City To Honor President's Volunteer Service Award Recipients
Citizen Corps Council, Naperville Emergency Management Agency, Community Radio Watch Volunteers to Receive Awards on March 15
The City of Naperville will honor 31 residents with the President's Volunteer Service Award at the March 15, 2011, City Council meeting taking place at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers of the Naperville Municipal Center, 400 S. Eagle St. This prestigious award is available annually to individuals, groups and families who have met or exceeded the award requirements for volunteer service while also demonstrating exemplary citizenship through volunteering.
The 31 awardees have volunteered more than 6,400 hours in the past year to the Citizen Corps Council (CCC), Naperville Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and Community Radio Watch (CRW) organizations. This is an increase from 2009, when 11 awardees volunteered more than 2,200 hours to these groups. The increase factors in time spent on several large projects within NEMA in 2010 as well as the addition of the CRW volunteers to the Citizen Corps Council.
“Our city stresses the importance of emergency preparedness, and these volunteers take that message to heart,” Mayor A. George Pradel said. “These dedicated residents stand ready to assist in any emergency situation and are an integral part of ensuring our community is safer before, during and after an emergency. I thank all of them for their time and effort and hope many others will be inspired by them to consider joining one of these organizations.”
The President's Volunteer Service Award was established in 2003 by President George W. Bush and issued by the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation. To be eligible for the award, people must submit a record of their annual volunteer service hours to a participating certifying organization that verifies the information and gives out the award. Eligibility is based on hour requirements that vary by age. A minimum of 100 hours is required for individual adults ages 26 and up to earn the lowest level of the award.
NEMA provides support and education to the citizens, city government and private sector within Naperville and has a mission to prepare for, protect against, respond to and assist with recovery efforts from natural and manmade incidents and events up to and including major disasters. For more information about this group, visit www.napervilleema.org.
The Naperville Community Radio Watch acts as additional “eyes and ears” for the Naperville Police Department by reporting criminal actions, suspicious activity, open garage doors and motorists needing assists. In addition, these volunteers perform surveillance activities and may be assigned additional duties by the CRW command staff at the Police Department and assist civic organizations on an as-needed and availability basis. For more information about the CRW, visit www.napervillecrw.org.
The Naperville Citizen Corps Council educates residents about disaster preparedness measures; implements public education and outreach efforts; provides training to improve citizen preparedness, prevention and response capabilities; promotes the importance of drills in the home, workplace and school; and more. For more information about the CCC, visit www.naperccc.org.
For more information on the City of Naperville, visit www.naperville.il.us. Sign up to receive the latest news on the City of Naperville's projects and initiatives via e-mail at www.naperville.il.us/enews.aspx.