Volunteers were all smiles at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting for the Volunteer Service Awards Ceremony.
Participants were recognized for their dedication and service hours contributed to the City through Volunteer Southlake, a program that gives youth and adult volunteers an opportunity to give back while serving the citizens of Southlake. From April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022, over 1,100 volunteers served 18,176 hours, a total value of $457,113.00.
“Volunteers are really the bedrock of this organization,” said Volunteer Coordinator Lindy Calzada, “Our mission is to serve our customers while building long-lasting relationships and life skills in those who invest their time with us; I think we accomplished that.”
Service Awards were divided into Junior and Adult Service Awards, Lifetime Milestone Service Awards, and President’s Volunteer Service Awards.
“Investing your time and effort to help others is a selfless act,” stated Calzada, “Within this year alone, our volunteers shelved over 100,000 books at the Southlake Public Library, served over 2,000 senior lunches, and provided over 2,000 to public safety.”
Junior Service Award recipient Mira Patel was among the volunteers who served at the library; according to her, it was time well spent.
“I love volunteering at the library because I have a deep appreciation for books. Reading has been part of my life, and I have grown up at the library, so to be able to give back and foster that love for books is huge,” said Patel.
“Volunteering at the library has allowed me to develop further skills of organization, punctuality, and communication, which has proved beneficial in both educational and personal pursuits.”
Award recipients are as follows:
500-Hour Lifetime Service Award
Linda Lucart
4000- Hour Lifetime Service Award
Ken Stewart
The President’s Volunteer Service Award
Bronze
Ananya Agarwal |
Shriya Gogia |
Akshita Kasthuri |
Emily Liang |
Jillian Lim |
Pamela Muller |
Blake Manuel |
Sonia Naidu |
Olivia Nevin |
Madison Prince |
Faaris Shah |
James Shirey |
Iris Schmeder |
Emery Swank |
Ceara Thornton |
Samanvith Veeravelli |
Divyashree Venkatesan |
Charissa Wang |
Silver
Katie Burtea |
Ridwan Durosimi |
Nita Dutta |
Leroy McCall |
Mira Patel |
Madeline Shepherd |
Christopher Tamer |
Leroy McCall |
Gold
Nila Dev |
Daryl Echeazu |
Alexander Feng |
Cristina Larrazabal |
Ken Stewart |
Congratulations to all the recipients.
If you’re interested in giving back and making a difference, visit www.volunteersouthlake.com.
(Pictured from left to right: Leroy McCall, Pamela Muller, Linda Lucart, Nita Dutta, Cristina Larrazabal, Olivia Nevin, Ken Stewart, Sonia Naidu, Jillian Lim, Charissa Wang)