Hollister
– In the spirit of the holidays, Gavilan College will recognize
three good Samaritans at its annual Community Spirit Awards
tonight, honoring those who display a commitment to helping others
in San Benito County all through the year.
Hollister – In the spirit of the holidays, Gavilan College will recognize three good Samaritans at its annual Community Spirit Awards tonight, honoring those who display a commitment to helping others in San Benito County all through the year.
“We look for people who are really committed to a cause and stick with it,” said Jan Bernstein Chargin, one of the event’s organizers. “They’re not looking for attention, they just want to make their community a better place.”
Created in 1999 by the Gavilan College Board of Trustees, the Community Spirit Awards are designed to recognize one individual, one non-profit organization and one business nominated by the community who are dedicated to serving others. A total of nine awards are given every year – three each for Hollister, Gilroy and Morgan Hill.
“This year we were looking for unsung heroes,” Bernstein Chargin said. “People who help us all just by doing what they do every day.”
This year Hollister resident Jeana Arnold will accept the “Individual” award. Over the past 10 years she has assumed a leadership role with many local nonprofits and helped organize several events, most notably the American Cancer Society’s local Relay for Life, which raises thousands of dollars for cancer research each year. One of her most recent endeavors includes working with Leadership San Benito to develop the “You Can’t Get There From Here” gang prevention video, which was distributed to thousands of local students.
“I have a sixth grader and a third grader in school, and it’s amazing what these kids are exposed to at such a young age – I had no idea,” she said. “I learned a lot about gangs and the lifestyle myself.”
The “Business” award will go to Damm Good Water in recognition of the company’s extensive community service record and the many local nonprofits it has supported with donated money and goods, such as the United Way and local scouting troops.
“It’s an honor to be a part of this community,” said Mary Damm, who runs the business with her sons Adam and John. “Most of my family lives here and we want to do what we can to make this community a better place for everyone else and ourselves.”
This year’s “Nonprofit” award will be presented to Specialized Hollister Activities and Recreation Program (SHARP), the organization behind the Hollister Free Wheelers, a local power soccer team comprised entirely of athletes in power wheelchairs. The Free Wheelers have been national champions four out of the last six years. Two Free Wheelers have been selected this year to be part of a global effort to determine international standards and rules for the sport, so that teams from different countries can play against each other more easily and eventually bring the sport to the Paralympics.
“There have been times when we’ve said ‘This is too much, it’s too hard, we’re exhausted, we can’t do this anymore,” said team manager Susan Napier-Jones, whose husband Don coaches the team. “But when you see these guys play or see them hanging out with friends at the tournament they only see once a year, it’s worth it. They smile, they dance to music when they never thought they would be able to dance … We have players who have moved on but come back to tell us what a difference being on this team has made.”
Danielle Smith covers education for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or ds****@fr***********.com
