Volunteers Honored For Their Service

Last night the City of Rockville thanked the volunteers who gave their time to all the many different boards, commissions, task forces, activities, events, and programs offered throughout the City. If you spent any time helping in any way, you received an invitation to the festivities on the lawn of Glenview Mansion.

All of the Mayor and Council were present. Many City staff, including City Manager Scott Ullery and Recreation and Parks Director Burt Hall, took the time to mingle and thank those who have helped. Although many of the efforts are ongoing, some are special one-time initiatives.

After posting yesterday’s Weekend to Weekend Pick, I had the pleasure of meeting the couple who are trying to get Rockville certified as a National Wildlife Federation Wildlife Habitat. What a coincidence and a treat!

About the same time she retired from the federal government, Anne Goodman attended the Legacy Leadership Institute which matched volunteers with a project and she worked with the Environmental Management Division. She and her husband, Jim Farrelly, discovered the National Wildlife Federation website and realized they could certify their backyard as a wildlife habitat. They decided to persuade people to work to clean up the water and raise plants through the program. Anne and Jim will be leading the backyard tour from Cryodon Creek Nature Center on September 11th and their yard will be on the tour. Register here by 9/4.

In order for a backyard to be certified it must have (3) sources of food, (1) source of water, (2) places to raise young, and (2) places to shelter. (The shelter and raising young places can be the same.) It’s that simple. The program encourages sustainable gardening with mulch, compost, and native plants.

This is only one example of how residents are volunteering. There are hundreds of different examples. Jim also sings in the Rockville Chorus, Rockville Singers, and the Men’s Chorus. Volunteers talked about helping at the Senior Center with bingo and the Young At Heart Club. Former City Councilmember Bob Dorsey serves on the Human Service Advisory Commission. Chas Hausheer works hard to bring information to the East Rockville Citizen’s Association. When you look out over the large crowd, the realization of how many volunteer hours have been contributed is always astounding.

As Mayor Phyllis Marcuccio said, “Thank you so much.”

Although the event is rain or shine, the evening’s weather was as pleasant as possible. Everyone was treated to a spectacular sunset on the way home. Did you see it?

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