As new Executive Director of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, Kim Bredemeier has shown strong servant leadership in the past year. She oversaw selection and onboarding of a new Music Director, worked hard to keep live music going during the pandemic, and worked to sustain the orchestra by ensuring that the staff and musicians were paid. While many other orchestras shut down during COVID-19, Kim reimagined a concert season via socially distanced concerts at the Victory, smaller venues, and live streaming. Thanks to Kim, we have a long-term, sustainable orchestra in our community. – Nominated by Jim Spath

Kaman Hillenburg, Collection Manager with the Evansville Museum of Arts, History & Science, founded and serves as president of a regional organization devoted to the professional development of individuals working in direct collection care within museums, historic sites, libraries, archives and governmental agencies in the Tri-State. Kaman is a true advocate and leader in the preservation of cultural heritage and artifacts in our region. – Nominated by Mary Bower

Mr. Armstrong is a professor of art and design at the University of Southern Indiana. When the institution shut down because of COVID-19 and held virtual classes, he discovered many of his students were in need of food due to loss of jobs and economic uncertainty. Chuck decided to send the students a care package full of food and goodies and then started GoFundMe that allowed people to contribute as well as send in names and addresses of others in need of a package. Chuck sent over 579 packages, raised $9251, and gathered volunteers from all over the community to help pack boxes and drop off packages. – Nominated by Sara Christensen Blair

As a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, Amy uses her expertise to empower women who are finding themselves suddenly separated from their partners. She also teaches free financial literacy courses to women in need. Involved in many community organizations, Amy gives fully of herself, and she believes it is through sharing resources, information, and talents that our community will become a better place in which to live. – Nominated by Marilyn Noah-McGinnes

In his service as president of the Morning Rotary Club and as the representative of St. Benedict Cathedral with Catholics for Habitat, Bruce Bryant has served as an example of what getting actively involved can mean for our community. Bruce understands that by working with Habitat to increase homeownership rates for low income people and by working with Rotary to recruit members who represent all groups and all walks of life, he is doing his part to demonstrate a commitment to equity and diversity. – Nominated by Sr. Jane Michele McClure

With a long career at Vectren, a decades-long membership at Johnson Temple Church of God in Christ, and a deep commitment to the work of Habitat for Humanity of Evansville, Vera Campbell is a respected and revered African American female leader in our community. Having served on Habitat’s Board of Directors until 2010 and continuing to serve on the organization’s Faith Relations and Family Selection Committee, Vera is a voice of encouragement and inspiration for those seeking a better life through homeownership. – Nominated by Sr. Jane Michele McClure and Lu Porter

Xavier is all about connecting and bringing compassion to others. Xavier gives adult leaders a youth perspective on issues, and makes them think about the needs of the next generation to ensure the neighborhood thrives. During his free time, Xavier walks the neighborhood with his mother to spread the word about safety, growth, and visions for their community – Nominated by Michael Maul 

Amanda Deutsch and Emily English are both North High School students, completing their tenth and ninth years in Vanderburgh County 4-H. Both young ladies are outstanding leaders in their community and serve as positive role models to younger youth. Through a 4-H trip, they learned about global hunger and then created a plan for hunger in their own community. They partnered with the Boys and Girls Club to provide nutritious food to students in need and began a 4-H club to help local youth develop positive life & leadership skills. – Nominated by Megan Hoffherr

Stephanie serves the Growth Alliance of Greater Evansville as the Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship and the official “Captain of Fun”. She develops and executes programming for startup entrepreneurs and runs the Co-Working space at Innovation Pointe with professionalism. Stephanie provides safe spaces for people to grow and goes out of her way to stay positive. Stephanie is a true champion of people who strive to improve themselves and is an inspiration to others. – Nominated by Michael Thissen

Alex is an outstanding, upbeat, strategic, positive human being who is very innovative. He supports local small businesses and participates in the events surrounding his own small business, Black Lodge Coffee Roasters. Once a week, he hosts Acropolis at his New Harmony, IN business so residents can have a taste of authentic cuisine. He sponsors artists in his shop so they can sell their artwork and get some exposure. He is not discriminating and welcomes everyone as if they were family. – Nominated by Kristi Wargel 

Sean is the Executive Director of the Outreach Branch at the YMCA of Southwestern IN. He is committed to serving our community to its fullest by ensuring FREE programming for at-risk, low-income families. He is committed to working tirelessly to meet their needs. He strives for excellence and is the first to put his boots on the ground. His servant leadership is 24/7 and he commits to making our community better and giving opportunity to everyone. – Nominated by Hannah Messmer

Emil LaMar is the founder and Executive Director of River City Pride. He has made an amazing impact on the community by creating the organization and holding its Pride Festival every year. Emil has inspired others to take the lead and start programs that will ensure the growth and safety of the LGBTQ+ community. Emil is an amazing leader and has always had a stunning ability to bring the community together and create focus on creating a better tomorrow. – Nominated by Kirk Lamar

James MacLeod, through his political cartoons, has inspired and at times needled many in the Greater Evansville area to do better. This ranges from praising organizations and individuals for doing great and inspirational work, to getting after those “curmudgeons” who are not doing the right thing. The subjects of MacLeod’s work are all people or situations that influence our community in one way or another–often they are directly due to environmental inequity. – Nominated by Don Crankshaw

Robin is the co-founder of Zero Waste Evansville and the Executive Director of Urban Seeds, where she helped create a program called Nourish, a community food buying club that increases access to nutrient dense foods via wholesale pricing. She was also an integral part of Market on Main’s creation and implementation. Robin tirelessly works to make our community healthier, to fight for our kids and their access to healthy foods, and to model for us the importance of caring for our neighbors and our environment. – Nominated by Mary Allen

Through his work with AstraZeneca’s intern program, Ryan is bringing great engineering talent to our community! Diverse candidates have been recruited globally and he is focused on bringing more female engineers to his team. He takes a proactive role in ensuring the interns find where they fit within the Tri-State so they can thrive. One of Ryan’s strengths is positivity, and he has a passion for teaching and developing others. His enthusiasm and energy is inspiring! – Nominated by Marcia Yurks and Keith Rawley

A gem of Evansville, Sr. Jane Michele McClure puts the best interests of the community above self. She is a passionate advocate for Evansville and the surrounding area. She has raised millions of dollars by helping those with financial resources experience the joy of giving and impacting those in need. Through her work with Habitat for Humanity of Evansville, hundreds of families have been able to experience the stability that owning a safe, decent, and affordable home provides. – Nominated by Beth Folz

Cathy is a go-getter and nothing will stop her from getting the job done. Founder of HopeDotCom, Cathy teams up with local groups to provide meals and snacks to our area homeless. She cares for all and tries to help those in need feel accepted and cared for. Her office provides resources, sanitary needs, sleeping bags, and more. Cathy is team oriented, and collaborates with agencies and organizations to provide her clients with all their needs. – Nominated by Bret Myers

Dan Oates has made a lifetime commitment to unselfishly serving others. He served in combat in Vietnam, eventually retiring from the Indiana Army Reserves as a Colonel. His service to the community continues as an active member of his church, Kiwanis member, and as a small business owner. Dan has been instrumental in the development of collaborations with other community organizations like the Vanderburgh County Veterans Court, Tri-State Women Veterans, and ECHO Housing to ensure opportunities for Veterans who are less fortunate. – Nominated by Mike Burkdoll

Jaimie’s an incredible person who has committed her whole life to helping people. From her previous career in physical therapy to her foundation work in the JD Sheth Foundation, she has worked all over the world for over 10 years helping people in need. She and her foundation got to work quickly here in Evansville to help local businesses during the COVID shutdown. When she commits to something, she gives it 100% and thinks big. – Nominated by Dr. Devdas Sheth

Over the past few years, Pastor Chet Todd has led a citywide weekly prayer meeting for area pastors and leaders from multiple denominations. Chet is a gatherer and has been instrumental in leading this group through various social and personal crises. When COVID-19 limited interaction, he used technology to stay connected. When social issues dominated the news over the summer, he did not back away but accepted the challenge in keeping area pastors and leaders connected. – Nominated by Rita Prior

Lisa has been a life-long volunteer, involved in nearly 26 nonprofits in Evansville. Last year she led efforts to combat food insecurity throughout COVID-19 in conjunction with her church, as a civic leader with the Junior League of Evansville, and through her own grassroots effort. The effort was so successful it led to the Mayor deeming the Feed Evansville Group the official government Food Security task force of the area, and naming Lisa as co-chair. The thousands of lives positively impacted regarding food insecurity during the past year are the beneficiaries of Lisa’s tireless efforts. – Nominated by Jason Vaughan

Melissa has been a Vanderburgh County 4-H Club Leader for 12 years. She has also taken on leadership roles, currently serving as the Secretary of the 4-H Adult Leaders group and Treasurer of the 4-H Council. She has a love for STEM and shares this passion with 4-H youth, and has also taught STEM lessons at the Boys and Girls Club. She is a humble leader who has dedicated her life to ensuring that young people in the 4-H program have the opportunities they deserve. – Nominated by Megan Hoffherr

Marisela is an educator, entertainer, and community advocate. Her imagination, creativity, and desire to celebrate culture have brought dozens of programs to EVPL and to Evansville. In addition to her own culture, she connects with other members in our community to learn about their culture and creates programs centered on celebrating them. Marisela’s goal is to educate and to celebrate each other! – Nominated by Erika Qualls Barnett

Nichole Freiberger has been a classroom teacher for several years, first at Delaware and now at Highland. Most recently she has transferred her primary teaching abilities to art instruction. Nichole has inspired an idea to better the courtyard at Highland Elementary School by transforming it into a STEAM area, coordinating with parents, community members, and staff members. Nichole uses her creativity to inspire students and all around her. – Nominated by Barbara Lynn

Erin Gibson is an instructor in journalism at USI and advisor for The Shield, USI’s student publication. Gibson has recognized the need to help students understand that voter access, education, and media literacy are social justice issues. She partnered with USI’s Center for Social Justice and Service Learning program to implement the Media and Voter Education Project. The project encouraged students to take a fake news quiz that helped them learn to identify misinformation. Gibson also developed voter education materials targeting Indiana college students to address voter ID, registration deadlines and guidelines, and election dates. – Nominated by Dr. Leigh Anne Howard

Mrs. Pamela Hopson recognized the need for students of color to have a place to congregate, belong, and access resources, and she began to advocate for the needs of USI’s minority students and the campus as a whole. Her vision was granted with the establishment of USI’s Multicultural Center 26 years ago. She is now the Center’s Executive Director. All of Director Hopson’s 40 years of experience and groundbreaking programs at USI have now elevated her to be the current chairperson of USI’s own campus initiative, the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee. – Nominated by Jada Hogg

Bruceann is a trailblazer in social work. She was the first full-time social worker hired in the EVSC, and she remains the gold standard. For 23 years, she has helped her students at Cedar Hall Community School with equal parts love and discipline. Bruceann attends after school activities such as sporting events to cheer on the students in her care, and she nurtures each child as if they were her own. Icons such as Bruceann are not known for their ability to rest, but rather, for their ability to resolve. – Nominated by Dave Schutte

Dr. Smith has an unwavering commitment to supporting all EVSC employees to maximize their success. He leads by example in a fair and equitable manner with a “boots on the ground” approach. He spent 17 years as a classroom teacher, and in many ways, still sees himself in that way. Dr. Smith’s leadership skills have proven invaluable this past year as EVSC has navigated the challenges of the pandemic by maintaining high academic standards while going above and beyond to create safe environments for the students and staff. – Nominated by Jason Woebkenberg

In her role as CEO of the Southwest Indiana Chamber, Tara Barney has epitomized nimble, tenacious, decisive, collaborative, and strategic leadership all in the context of the tremendous upheaval caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. From the outset, Tara was laser focused on elevating and transforming in real time the role and work of the Chamber amidst the crisis, to be even more impactful, relevant and helpful to our community, our businesses large and small, our region, and our partners in elected office. – Nominated by Christine Keck

Governor Beshear has taken a stance that the success of Kentuckians is more important than income from education. He and the Commonwealth of Kentucky have waived the fees for applying for and taking the GED, and in the first quarter of 2020, 38% more Kentuckians earned their GED than in all of 2019. Governor Beshear has worked hard to remove financial barriers so people can work to succeed and advance their livelihoods, and to bolster their self-esteem. – Nominated by Don Crankshaw

Marco DeLucio is corporate council for the City of Evansville. David Jones is the lead attorney for Vanderburgh County. This past year, these two attorneys and their respective firms were behind-the-scenes leaders, providing timely and reliable legal information to local officials from the very beginning of the pandemic. Marco and David were accessible, patient, and trustworthy in their counsel, and they collaborated with ease and professionalism, which allowed local leaders to act with confidence. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

Kendall is CEO of the Vanderburgh Humane Society and River Kitty Cat Café. Through the pandemic, she has remained fiercely committed to her employees’ well-being and security. While juggling the effects of COVID-19 on the organization as a whole, she ensured that as many staff members remained employed as possible–not one employee has permanently lost their job or their insurance benefits since the beginning of the pandemic. Kendall’s passion for the VHS’s mission in our community, and for the team members who carry it out, make her a shining example of servant leadership. – Nominated by Amanda Coburn

Dr. Thomas Stratton, MD is a family medicine specialist in Evansville, IN practicing at Echo Community Healthcare. Dr. Stratton is a passionate advocate for racial equity, specifically in terms of access to healthcare. He partners with local organizations and is a regular at the Common Council meetings of Evansville, advocating for the housing and health of low and moderate-income families. In 2020, he volunteered to serve with the Evansville Independent Self Isolation Program, and he was the first to advocate for those incarcerated at the Vanderburgh County jail to not be overlooked for the COVID-19 vaccine. – Nominated by Sondra Matthews and Chris Metz

Dr. Abbott is the Microbiology Director at Deaconess Health System. Due to her resourcefulness and determination, Deaconess has been a Midwest leader in COVID-19 testing, saving lives in our community and beyond. Dr. Abbott is regarded as a COVID-19 testing expert, and shares her knowledge with clinical and lab staff. She has partnered with Mayor Winnecke to educate about the importance of mask-wearing. Dr. Abbott has been in the trenches with so many others, working 20+hour shifts to ensure the safety of our community. – Nominated by Lynn Linagelter

Diana is the Director of Health Services for EVSC. In one of their most challenging periods, and long before, Diana has been a constant source of support for students, school nursing staff, and the entire community. She gives selflessly of her time, providing guidance, support and comfort with a most caring and genuine commitment to the profession. She is an outstanding asset to our schools, families, and community. – Nominated by Kim McWilliams 

Jara, a clinical assistant professor of social work at USI, has served as President of Prevent Child Abuse (PCA) Vanderburgh County for several years. She also serves on the board for SIRCAT to work with others to stop human trafficking. She wants to make sure that all those who have had their rights and voice taken from them by another are heard and helped. She recently became involved with Resilient Evansville to become a local trainer working with adults to help build strength in our youth. – Nominated by Lottie Cook

Dr. Dunniway is a strong advocate for the care of patients and for the resources and education needed for Ascension St. Vincent associates. Dr. Dunniway has worked collectively with Infection Prevention teams to help ensure that Ascension associates were able to implement safe and highly-effective practices while preserving PPE. She is committed to living out the Mission, Vision, and Values of Ascension, working tirelessly to collaborate with and guide her peers in such a way that gives great confidence and comfort to others. – Nominated by Mallory Martin

Dr. Hobson manages the COVID-19 patients at Deaconess. He is at their bedside when they die without their families and there with recovered patients when they are released. He holds their hands, prays with them, and makes a terrible situation the best he can. He did all this while sending his own family with a new baby away to decrease their exposure. – Nominated by Anonymous

Dr. Huhnke serves as the Director of Medical Affairs and Emergency Medicine for Deaconess, and has recently served as the Medical Section Leader for the Deaconess Pandemic Response Team, where her knowledge and stamina have been key in our community’s response to COVID-19. Other members of the team rely on her expertise, kindness, and responsiveness in making important decisions related to all aspects of COVID-19. She is also an ongoing participant in regional COVID-19 leadership virtual meetings and was integral in assisting nursing homes in COVID education and policy development. And as an ER physician, she has personally cared for the sickest and most injured COVID-19 patients. – Nominated by Shawn McCoy

As a pulmonologist with Ascension St. Vincent in Evansville, Dr. Johnson has contributed countless hours of his time to help guide Southwest Indiana through the COVID-19 pandemic. Both the City of Evansville and the Vanderburgh Health Department have benefited from Dan’s expertise and involvement, and he is a frequent participant on conference calls with Deaconess, the Health Department, Mayor Winnecke, County Commissioners, and local school leaders discussing the latest status of the virus in the community. Our community has benefited greatly by this open exchange – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

Andrea Lantz, MSW is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker & Certified Respecting Choices Advance Care Planning Facilitator & Instructor. She has taken her mental health counseling skills and expertise alongside her passion and talents of community education by offering services in the community. One of these initiatives was raising awareness for The “HUG HANDOUT” Community Project with the goal of making a “hug curtain” available to more health care/residential facilities in the Evansville area during 2020. The hope was to reduce rapid decline in people’s health from increased grief and lack of needed touch. – Nominated by Carlos Caballero

Amy Lutzel is the Director of the Welborn Foundation Wellness and Fitness Center at Ivy Tech Community College’s Evansville campus. During the pandemic, the center closed. Faced with this challenge and her passion to provide health and wellness support for the campus community, Amy created a robust health and wellness community on Facebook. This included virtual workouts, group events, and resources. She also developed the Wellness Journey Series to provide multiple options to overcome health challenges and connection during this time of isolation. – Nominated by Alisha Aman

As president of Ascension St. Vincent Southern Region, Dan Parod has worked diligently to provide our region with timely and accurate information in the name of good public health, from supplying experts to the Medical Advisory Group advising the city’s Reopen Task Force, to offering guidance on PPE, COVID-19 testing, and vaccination protocols. Thanks to Dan’s leadership, the medical staff at Ascension St. Vincent has regularly collaborated with other medical experts to ensure there is consistent public messaging on all issues relating to COVID-19. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

Dolly Parton uses her celebrity and money to better her local community, our nation, and the world. She has brought prosperity to the small, poor community where she was raised by providing jobs and tourist revenue. She is the founder of Imagination Library and many other altruistic acts of charity and leadership. Early in 2020 when the pandemic started and Dolly Parton realized that Vanderbilt University was working on a vaccine with Moderna, she donated $1,000,000 to the effort. Other celebrities followed her lead. – Nominated by Don Crankshaw

Shawn McCoy, CEO, and Dr. James Porter, President of Deaconess Health System, have been leaders throughout the coronavirus pandemic, going beyond the call of duty to be responsible to the communities served with vital information and top medical care as we all learned how to adjust in a pandemic. They never wavered in their commitment to keep all of us safe and informed, and they’ve been recognized as the reliable sources of data and analytics. They have given all of us reassurance that we have the ability to keep health care local with access to the very best patient care. – Nominated by Linda White

As the country commemorated the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in the US, the Evansville Museum organized a special exhibition featuring women in our own community. Faces of Evansville Women was conceived to give an authentic understanding of women who live in the River City. The 50 women invited to participate came from a wide variety of backgrounds and varied in age and ethnicities. Their photos and words expressed struggles, challenges, resiliency, and determination. – Nominated by Mary Bower 

Evansville Regional Airport joined 22 North American airports from across the U.S. and Canada to present JetStream Music Festival, the first-ever online airport music fest event on May 6, 2020. Just as airports connect people, places and cultures, music also serves as a great connection to our communities and the world. The free event, which was broadcast via Facebook Live, showcased airports, local musical talent, and community organizations from coast to coast. The virtual tip jars linked viewers to a COVID relief website to donate. – Nominated by Leslie Fella

Millie’s Downtown Dino Trail is a collaboration between The Children’s Museum of Evansville, the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana, and the Downtown Evansville Economic Improvement District, with key funding from the Rotary Club of Evansville. The trail will connect the Children’s Museum to Mickey’s Kingdom on the riverfront with 12 artist-designed sites such as dino-themed murals, sculptures, benches, and other amenities. An anticipated ribbon cutting on the project is Summer 2021. – Nominated by Scott Wylie

The Children’s Center for Dance Education engaged the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and utilized its youth orchestra instrumentalists and choirs to create this child-friendly version of The Nutcracker. The award-winning CCDE, the area’s oldest non-profit dance organization, collaborated to create a virtual “Field Trip to the Theater” for local students to see the ballet. This production is now available to over 30,000 local students and has also been provided to three Kentucky school districts as well as one in Indianapolis. – Nominated by Patty Avery

The Evansville Pride of Bosse Marching Band formed under adverse conditions to create and present a show of power, passion, and hope. This group of Bosse High School students worked together tirelessly so they could share their thoughts, feelings, and confidence in a better tomorrow. 2020 has been a challenge worldwide, and the Pride of Bosse Marching Band came together to perform a gift for the community through their show, “Making a Difference in the World.”  Check out the amazing video here! – Nominated by Aaron Huff

River Kitty Cat Café has embraced its opportunity as a Downtown Evansville business to promote public art. In early spring 2020 (at the very beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown), a local art student completed a large colorful mural on one of the walls of River Kitty’s covered porch. It has become a prime location for “selfies” and for visiting tourists to stop and say hello to the adoptable cats through the window. In a dark, dark year, the mural has brought just a little extra joy to our community. – Nominated by Amanda Coburn

Kana Brown and Tanisha Carothers have revitalized the Evansville Black Chamber of Commerce, helping small business owners to develop business plans, apply for COVID-19 assistance, and find mentors. Their vision is laying a strong foundation for Black businesses. Their focus has come at the perfect time and is sure to impact the number of Black businesses started, grown, and positively impacted in the Evansville area. – Nominated by Amy Bouchie and Alex Burton 

Black Owned Legacy Development (BOLD) is a community-wide program seeking to support and grow black-owned businesses throughout Southwest Indiana. The mission of BOLD is to uplift and support black entrepreneurs and small businesses so that they are able to compete with any and all other businesses in their field, as well as reverse the historic practices and rules which have made it exorbitantly difficult for minority businesses to survive, let alone grow and be successful, for the long run. – Nominated by Joshua Case and John Pena

This fund is an organized and collaborative community effort to support 501(c) (3) organizations in our community during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. In response to the crisis, funding partners (Southern Indiana Grantmakers, United Way of Southwestern Indiana, Welborn Baptist Foundation, Community Foundation Alliance, and the City of Evansville) established a cross-sector, community wide Response Fund in Gibson, Posey, Spencer, Vanderburgh, and Warrick Counties. To date, over $5.1 million has been raised, and $2.3 million has been funded to nonprofit agencies serving these five southwestern Indiana counties. – Nominated by Jack Pate and Lloyd Winnecke

Feed Evansville is a task force created during the 2020 global pandemic to ensure the Tri State had food access during the shutdown. This group stepped up with a “whatever it takes” attitude, filling and delivering an average of 100 pantry boxes and about 3,000 dairy and produce boxes weekly. They created and shared a weekly food access flyer so community members would know where to receive services, and published grocery and restaurants hours through social media, TV, radio, and email to spread the word. – Nominated by Vera & Carisa Campbell 

The Food & Nutrition Student Organization (FNSO) at the USI utilized their culinary talents to give back to our community this year. They arranged for pre-sales on Thanksgiving pies for their 2020 fall fundraiser and quickly sold out. The pies were all homemade by the FNSO, and the money raised helped provide meals for families at the Ronald McDonald House Charities. – Nominated by Carlos Caballero

Habitat for Humanity of Evansville has helped to provide stable housing for residents since 1984. St. Theresa Place, a 14-home Habitat for Humanity subdivision, will be built on the east side of the former St. Theresa Catholic Parish campus. This project will continue Habitat’s model of offering a family a hand up – not a hand out – to empower families to grow strong, stable, and self-reliant by helping them build and buy their very own houses. – Nominated by Luke Nordine

Missing Pieces Community Development Corporation was founded to provide high priority outreach programs and emergency assistance to individuals in crisis locally, statewide, and worldwide. Missing Pieces has partnered with the Promise Zone, Bridge Builders Transportation, and Don’s Clayton’s Cleaners for several years on multiple initiatives to provide services free of charge to low income and vulnerable populations (especially the elderly and disabled) within the State of Indiana, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Anguilla, British West Indies. – Nominated by Daphane Stuart

The Need a Neighbor platform, created through a collaboration between Community One and For Evansville, was a crisis response tool that provided immediate relief this past year through a movement of neighbors caring for neighbors. Through the Need a Neighbor project, neighbors were able to bring hope, essential supplies, and connection to fellow neighbors over 1,100 times. The project was noted as a testament to the citizens of the region by Mayor Winnecke during one of Governor Holcomb’s addresses in April. – Nominated by Candace Chapman

Southern Indiana Career and Technical Center is teaming with Habitat for Humanity of Evansville to build a home in the Jacobsville neighborhood. SICTC’s students, who are a diverse group, are working together in a team environment to learn new skills and build a house—for someone else, not themselves. As the students are serving others, they are gaining a valuable skill set for their future as they gain graduation and career pathways. – Nominated by Kevin Williams

The Story Trail facilitates and promotes access to active living spaces for people in our community. It creates and celebrates ways to incorporate physical activity and literacy with the environment, thus improving the quality of life to those in and around our parks and green spaces. The Story Trail encourages families and groups to visit parks and enjoy the wonderful, inclusive stories available for all to experience, and promotes healthy living while enjoying the outdoors. – Nominated by Erika Qualls Barnett

All three Gibson County School Corporations, Toyota, Grow Southwest Indiana Workforce Board, and Ivy Tech Community College came together to build 4T Academy to provide students with an innovative learning experience that couples hands-on learning with on-the job training, preparing them for a successful and rewarding career. The program gives students a life-changing opportunity to begin a career in the high-tech world of manufacturing with state-of-the-art technology and world-renowned business practices. Students have access to paid internships, college credit, and job placement right out of high school. – Nominated by Kyla Dowell

WNIN, in partnership with the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation (EVSC) and with the financial assistance of the Fifth Third Bank Foundation and the Vectren, A CenterPoint Energy Company Foundation, was able to offer local students video lessons that are specific to grade-level while many of them were at home due to school closure or quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic. Unique to the WNIN/EVSC partnership, individual EVSC teachers have been presenting these lessons from classrooms while using white boards and other common school room tools. – Nominated by Scott Wylie

Greater Evansville Youth is the Evansville area’s newest LGBTQ+ youth group, serving young folks in grades 7-12. GEY provides a safe space for queer youth to come together, be supported, and be loved. Its Parent Series is intended to serve parents of this vulnerable youth population—one we know experiences things like self-harm, drug use, and homelessness at record rates. Providing parents of LGBTQ+ youth with supportive information creates a safer, more inclusive environment for the future. – Nominated by Samantha Buente

The Adult Basic Education program increases Ivy Tech’s ability to help underserved individuals gain something that can never be taken away from them—an education. The program is open to anyone who needs help. Additionally, the college is offering free bus passes and other resources to help remove barriers. The college is also using tools to survey students to understand what additional barriers need to be broken down to be of greater assistance to students. – Nominated by Nick Gathercole

Students in the Ivy Tech Advanced Automation and Robotics Technology program collaborate with Robotics Club members and instructors to engage in service projects, such as rewiring electronic learning devices, making keyboard guards, 3D printing prosthetics, and fabricating protective devices for COVID.  The team has been passionate about bringing STEM to underserved communities by actively recruiting students from minority and Promise Zone areas of Evansville to participate in summer camps and workshops.  Three members also provide STEM instruction in the YMCA after school programs at Caldwell, Caze, and Evans. – Nominated by Lu Porter

Traditionally, Joshua Academy prides itself on the numerous parent/community volunteers that help throughout the school year. The objective of the PTF is to provide a framework in which parents, teachers, and the administration work together for the best interest of the students’ academic, physical, and emotional development. During the 2020-2021 school year, the PTF has worked twice as hard with a lot less parent volunteers due to the pandemic, ensuring that the organization is still active and effective, recognizing and appreciating school staff, and encouraging and supporting student engagement. – Nominated by Arveneda McDonald

EVSC New Tech High School’s annual STEM Fest provides the community a free, hands-on event with more than 30 STEM-related activities for students of all ages. In February 2020, over 30 local businesses and organizations shared booths and exhibits, plus our New Tech students designed and created many STEM-oriented booths. We welcomed more than 1,600 participants over the two-day event. Our goal is to help build strong minds, strong students, and a strong community throughout the Evansville area. – Nominated by Chris Gibson

The New Tech Institute High School Thunderbot FIRST Robotics Team began in the fall of 2018. Since then, nearly ten percent of the entire school is part of the team—with opportunities ranging from coding, fabrication, welding, and electricity to graphic design, business, marketing, and safety. The students work collaboratively to build a working robot. In March 2020, the Thunderbots earned First Place at the District Robotics Competition in Bloomington. – Nominated by Chris Gibson

 The Talking Library is an online collection of volunteer-recorded audiobooks, freely available to the public through the Literacy Center. This project was started as an activity for adults developing their literacy skills at the beginning of the pandemic lockdown in March. The Talking Library invited members of the public to read aloud to adults—from anywhere in the country. The Library now develops a new reading project every 3-4 months and brings together citizens of different professions, beliefs, and backgrounds to read and promote literacy in solidarity. – Nominated by Trista Smith

Teacher Locker is a place where Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation teachers can receive school supplies for their classroom at no cost. The goal is to reduce what teachers spend out of their own pockets for their classrooms. Teacher Locker is a place where the community comes together to provide free classroom supplies in order to support teaching, promote student achievement, and drive school success. This amazing resource lets educators focus on quality education by alleviating the financial burden. – Nominated by Laura O’Leary

Staff members at the North Park branch of the Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library have developed an Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice (EDISJ) Team with representatives from across the library system each offering their own unique perspective on the core theme of EDISJ. By soliciting input from the entire EVPL community, the EDISJ team is opening up a dialog that enhances the work experience, both internally and externally, of library staff. The staff is then empowered with the tools to create more culturally sensitive programming for greater community inclusion. – Nominated by Helen Azarian

Evansville Regional Airport’s solar covered parking installation currently supplies one-half of the terminal building’s power and is the largest of its kind in the Midwest and second largest in the U.S., generating 1.3 megawatts of power and covering nearly 400 parking spaces! This solar installation has allowed EVV to add another highly sought passenger amenity that is environmentally sustainable, cutting-edge and cost-effective, which helps to ensure a bright future for the airport, while also providing a beautiful, innovative front door to the community. – Nominated by Leslie Fella

The Garvin Foundation is a collection of volunteers dedicated to helping geese and ducks in peril and spreading awareness of our furry and feathered friends. The Garvin Foundation, named after a goose rescued by the Pike family, regularly looks out for the various waterfowl around the Evansville area by actively seeking out birds in need, and conducting rescues when necessary with the assistance of professional animal care experts. The Garvin Foundation is truly committed to doing the best it can to help some of the most unacknowledged animals in Evansville. – Nominated by William Lismore

Col. Noah Robinson and Deputy Andy Norris created and implemented a system to notify all the schools in the county anytime a student was subjected to trauma at the scene of an incident reported to law enforcement. Called “Handle with Care,” the program has been used in other jurisdictions but was improved upon by the VCSO to be computer-based and automated, ensuring timely and consistent delivery of the notifications. – Nominated by Matt Elrod

The economic impact of state-mandated closures during COVID-19 has been devastating. In response, Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke created the Reopen Evansville Task Force and appointed Deputy Mayor Steve Schaefer to lead a comprehensive community effort to address challenges impacting our city and developing a path forward. Mayor Winnecke felt it was imperative for the city of Evansville to be prepared to reopen successfully per state and federal guidance. They continue to with community organizations to ensure a smooth transition. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

In 2020, WNIN, the University of Evansville and ¿Qué Pasa, Midwest? collaborated on a seven-month research and reporting project to find stories of the coronavirus pandemic that weren’t being told in seven Midwestern states. These stories are now recorded and immortalized. The partnership supported research projects conducted by several UE ChangeLab classes. The research generated data-driven reporting for a visual, in-depth look at how states responded, and the lessons that can be learned when facing future, large-scale disasters. – Nominated by Brooksie Smith

As the COVID-19 food rescue operations rolled out for students reliant on being fed at school rolled out, Urban Seeds saw an opportunity to fulfill their mission to “Nourish Our Community.” They initiated a cooked-from-scratch meal program—meals loaded with veggies and whole foods ingredients (often locally grown)—to compliment other relief efforts. They received food donations from numerous restaurants and local farmers and distributed the food though various local organizations to support food-insecure families. – Nominated by Amy Bouchie

Individuals, companies, and organizations were the first to respond to the shortage of facemasks in our community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Marshaling resources, whether it be their home sewing machines and quilting materials, companies with seamstresses, or organizations with logistic capabilities, these local heroes provided masks, mostly free, to anyone that needed them. Further, many Mask Makers also provided patterns, instruction, training, and sometimes materials to others so they could make their own or join the cause. – Nominated by Don Crankshaw

One of the largest barriers to health care is often physical access to care. By providing multiple testing sites in five different counties, Deaconess has been able to make COVID-19 testing accessible to local residents. Deaconess also collaborated with Vanderburgh County Health Department to create walk-up testing sites for the underserved. COVID-19 testing has become a frequent necessity in our community—regional residents having easy access to this testing is essential to efforts to keep our community as safe and healthy as possible. – Nominated by Lynn Linagelter

It all began with a Courier & Press story on March 18, featuring Deaconess’s request that the community begin sewing cloth masks, with a now-viral video of CFO Cheryl Wathen teaching us how. The outpouring of local, national and international support for the request led to a response beyond imagination. Because it was quickly apparent that Deaconess’s needs would be met, the marketing, communications and web team developed information and a process that would allow individuals and organizations around the world to contribute and receive much-needed fabric masks. – Nominated by Jared Florence

When the pandemic hit Evansville, the Commission on Homelessness saw the need to act quickly to provide care that would prevent the rapid spread of COVID-19 in a population that already had challenges in health, hygiene, and basic care. They partnered with the Catholic Diocese, the City of Evansville, area agencies, healthcare institutions, health departments, and the Region 12 Homeless Services Council to create a program that isolates and cares for homeless individuals requiring quarantine while bringing hospitality and humanity back to this vulnerable and often overlooked population. The work being done by the individuals and organizations involved provides a beautiful example of how our community can rally together to help its most vulnerable, with the heart of a servant leader. – Nominated by Beth Kroft

The EVSC developed a dedicated outreach plan for students and families during the extended state school closure in the spring of 2020. Because schools were closed, students were no longer receiving the daily, in-person contact with teachers. It became apparent that the school district needed to develop a plan to monitor the well-being of all students. School staff members identified students to be contacted, and were diligent in their attempts to make frequent, ongoing contact. Besides checking on academic progress and technology access for virtual learning, these check-ins were focused on looking for signs of stress and anxiety, and to ensure students and families were aware of technology support and the food distribution program. – Nominated by Jason Woebkenberg

Gail Moran and her son, Evan, began volunteering with Sister Joanna’s Table (SJT) when Evan was still in school. Today, Evan (in pre-pandemic times) brings his own children who volunteer with Sister Joanna’s Table and runs SJT alongside his mother. SJT is a ministry of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church that collaborates with eight congregations to serve a hot meal to guests every Saturday morning out of St. Paul’s Webb Hall. During the pandemic, Gail and Evan have been instrumental in keeping this ministry going, adjusting to make sure hot meals are still offered in a safe way. – Nominated by Rev. Holly Rankin Zaher

The University of Evansville’s Center for Innovation & Change – Evansville Adaptive Watersports creates an opportunity for everyone no matter their ability. Their mission is, “Through rowing, to include anyone willing to step out of their comfort zone, no matter the mental or physical comfort, to face challenges together.” Adaptive Watersports allows those that otherwise are unable to participate in sporting events to compete and enjoy the water as well. – Nominated by Brooksie Smith

During COVID-19, kids have faced many struggles: a parent’s income loss, their own or a family member’s substance use, loss of socialization, loved ones’ illness or death, food insecurity, fear of the future, and more. Youth First stayed connected even when schools closed, equipping its team with remote platforms and strategies to support kids and families; initiating summer services; delivering food; posting helpful resources online; and serving as a public voice for awareness about suicide, child abuse, and the importance of mental health self-care. – Nominated by Judith Kunst

Downtown Evansville EID is creating a vibrant urban district in our region filled with unparalleled opportunities in which to live, work, learn, dine, invest, and play among great public spaces, happy people, and thriving businesses. Their prompt response to COVID-19 shows that Downtown Evansville is a resilient neighborhood which cares for its own, as well as one that drives individual, family, organizational, city-wide, and regional growth, prosperity, and development. – Nominated by Candace Chapman

For 87 years, the EPO has served Evansville. In the past year, lack of funding and the pandemic have put pressure on the EPO to survive and thrive. Despite this, and with a new Music Director, the EPO has reimagined how it is presenting music by streaming concerts, reaching out to younger audiences, bringing music to new venues, and focusing on diversity. The EPO has a long-term commitment to Greater Evansville and has strongly demonstrated this in the past, challenging year. – Nominated by Jim Spath

Being creative and adapting to unexpected changes took on a new meaning this year for many organizations. Taking creative thinking a step further, Toyota Indiana and four local arts nonprofits collaborated on an innovative approach to breaking down barriers across the region to provide virtual programming and content for anyone, anywhere, anytime. The initiative, called “Accessing the Arts Anywhere,” is a partnership in which the Toyota invested $100,000 to support online program creation and execution. Projects include virtual field trips, sending art supplies to students, and outdoor concerts. – Nominated by Mary Bower

The Catholic Diocese of Evansville responded to a request last year by the City of Evansville to create an isolation center for homeless residents who were awaiting COVID-19 test results or had tested positive for COVID-19. The Diocese provided the Sarto Retreat Center to meet this unique community need. Bishop Joseph M. Siegel and Chancellor and Chief Operation Officer Tim McGuire worked compassionately with the city and homeless service providers to ensure that the most vulnerable population of the city had a safe, healthy environment for self-isolation. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

Habitat for Humanity of Evansville’s Core Crew, especially during COVID times, have been Habitat’s “essential workers.” They kept the ministry on track to build the goal of 20 houses, even when shelter-in-place orders slowed construction down for almost three months. Donating at least 80 hours annually to Habitat’s mission, the Core Crew—all part of the “vulnerable” population—have worked, masked and socially distanced, to help families become homeowners. – Nominated by Sr. Jane Michele McClure

Since 1978, the Evansville Delta Sigma Theta Alumnae Chapter has consistently made a positive impact in the Evansville community. By focusing on and empowering the voiceless and the underserved in the black community, they raise the equity and diversity of the entire Evansville community. Last summer, believing collective voices matter and that it was time to bring the community together, they planned a city-wide Unity Walk and Prayer Vigil, bringing together faith leaders, community leaders, and Greek organizations for the healing of our community and nation. – Nominated by Elexica McAlister

EVPL To Go started before the pandemic as a pilot pick-up program at several library branches. During the library closure due to COVID-19, EVPL decided to expand the program to all locations upon reopening of services curbside, and then in limited public hours. Not only can patrons get their books, movies, CDs, and more through the curbside service, but copying, scanning, and research printing can be done, too. They also started Book-a-Librarian for virtual appointments for anyone to meet one-on-one with a librarian, as well as the EVPL Recommends service. – Nominated by Jake Kohlmeyer

In the midst of a national pandemic when many of us were staying home, nearly 200 EVSC Food Service staff and more than a hundred volunteers came together to prepare and distribute nearly 770,000 nutritious meals to thousands of students and families—even those who were not EVSC students. To ensure as many families as possible had access to healthy, nutritious meals during the COVID closures, the EVSC Food Services evaluated the meal pickup process each week and continually added more school pickup sites and even satellite neighborhood sites, to remove transportation as a barrier. – Nominated by Sara DeWitt

Field & Main Bank, along with the Preston Family Foundation, committed a $150,000 Challenge Grant to Henderson Employee Relief Fund to help support families affected by COVID-19. Additionally, Field & Main beautifully embodied their purpose of “Building Community” to help aid customers during the pandemic. The Field & Main Bank team worked during COVID-19 to support their customers and communities by waiving fees and penalties and providing PPP loans to over 500 local businesses. – Nominated by Kyle Hittner

The Gibson County Chamber, led by Executive Director Patty Vanoven, went above and beyond to support all members throughout 2020. The Chamber held several online sessions supporting businesses and community members, created guides and free pieces of marketing to support the most vulnerable small businesses throughout the pandemic, and helped connect struggling businesses to funding sources. Despite the pandemic, Patty and the Chamber have arranged and hosted community events that pulled these organizations together to present a united front for Gibson County. – Nominated by Kyla Dowell

Good Girlfriends is an organization in Houston, TX, made up of almost 100 women of different racial and ethnic backgrounds, who come together with one thing in common: love and humility they provide as one to help service their community. During COVID-19 they have supplied blankets, socks, and food to the Houston community, as well as providing counseling and teaching sessions such as money management, how to dress for an interview, how to create a resume, etc. – Nominated by Delthrice Atkins

The JD Sheth Foundation is a project-based organization focusing on the education, health, and wellbeing of others in Evansville and abroad. They have worked around the world helping with clean water projects, building homes and schools, doing medical mission work, and more. In Evansville, they work with the homeless, housing, education, and health-related projects, and support other nonprofits with what they need. JD Sheth Foundation’s philosophy is that “We Are One,” and they truly embody this. – Nominated by Dr. Devdas Sheth

When the PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) was created last year as part of the CARES act to help small organizations that were negatively impacted by COVID-19, local lenders quickly stepped up to help as many businesses and nonprofits as possible before the deadline. They were learning the processes, educating leaders, and working diligently with clients to navigate uncharted waters. Many lenders worked night and day on behalf of their small clients to get the funds secured. Then they had to learn more processes and rules to ensure that the loans could be forgiven. The tireless work of our lenders helped our region continue to have a vibrant small business and nonprofit environment. – Nominated by Julie Folz

When employees at McKim’s IGA in Mt. Vernon, IN heard that local schools were closing down to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, they saw a problem—kids would be without the lunches they had been receiving at school. McKim’s IGA stepped up, and their employees made 30-40 free lunches a day for the school kids, providing them for pickup at their deli counter, no questions asked. – Nominated by Don Crankshaw

October 17, 2020 was a monumental day for the City of Evansville. That’s the day that the Evansville P-47 Foundation brought home Tarheel Hal, one of the most famous remaining P-47’s. Evansville produced 6,242 Republic Thunderbolt fighter planes to support the American World War II war effort. Before the plane’s arrival, the Evansville P-47 Foundation and its generous donors raised 65% of the cost. Thousands of residents celebrated that glorious October afternoon watching with awe as Tarheel Hal crisscrossed the sky over Evansville. Its return to the city from which it was manufactured 75 years ago, marked a day of great pride and joy in a year otherwise dominated by grim news. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

Two years ago, Kennedy Cano started a blog called Small City, Big Eats to promote local restaurants. She now has over 4,400 followers, and local businesses love her for giving them free advertisement! She does not critique or say anything negative—if she doesn’t like a dish, she will keep trying until she finds something on the menu to recommend. Her goal is to help small businesses grow in our region. During COVID-19, she kept eating out and posting to help local businesses stay afloat. She does this all on her own time, with her own money. – Nominated by Jamey Moore

The EVSC Virtual Academy first opened in 2011, but with COVID-19 the enrollment grew by 2,480%, and the staff increased from 12 to 152. Scaling up a program by that magnitude is in itself amazing, but to do so in an extremely short period of time, during a pandemic, shows the devotion of EVSC Virtual Academy and its staff who worked tirelessly to build the program in order to provide the best option possible for as many students as possible, even extending or waiving enrollment deadlines so no student was turned away. The EVSC Virtual Academy has taken its place among the most important school options in our community. – Nominated by Sara DeWitt

In the spring of 2020, hundreds of Ivy Tech students were fearing the inability to complete their hands-on face-to-face coursework in time. Faculty and staff worked tirelessly to safely and successfully open labs and on-campus clinical space for the students to complete their hands-on coursework, adhering to CDC guidelines but maintaining course rigor. Due to safety protocols, completion took hours longer than usual, but Ivy Tech faculty dedicated many hours beyond their contracts to help the students complete their courses. In many cases, these were the final courses that these students needed to graduate and become our community’s newest essential workers. – Nominated by Kelly Cozart

Optimal Rhythms/ACCESS Academy promotes dignity, success and hope for some of the most vulnerable students in our communities. Their approach is groundbreaking, re-thinking autism as a motor movement deficit and understanding how to support each individual student to astounding success. They embody the idea of presuming competence in all students no matter their challenge, and teach others to shed their bias and see all students as capable and worthy. – Nominated by Joni Hill

Purdue Extension is a service tailored to meet the needs of Indiana by providing practical solutions to local issues. In 2019, Purdue Extension-Vanderburgh County reached 15,670 residents through face-to-face educational programming and expanded that reach to include virtual programming in 2020. Over the past year, they’ve partnered with diverse groups such as YMCA, Gilda’s Club, Southside Stars Youth Zone, Evansville Psychiatric Children’s Center, Little Lambs, Potter’s Wheel, public and private schools, and other organizations to continue to provide quality educational programming to youth and adults in every sector of Vanderburgh County. – Nominated by Megan Hoffherr

Andrea Lanz and Jim Zaher co-founded the nonprofit, What Matters Most? Evansville to create a community-wide mindfulness around grief, a complex emotion which encompasses any form of loss—not just death. Their goal is to create a community where we can live well and die well, because we can grieve well. They’ve established a consistent, sustainable environment, with their podcast and online forums, in which individuals are supported in forming ideas, sharing stories, and building connections related to and growing from grief. – Nominated by Rev. Holly Rankin Zaher

The AmeriQual Group and EVSC Partnership is committed to helping local students find their personal success in a way that has a lasting, multigenerational impact on teenagers-in-need prior to graduating. The pandemic created a need for a new facet to the Partnership. The EVSC purchased 18,000 AmeriQual meal kits to get 360,000 meals into the hands of youth in our community. AmeriQual loaned equipment and support to ensure distribution of these meals. – Nominated by Carrie Hillyard

Berry Global has provided $150,000 to assist Tri-State Resource Recovery Center to purchase a specialized robotic system to assist in recycling and waste-sorting. This new system will allow TSRR to immediately begin recycling polypropylene, or #5 plastic, and will increase efficiency of recycling other plastics otherwise going to the landfill. Berry has also established itself as an end market to receive materials that are picked up by the newly implemented robotic system. TSSR will be contributing to Berry’s efforts to achieve a closed loop manufacturing and recycling system and inspiring other manufacturing companies to follow suit. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

Citizens’ Climate Lobby is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, grassroots advocacy organization focused on national solutions to address climate change. CCL – Evansville Chapter is working to get Congress to pass carbon fee-and-dividend legislation, like the “Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act” to reduce emissions while protecting the economy and low and middle-income groups. The Chapter also encourages other bipartisan efforts to reduce carbon emissions. – Nominated by Randy Gerth

As the City of Evansville worked aggressively to limit the effects of COVID-19 on citizens during 2020, it also was preparing its first-ever Climate Action Plan (CAP). The Plan’s objective was to limit the effects of climate change locally to create a healthy environment for area residents well into the future. The CAP specifies 58 actions to lower GHG emissions to mitigate climate change. In October 2020, Accelerate Indiana Municipalities (AIM) recognized Evansville’s comprehensive effort to develop a CAP with its 2020 Green Community of the Year Award. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

The EVSC could not have weathered COVID-19 without the unfailing support from the EVSC Office of Technology. Not only is the office instrumental in providing devices, Internet connectivity, professional development, and tutorials for students and parents, they also are on the front lines of rolling out online enrollment—a first for EVSC—as well as supporting a complete rescheduling of classes and new system of reporting attendance that supports both virtual learning and social distancing within our schools. – Nominated by Sara DeWitt

The Southwest Indiana Chamber of Commerce has been a tremendous community partner from day one of the pandemic. Immediately their website became a central point of new information relating to the sourcing and availability of PPE, government and health guidance, and availability of local carry-out food. Working closely with Mayor Winnecke’s Office, they assisted the Reopen Evansville Task Force by organizing and facilitating countless virtual meetings to ensure local businesses had accurate and timely information to make re-opening decisions. They have provided invaluable help during the pandemic to their 1400 members, and, more importantly, the employees of those members, many of whom are essential workers. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

Vanderburgh County is blessed to have the professionals of the Vanderburgh County Health Department overseeing public health in our community. Their accessibility and expertise have guided Mayor Winnecke and the County Commissioners in developing sound policy to protect public health. Furthermore, their availability to the local media with comprehensive information and advice has proven to be invaluable to our community. Their work is equally respected by both Deaconess and Ascension St. Vincent, and the collaborative spirit of the Health Department has helped our community move together through an unprecedented public health crisis. – Nominated by Lloyd Winnecke

The Incident Command team at Ascension St. Vincent Evansville, came together quickly and with great strength to maximize patient-centered care during COVID-19. The teamwork demonstrated by this group of different associates with varying skill sets working across the entire organization put Ascension’s Mission, Vision, and Values into action. The Incident Command team has endured long days and nights yet maintains a strong sense of professionalism with the transparency they provide to those they serve. It continues to be a true collaborative effort with the patient at the core. – Nominated by Mallory Martin

The nurses at Ascension St. Vincent Evansville are persevering through a lot both personally and professionally, but each and every one of them continue to give 1000% to ensure that Ascension St. Vincent can provide the best care possible. Despite challenges with staffing and resources, the nurses are creative in the care they provide and to help meet the needs of their patients, holding the hand of a dying patient, having prayer circles, and even allowing a wedding to take place in the ICU so that a dying patient could see her daughter married. – Nominated by Mallory Martin

The Infection Prevention Team at Ascension St. Vincent Evansville, led by Kim Bellessa and Tammy Work, have been vital in decision-making through the pandemic. Setting up of the COVID-designated units, determining what PPE was required, helping to educate and support staff during the rapid pace of changes that were taking place, and screening patients and staff for compliance, all included Kim and Tammy. Ascension St. Vincent would not be where they are today without the collaborative efforts of this team. – Nominated by Mallory Martin

Emergency Department visits dropped at the start of the pandemic due to the fear of contracting the virus in that setting. In one week, Ascension St. Vincent Evansville designed and initiated a separate Respiratory Emergency Department in response, to ensure they could care not only for COVID-19 patients, but any patient needing any type of emergency care. This gave comfort to both the patient and the staff that they would be safe and cared for. – Nominated by Mallery Martin

In April of 2020, seeing a need that was not met, Berry Global started producing and delivering tiny plastic face shields for newborn babies to Deaconess Women’s Hospital in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Berry has also adapted the shield to fit toddlers and younger children. – Nominated by Don Crankshaw

Since 2011, Chemo Buddies has made a concerted effort to ensure that no one ever has to face chemotherapy alone. Buddies walk along-side patients and help them with their needs in the treatment rooms. In 2019, Chemo Buddies touched a patient 65,780 times—more than 1000 patients each week. In 2020, Buddies could no longer be in the treatment rooms, and there was a huge need for masks for the patients, front line staff, and others. Chemo Buddies coordinated and mobilized volunteers to make 20,000+ masks. They also started virtual programs to accommodate not being able to be with their patients in person. – Nominated by Gali Knight Williams

Gilda’s Club Evansville provides a gathering place where people with cancer, their families, or people that have lost someone to cancer, can join with others to actively involve themselves in building social and emotional support. Especially during COVID-19, those impacted with cancer are very vulnerable and have to take extra precautions. Gilda’s Club has taken every possible step to make sure they can still support their members during this time through virtual support groups and workshops, Facebook Live yoga and crafts, and by dropping goodies off on members’ porches. – Nominated by Sarah Timmons

Little Lambs has helped safeguard the health and well-being of our youngest and most vulnerable citizens for over 25 years. With over 30 community partners, Little Lambs provides vouchers to parents and guardians who practice positive parenting acts by attending classes, going to well-baby visits, receive drug and alcohol education and rehabilitation, and more. Participants can use these vouchers for items needed in the Little Lambs store. Beyond the voucher program, Little Lambs provides car seats and installation by a certified car seat technician. – Nominated by Erika Qualls Barnett

Market on Main EVV is a robust farmers market serving Evansville’s downtown every June to September. Working with organizations such as Urban Seeds, Upgrade, and Healthy Community Partnership to bring healthy locally grown produce to our community, they offer use of SNAP and WIC benefits as a payment option. In 2020, they were the only regional farmers market to run their complete season by following CDC regulations to operate as an essential business. They created a curbside pickup program for those needing limited contact and provided local produce and goods to over 20,000 customers. – Nominated by Ashley Kiefer