Press release from Volunteer Center of South Jersey
The Volunteer Center of South Jersey “Spirit of Community” award nominations are now open. The celebration will take place on Thursday, Oct. 25 from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at Auletto Caterers in Deptford. This event will bring the entire community together to honor volunteers, as well as non-profit and corporate leaders, whose dedicated service makes a difference.
The Volunteer Center offers a unique opportunity to recognize and appreciate local heroes who make South Jersey a vibrant place to live. Spirit of Community has grown to be the largest volunteer recognition event in New Jersey.
“In 2017, we presented 70 awards and celebrated with over 300 guests. It was our biggest Spirit event to date,” said Michele Epifani, Executive Director at VCSJ.
The Volunteer Center will be presenting awards in the following eight categories the night of the event:
President’s Volunteer Service Award: Conferred by the Office of the President of the United States, recognizes the valuable contributions of volunteers nationwide who are answering the President’s call to serve others. Over one hundred dedicated volunteers received these awards annually.
Volunteer of the Year Award: Provides a public platform for local non-profits to recognize a volunteer who has made an outstanding contribution in their agency.
Volunteer Manager of the Year Award: Recognizes achievement in the creation, implementation and leadership of an effective volunteer program to meet social need.
HEROES: Honoring Excellence, Rewarding Outstanding Employee Service by their employers.
Corporate Excellence Award: Honors a socially responsible company with an exemplary commitment to service in the community.
South Jersey Humanitarian of the Year Award: Is designed to honor a South Jersey leader who has consistently gone above and beyond to make his/her community a better place through their commitment to volunteerism and selfless acts of service.
Bob Shryock Community Service Award: Will be given to a Gloucester County non-profit organization that has shown an unwavering commitment to volunteerism and the community.
Distinguished Youth Service Award: To recognize community leaders between the ages of 14 and 23 who have made a great impact in the community.
How to nominate a volunteer:
Community members are invited to nominate family, friends, colleagues and neighbors for the President’s Volunteer Service Award and the Distinguished Youth Service Award. The deadline for nominations is September 15. Nomination forms and tickets purchases can be found on the web at sjvolunteers.org/spirit.
The Volunteer Center of South Jersey is a non-profit 501 © 3 that promotes volunteerism in the region and connects both individuals and businesses with opportunities to serve. The center also achieves its mission by creating best practice tools and by offering educational, consulting, and other support services to help our non-profit partners grow and serve the community. The Volunteer Center is located on the campus of Rowan College at Gloucester County.
