Summer of Service Winners
Receive Private Luncheon and Presidential Service Award
Daniel Ovard age 13, Shannon Babb age 23, and Dale Greenland
age 53, recorded the most service hours in their age categories over the past
three months, earning both a Presidential Service Award and lunch with Lt.
Governor Bell.
“Volunteering is at the heart and soul of Utah
and it is with great personal pride that I recognize these three Utahns for
their service this summer,” says Bell . “Let their examples serve as inspiration for
all of us to increase our level of volunteerism in our local communities”.
Thirteen year-old Daniel Ovard volunteered 236 hours with
the Living Planet Aquarium in Salt
Lake City . He was the lead youth volunteer at the
aquarium for the summer responsible for leading the youth volunteer program. He
also spent considerable time doing research on a praying mantis project, evaluating
its cost, time requirements, and feasibility for the volunteers to manage at
the aquarium.
“I chose to volunteer at the Living Planet Aquarium because
I was interested in marine biology and wanted to give something back to the
community,” says Ovard. “I found volunteering a fun way to spend my summer.”
Twenty three year-old Shannon Babb, a student at Utah State
University , volunteered over
400 hours with the Living Planet Aquarium as well. During her service Shannon discovered that there was a lack of knowledge
relating to Utah Waterways. Shannon stepped in and over the summer did all of
the research to design several dozen Utah
tanks. She also was involved in calculating how many fish and of what species
should go in which tank, as well as gathered all of the source data that would
be needed for future signage.
“As a student at Utah
State University ,
I feel lucky to live in a state that emphasizes both service and education in
our communities,” says Babb. “Volunteering at the Living Planet Aquarium gave
me the unique opportunity to not only give back that community, but to teach
the public about the importance of water quality, and hopefully inspire the
next generation to become interested in a subject I am very passionate about,
exploring the natural world.”
Dale Greenland, age 53, from Magna, volunteered his time
with the Community Action Program Food Bank in Magna. At the CAP of Magna, Dale
could be found separating food into individual orders for incoming clients,
unloading trucks with new supplies for the day, and separating the food into
categories. Recently the local church organizations in Magna held a food run
and collected 7 truck loads of food for the Magna office. This required some
additional hours from Dale on Saturday’s but he felt like it was well worth his
time.
“The Magna community donated huge quantities of non perishables
and I would like to personally thank them,” says Greenland .
“The Magna Community Action Program has been great to volunteer for and I enjoy
giving back.”
In addition to the three top volunteers, all volunteers ages
5 to 14 who logged more than 50 hours of service, and those ages 15 and older
who served more than 100 hours will also be honored with a Presidential Service
Award and Recognition Pin.
Interviews Opportunities are available at the press conference
with:
·
Lt. Governor Greg Bell
·
Dale Greenland, Adult Award Winner
·
Shannon Babb, Young Adult Award Winner
·
Daniel Ovard, Youth Award Winner
·
Melissa Bowers, The Living Planet Aquarium
Volunteer Coordinator
·
Shar Lewis, Executive Director Utah Commission
on Volunteers
Visuals Available at Press Conference
·
Lt Governor presenting awards to top volunteers
Press Kit Available
·
Summer of Service Fact Sheet
·
Award Winner Biographies & Photos
·
Commission on Volunteers Fact Sheet
·
Press Release
The mission of the Utah Commission on Volunteers, an office
of the Lieutenant Governor, is to improve communities through service and
volunteering. For more information on the Commission on Volunteers, and various
volunteering opportunities across the state, log onto www.volunteers.utah.gov.