Gladys McCoy Lifetime Achievement Award Winner
Special Awards
Multnomah County’s COVID-19 Emergency Response
HILLTOP Awards
The following volunteers were nominated by county staff to receive a 2020 Volunteer Award in recognition of their significant contributions to Multnomah County over the past year.
Advisory Groups
Richard Barker
Richard consistently steps up to help the Community Involvement Committee (CIC) and always takes initiative. He's been such a pleasure to work with and we so appreciate all he's contributed to the CIC!
Desiree' DuBoise
Desiree' has been an absolute pleasure to work with on the Community Involvement Committee (CIC). We really appreciate their initiative and the perspective they bring to the CIC!
Kerry Hoeschen
Kerry brings unique expertise to the Community Health Council as a business owner and social justice warrior. Her finance perspective is particularly useful.
Nina McPherson
Nina has jumped right in to board work for the Community Health Council. Her eye for detail and her compassion for our most vulnerable populations are truly valuable.
Marvin Peña
Marvin had been a great co-chair on the Community Involvement Committee over the last year! His leadership and dedication to his community is so evident and incredibly valued.
Josué Peña-Juárez
Josué co-chaired the Health Community Budget Advisory Committee for the last 4+ years and has facilitated the group's meetings for that time period as well. He has provided leadership and a dedication to inclusion throughout his tenure.
Emily Purry
Emily is such a fantastic leader on the Community Involvement Committee! She brings a great perspective and is always willing to step up and help out where needed.
Mike Savara
Mike has been such a pleasure to work with on the Community Involvement Committee. His leadership on the Housing & Houselessness Subcommittee has been invaluable and he brings such a bright presence to the group!
Zackariah Sloane
It's been so great to work with Zackariah on the Non-Departmental Community Budget Advisory Committee. We appreciate their initiative and the perspective they bring to the committee!
Department of Community Justice
Victoria Booth
Victoria started as a volunteer with the Department of Community Justice's Crime Victim Services Unit in January. Immediately, Victoria applied her marketing and communications degree, providing visual aid support to the sex trafficking collaborative. Victoria also applied her careful attention to detail in analyzing data, creating reports, conducting research and performing literature reviews. When the stay-at-home orders were mandated as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Victoria continued to work remotely, adapting her work to participate in team meetings and even deliver presentations from her home.
Ashley Koenig
Ashley joined the Department of Community Justice's Adult Probation & Parole team as an intern in August of 2019. Immediately, Ashley's supervisor remarked that she was a committed, extremely intelligent and enthusiastic learner. After completing 200 of hours of internship, Ashley stayed with the Department, contributing and additional 200 hours of service. Ashley's incredible active listening and communication skills have clearly impacted our staff and justice-involved individuals alike.
Melissa Lawrence
Melissa volunteers to provide "paint nights" to women receiving supervision in the Department of Community Justice's Women and Family Services Unit each quarter. Melissa's easy-going and patient approach encourages the women to explore their creativity and develop pride for trying something new. The women appreciate how Melissa takes her time with the group, plays fun and relaxing music and creates and environment of fun, laughter and acceptance.
James Robinson
James (Jim) volunteers as a Religious Services provider at DCJ's Donald E. Long Juvenile Detention Center (DEL.) Jim provides services to youth every other Tuesday evening, and has done so consistently since 2015. Jim has a passion for mentoring young men at the facility and encourages them to discuss challenging topics, including ""whom to trust,"" and ""wisdom and understanding."" Jim is oftentimes a stand-in for a firm but caring grandfather to the boys at DEL and is equally respectful to all people, regardless of faith.
Taylor Tomlin
Taylor has been an excellent contributing team member to the Department of Community Justice Mental Health Unit. She exceeded all expectations during her time with us, treated clients with patience, professionalism and is incredible at writing reports! Her positive attitude and hard work ethic have been an asset to our team!
Angelina Vasile
Angelina has served as a Living Yoga volunteer with the Department of Community Justice since 2015, bringing trauma-informed yoga to youth at DCJ's Assessment & Evaluation Program (A&E). Angelina empowers youth to recognize their own worth and goodness and helps them to develop coping strategies for use both inside and outside of the facility. Additionally, Angelina has facilitated a panel bringing together sector experts from corrections, recovery, community health, equity and trauma-informed care to support the intersection of Living Yoga's trauma-informed approach and social justice.
Manon Veilleux
Manon was employed as the Special Education Consultant for the Donald E. Long School Program at DCJ's Juvenile Detention facility from 2008 - 2014. Promptly after leaving her position, Manon insisted on returning as a volunteer to provide arts programming to the youth in custody. When the pandemic required shelter in place, Manon was the first DCJ volunteer to offer her services at a physical distancing shelter. Manon's warm and humble demeanor disguises a truly passionate community servant who works continuously to advance equity, compassion and acceptance for all individuals.
Health Department & Public Health Division
Brandi Velasquez
Brandi is full of creative ideas and excitement about the engagement of consumers in quality work. We really appreciate the way that she brings her experience with other advocacy work to Team Frequency.
Fernando Moreno
Fernando has brought an incredible balance of genuine human connection and professionalism to Team Frequency. He excels at helping participants grasp concepts of quality work in a way that is easy to understand.
Multnomah County Animal Services
Bonnie Harvey
Bonnie is an incredibly reliable volunteer serving in an especially integral role in the shelter. Bonnie typically spends 2-3 four hour shifts volunteering on our surgery team each week in addition to fostering and participating in outreach events like parades.
Laura Hinrichs
Laura volunteers her skills as a photographer to promote dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs, and other animals for adoption. Some dogs don't present well in their kennels as they may jump, bark, or even snarl due to the stress of being behind a barrier next to a stranger, or in response to the energy in the kennels. Laura helps each dog put their best paw forward by capturing their smiles and playful natures outside, providing an important perspective and redeeming first impression for adopters about what these dogs are like outside of the kennel.
Dawn Pisto
Anyone who has ever tried to take a photo of a cat knows that it's not a task for the faint of heart. They avoid eye-contact with the camera, or their eyes dilate and they cower if they're fearful or unsure about what you're doing. Such is the state of many of the mandatory photos of cats during intake at the shelter, when they've just arrived, and don't know what to think. Dawn is a professional photographer, and her ability to capture the best side of cats helps potential adopters to see them in the best light, after they've had some time to settle and get comfortable in the shelter. Her videos also showcase the personality and interactions of each cat, and can be important resources that make all the difference for a cat to find an adoptive home.
Cas Shaffer
Cas started volunteering as part of a child/parent team at the age of 15. Now they've been volunteering for 4 years. Starting with 2 shifts in the cattery each week and moving up to 4 shifts per week serving with the Kitten Triage program, Cas has literally helped care for hundreds of animals. Their family also fosters kittens, dogs, guinea pigs, sick cats, and rabbits!
Multnomah County Library
Dean Arnold
Every Tuesday afternoon for 9 years, Dean Arnold commuted a half hour on TriMet from his Gresham apartment and walked 3 miles to and from Rose Quarter. He never missed a day. In those years, he contributed more than 800 hours in Volunteer Services. His work supported neighborhood libraries and outreach programs. Dean collated thousands of packets for new volunteers, kids helping with Summer Reading, and Adult Literacy tutors. Before the shutdown in March, he was almost finished with a project that entailed scrutinizing thousands of physical files, shredding some and retaining others. Several times a year, he counted, sorted, packaged and distributed recognition items for volunteers, not a small task considering our workforce of 900+ volunteers! There are many unseen and unsung heroes in our community and Dean is one. Our office is proud to nominate him for an award.
Kris Ashley
Kris has volunteered with the digital archives project since 2016 and recently took on a special project working with the LINKS of Portland to digitize their entire archive as part of the Library's Our Story process. Kris has done an excellent job of working one on one with the organization. We've been impressed with Kris' dependability, adaptability, and always friendly nature.
Lauren Bakke
Lauren is such a joy to have at Troutdale Library! She is always on time, dependable and kind to everyone. She is hardworking and does an excellent job. The staff at Troutdale appreciates Lauren's help!
Gabriela Delgado Yngunza
For over three years, Gabriela Delgado (Gaby) has brought her heart, knowledge, and expertise to "Listos para el Kínder", a Multnomah County Library, culturally responsive early childhood education program. Gaby's strong professional background, positive energy, and compassion, enhances the experiences of the participants and sustains the program's high standards.
Mary Franklin
We love our volunteer Mary. She has been volunteering with the Early Childhood Initiative for four years and always brings a smile and laughter to the team. She's very reliable and happy to work on any project that we give her.
Aija Kanbergs
Aija is one of our longest serving volunteers at Kenton Library. She has been a wonderful colleague, helping to pull holds for our patrons each Saturday. Aija is super dependable, and is an integral part of our staff. As an ex-librarian she has great book recommendations, and as a keen observer of the world, is always a good conversation partner! Thank you Aija!
Zach Kramer
We first noticed what a great volunteer Zach is when we overheard him talking up our for-sale Summer Reading t-shirts to parents while their children were choosing prizes. He was enthusiastic, great with kids, and ready to take it to the next level. We asked him to be a Summer Reading Leader in middle school, earlier than most, because we knew he was reliable. We were right! Zach is always ready to help at Summer Reading events, from setting up chairs and handling tickets to introducing performers. He also has great ideas that have helped us improve our day to day Summer Reading routines. Last year he helped plan our Summer Reading party by suggesting a Mr. Lemoncello's Library Escape Room, picking out snacks, and making a party playlist with volunteers' favorite songs! Zach is the real deal, bursting with energy and with ideas that he is willing to put into action. We miss seeing Zach this summer at Capitol Hill Library!
Sangyoon Oh
Sangyoon initially signed up to volunteer at Belmont Library for one summer, but has been a valued member of our team for 5 years now. She performs her work with exceptional speed and accuracy. She also has great rapport with our staff in the workroom.
Peggy Thomson
Peggy brings her whole self to her volunteer role at Holgate Library. Clearly she is thinking about her work, even when she's not at the library. She helps staff with lots of different projects and events. Especially noteworthy is the fact that she sewed a huge bagful of masks for staff when it looked like we might reopen. Thank you, Peggy.
Hannah Witscher
Hannah has been a devoted Teen Council member at Hollywood Library for over five years, and as a leader for most of them, they have been vital in the Council's many successes. In the past year, they have stepped up even more, mentoring the new batch of leaders.