC team Silver Two has pubicly inspired congregations, teachers, students, and organizations with whom they work. The team's involvement with one after-school program led to permanent changes in the curriculum and a new enthusiasm among the program's counselors, who have seen a marked improvement in participating students.

Jamie Mauk-Olson — Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties, Oak Ridge, TN When Jamie, who had faced poverty herself, saw that the purpose of AmeriCorps*VISTA was to help eradicate poverty, she knew it was her chance to give back to the community. Jamie's grantwriting efforts have brought in more than $470,000 to support initiatives such as home repair and weatherization programs, school programs, a family crisis fund, and a new financial literacy program.

Tom Hamel — Generations Incorporated, Boston, MA AmeriCorps alumnus Tom Hamel, a '99 AmeriCorps member with the Montana Conservation Corps, personifies giving back to community, whether it is to youth who have been incarcerated, to children who are not yet reading by 4th grade, to older adults who are isolated and living in distressed neighborhoods, or to adults with disabilities who want to enjoy the outdoors. Since his AmeriCorps service, Tom has formed the Treacher Collins Connection in order to form a world-wide community of people who share his congenital condition.

 

LEARN AND SERVE AMERICA

Elaine Wiltermood — Lakeland High School, Lakeland, FL Through her intense involvement in her high school service-learning classes, Elaine has organized backpack drives for children in homeless shelters, established a school fundraiser to raise money for a homeless shelter, and coordinated children's literacy initiatives. In addition to her work with the school, Elaine also volunteers with a Central Florida faith action committee and, during the past two summers, she has volunteered more than 200 hours at the Bay Pines Veterans' Medical Center.

Barbara Locurto — Boston Public Schools, Boston, MA Barbara Locurto is the Director of Service-Learning for the Boston Public Schools. From her first 1991 Learn and Serve America grant to her current Community, Higher Education & School Partnerships grant, this visionary has engaged more than 2,000 teachers and 75,000 students in Boston Public Schools Service-Learning initiatives. Her annual TeachNet Learn and Serve Conference, with its Community Resource Fair and teacher-led workshops, attracts hundreds of educators.

L'Anse Creuse Public Schools, Macomb, MI During the past decade, the school's service-learning program has grown from a community service requirement to a service-learning curriculum that is linked to the state's education standards and benchmarks. Coordinators Emma Deangelis and Ann Hart have mobilized the district's high school students to generate resources, recruit other community volunteers, develop public and private partnerships, and connect the community to the school. Service has become a part of the culture of the school district. Since the beginning of the program, the district's students have contributed more than 400,000 hours of service.

The Corporation for National and Community Service provides opportunities for Americans of all ages and backgrounds to serve their communities and country through three programs: Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America. Together with the USA Freedom Corps, the Corporation is working to foster a culture of citizenship, service, and responsibility, and to help all Americans answer the President's Call to Service. For more information, visit www.nationalservice.org.

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