Groups, individuals honored for their service to community
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on April 13, 2014 1:50 AM
Governor's Volunteer Service Awards were handed out to six Wayne County recipients last week during ceremonies at the WAGES office on Royall Avenue.
Sponsored by the Wayne County Association of Volunteer Administration, Faye Stone, deputy executive director of the N.C. Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service in the governor's office, was on hand to present each honoree with a pin and a plaque.
The state boasts a high number of volunteers, she said, offering a few statistics to back up the claim.
"(In 2012), 2.05 million people volunteered, which is just an outstanding figure in itself," she said. "The value of that volunteer service is $5.9 billion."
Dr. Danny Rollins, department chairman for language and communications at Wayne Community College, spoke at the ceremony, but admitted at the outset he had not volunteered for the task. He was, he said, "volun-told" to be there by his wife, Tanya Rollins, committee chair of the local event.
Rollins talked about the heart of a volunteer and what motivates them to give of their time, suggesting the importance of "love in action" that prompts many to be of service.
"If you love other people sacrificially and selflessly, then love will be your legacy. You may change the lives of a mountain's worth of people, or the lives of a hundred people, or a dozen people or a handful of people, or you may change the life of just one person," he said. "But if you and the love that flows out of you changes just one individual, then there will come a day when you can stand on a mountaintop and reach up and touch something of God."
Two groups and four individuals were recognized for service in the local community.
*The 336th Fighter Squadron of Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, nominated by Goldsboro Mayor Al King, was credited with turning government sequestration into an opportunity to elicit volunteers to work in such areas as Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels and Wayne County Public Schools.
*The Seymour Johnson AFB Chapel Men's Group was lauded for more than 10 years of service providing projects at Wayne Opportunity Center.
*Rickey Paul Nolte Jr. worked with the Mar Mac Volunteer Fire Department, organizing training efforts and responding to more than 500 emergency calls in 2013.
*Helen Woods, a volunteer at Cherry Hospital, was recognized for assisting with patients and planning special programs throughout the year.
*Craig Richard Schauble, a volunteer since 2010 with Habitat for Humanity.
*Pamela Dyson, a hospice and "vigil volunteer" nominated by Home Health and Hospice, was credited with being an "advocate to her patients who may not have a voice."