Sieda Community Action presented four staff- members with the Sargent Shriver excellence of service award.

The Sargent Shriver Awards recognize positive behaviors. Those that support the achievement of the agency’s mission, vision, and values. This award is to create a culture of mutual respect and recognition for employees at all levels. They are nominated by their co-workers.

There are two separate award categories; the Employee of the Year award and the Supervisor of the Year award. Firstly, the Employee of the Year award honors three individual employees. These are people that have no staff reporting to them, such as teachers, counselors, administrative assistants, home visitation specialists, etc. Secondly, the Supervisor Award honors one supervisor who has one or more direct reports and is in a leadership position within the organization.

The 2020 Shriver Award winners are presented below.

Employee of the Year – De Brooke
Parents as Teachers Educator

A co-worker commented “De is a strong team player. She draws staff together in thought and decision-making.” De is able to ask difficult questions to gain a better understanding of the client’s unique circumstances. “She conducts visits in a client-centered fashion and actively listens to visit participants and provides visit information and activities that follow client interests and needs. De gives her undivided attention to clients during visits and utilizes active listening skills to gain an understanding of the client’s perspective. During coaching sessions, she often explains how they look for and acknowledge families’ strengths. During the credentialing review in 2019, staff noted her ability to assist the client in identifying his individual strengths and to set goals accordingly.

Employee of the Year 1st Runner up – Jessica Fenton
Accounting Clerk

Jessica’s work ethic; attention to detail; and kind, sweet personality inspires co-workers every time they work with her. While her position doesn’t allow for Jessica to be out front and visible, I believe others who have had the opportunity to work with her would say the same. Most recently, her supervisor expressed how impressed she is with their approach to work and willingness to do whatever is necessary to get the work of the department completed.

Employee of the Year 2nd Runner up –  Seth Bell
Behavioral Health & Treatment Services Counselor

This staff member has been with Sieda Community Action for several years. Although Seth has been a great employee throughout the years, he definitely kicked it up over the past year. He believes in the promise of Community Action, as every day he strives to change lives for the better. Seth does this by meeting clients emotionally where they are and lets the clients make their own goals. He is patient and empathetic with clients and is available to them when needed. The dedication Seth exhibits is outstanding as every day he gives clients the best service possible. Since COVID, he was asked to make changes in the way he does business. Seth showed a ton of accountability and clearly took charge and gladly did everything that was asked. There have been many times clients were put on his schedule due to a co-worker being ill. He has cooperated with changes and has demonstrated leadership.

Supervisor of the Year – Ned Van Nostrand
Housing Stabilization Director

Last winter there was a situation in which a man came into the office with sandals and no socks. He was homeless and cold. Ned took money from his pocket to help the man because there was no program Sieda offered that addressed this man’s specific needs. The next day, this person brought a sack full of socks they had purchased into the office in case there was a similar situation in the future. Sieda’s work is not a job for Ned. It is a passion. Looking over his resume, you can see that he has dedicated his career to helping people. He does not simply talk about creating a world that’s better for people living in poverty. Ned does the work necessary to create a world where people are resilient citizens who are involved, self-reliant, and contribute positively to their families and communities.

Congratulations to all our award winners, and thank you for your service and dedication to Sieda Community Action!