More than 220 volunteers from Southeastern Massachusetts attended the recent Old Colony Elder Services (OCES) Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon and awards ceremony held at Indian Pond Country Club in Kingston.
The Plymouth County-based non-profit agency that serves older adults and individuals with disabilities honored their volunteers and presented special awards to 22 of them.
OCES is a National President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA) Certifying Organization, which honors outstanding volunteers and recognizes the impact they make. Armindo Rocha, OCES’ Volunteer Program Manager and Cidalia America, Volunteer Coordinator, hosted the event and announced the awards.
The PVSA’s highest honor – the Lifetime Achievement Award – went to Sharon Frank of Wareham in recognition of his 4000+ volunteer hours of helping others during his lifetime.
The Annual Gold Award is given to individuals who have volunteered for more than 500 hours during the year. The 2023 recipients were: Anne-Marie Borsje, David Drain, Peter Keohan, Mi Kim, Nancy McDermott, Joanne Protasewich, Sophia Loc-Tringali, John Tuffy, Gary Peterson, Marie Claire Ording, Richard Shoemaker and Sherry Williamson of Duxbury; Steve Meissner of Easton; Christina Butta of Middleboro; Kathleen Breen of Plymouth; and Sandra Saltzman of Stoughton.
Sharon Perry of Halifax, along with OCES staff members and volunteers Rochelle Degany, Rick Alvarnaz, Paul and Neal Mullen were each presented with the Make a Difference Award, in recognition of their dedication to helping others make an impact on their community.
“We recognize and thank all of our generous volunteers for their tremendous commitment to volunteer service,” said Nicole Long, CEO of Old Colony Elder Services. “Every day, they go above and beyond for others to make our world a better place.”
