Paul Wasylkevych is Volunteer of the Year

February 25, 2010 | Story by: Brenda Larson | Categories: News, Profiles

Cary, NC – The Town of Cary’s outstanding volunteer for 2010 and recipient of the Herb C. Young Award is Paul Wasylkevych.

Wasylkevych and hundreds of other volunteers who give their time to town events, activities, boards and commissions, were honored Tuesday night at a banquet and celebration at the Herb C. Young Community Center.

More than 400 town volunteers were in attendance.

Wasylkevych has provided more than two decades of volunteer service to the town, according to parks, recreation and cultural arts director Mary Henderson, who made the announcement, as Mayor Harold Weinbrecht and councilmen Don Frantz and Jack Smith presented the honors.

“Our honoree was the first recipient of the Cultural Arts Award in 1997. He has served multiple terms with the Cultural Arts Committee and the board of directors for the Friends of the Page-Walker. He was last year’s co-chair of the Festivals Committee. He led the spruce-up of the White Plains Cemetery, coordinating the work of many other volunteers to provide stewardship for this historic resource,” Henderson told the crowd.

Wasylkevych said, after the announcement, “This is such a surprise and not deserved. It’s all of you, all of the volunteers I work with, who did this.”

Also recognized at Tuesday’s event:

DON SMITH AWARD – Rick Adamson

Adamson received the Don Smith Award, recognizing outstanding leadership, serving as a role model to children and promoting the Athletics Division philosophy of participation, skill development, sportsmanship and fun. Henderson said, “The coach being recognized tonight, received numerous nominations from parents and players who participated on his teams he has served as an assistant coach in girls softball and assistant and head coach in baseball. One parent writes, ‘WOW, what a coach! Words that come to mind include awesome, stupendous, knowledgeable, encouraging, respectful, leader, kind and fun.’”

DISTINGUISHED NEW COACH AWARD – David Buchanan

Buchanan received this award recognizing the contributions of a volunteer who has coached for less than five years. “This coach is all about the total team,” Henderson told the crowd. “Everyone plays, everyone improves, everyone enjoys the game. He leads by example, promoting friendship and respect among the team members. This coach insists that each player try their best and is very quick to give praise.”

CULTURAL ARTS AWARD – Rafael Osuba

The Cultural Arts divisions promotes literary, performing and visual artists by providing opportunities for enjoyment and development through a variety of activities. “Our (award recipient) has volunteered hundreds of hours and worked in conjunction with the cultural arts division to develop, organize and promote initiatives such as Ritmo Latino Festival at Bond Park, the Latino Arts in the School, the Latino Arts and Culture Summit, the Three Kings Day Parade and more,” Henderson told the audience.

PARTNER ORGANIZATION OF THE YEAR – Cary Teen Council

This newly created award is given to the non-profit, school, club or organization that has partnered with the department to achieve its mission. “Our inaugural Partner Organization of the Year is the Cary Teen Council. The Cary Teen Council recently celebrated its 20^th anniversary. This group has now grown to over 500 middle and high school students who give of their time and talents. Over the past year alone, the teens volunteered over 10,000 hours, with 3,500 of those hours directly in support of parks and recreation activities throughout all areas of the department,” Henderson said.

EVENTS VOLUNTEER AWARD – Robin Jones

This new award honors the volunteer who helps the town produce special events throughout the year. Jones played an integral role in the inception of the Cary Community Tennis Association, that was later renamed the Western Wake Tennis Association. This organization was recognized this year by the USTA Southern Section, which includes nine states, as the Community Tennis Association of the Year,” Henderson said. “When Robin commits to a project, you can rest assured that it will be on time and always in a top-rate, first-class fashion.”

OUTSTANDING TEEN VOLUNTEER – Christine Nacewicz

Nacewicz has been a community volunteer for the past seven years, beginning as a 7^th grader. “She has accrued over 625 volunteer hours in activities such as Santa’s workshop, Breakfast with the Bunny, Lazy Daze, Safe n Sane and others. She has served as the teen representative to the Athletics Committee for four years and led the teens’ volunteer activities for Safety Town,” Henderson said.

SENIORS IMPACTING SENIORS AWARD -Bernie Kellog

Kellog was honored for his volunteerism in the SeniorNet program at the Cary Senior Center. “He created and taught the graphics class where students learned how to make Christmas and birthday cards, posters and other graphics, he created the classroom signs that explain the classes, he created an introductory presentation for the instructors, coaches and students, and he has served as the group’s Outreach Council coordinator to take the programs to retirement communities,” Henderson said.

PARKS & TRAILS AWARD – Mandy Astor

Teenager Mandy Astor began her experience serving as the middle school Teen Council’s representative on the Hemlock Bluffs board five years ago. “For a few of her specific contributions, she developed a scrapbook for the Friends, produced a Mother’s Day Event photographic exhibit showcasing a time line for the event’s 10^th anniversary, and made the Friends’ holiday ornament for the Cary Community Christmas Tree. Our recipient’s parents say that she has matured greatly because of her experiences volunteering and has increased her passion for nature and the outdoors,” Henderson said.

In his remarks to the audience, Mayor Harold Weinbrecht thanked the group of volunteers for all they contribute to the town. “By volunteering, you are a leader in this community,” he said. “We see you as eager, we see you as creative, we see you as spirited.”

Guest speaker Bill Leslie of WRAL-TV said that being a volunteer is a unique personal experience. “It’s kind of like being in a special club,” he said. “You have to be a part of it to really understand.”

Leslie told the volunteers, “You are, indeed, the lifeblood of this community.”

More than 800 volunteers were invited to the event this year.