On April 24, more than 90 Evanston community members came together to celebrate and honor the notable work of volunteers across the city at the 10th annual Evanston Volunteer Recognition Reception.
Eric Witherspoon of Evanston Township High School, Joan Gunzberg of Evanston Community Foundation and Todd Adams of Northwestern University were among the presenters to recognize the 2014 Outstanding Volunteers of the Year: ETHS students Monica Dougherty, Cameron English, Savannah Gallas and Ruby Macasi-Goren; Northwestern University students Fallon Crowley, Ushane Locke and Sarah Suh; and Evanston community members Virginia Beatty, Ruth Belzer, Juliet Bond, Lori Dube and Barry Lundberg
Blessings in a Backpack National CEO Brooke Wiseman was the keynote speaker, discussing the power of volunteerism and how impactful it can be in one’s life. Blessings in a Backpack is an organization that helps feed hungry children across the U.S. on weekends by sending home a backpack full of food. Wiseman was previously the CEO of the Girl Scouts of Chicago for 16 years and taught for the Kellogg School of Management, Center for Non-Profit Management at Northwestern University.
To continue the celebration, a special recognition was provided by Melissa Wynne, Third Ward alderman and Mayor Pro Tem, to the Evanston 150 Group for their leadership in the campaign to achieve 150,000 hours of service in 2013. The final tally of hours volunteered last year reached a total of 160,747 hours.