CHARACTER COUNTS!

Pillar of Character Awards 2005-06

CHARACTER COUNTS! is proud to announce the recipients of the 2005-06 Pillar of Character Award. All nominees were judged on their demonstrated commitment to the Six Pillars of Character: Trustworthiness, Respect, Caring, Citizenship, Fairness and Responsibility.

The effort was sponsored in part by David Golden, attorney at law.

The Pillars of Character for 2005-06 are as follows, with comments from the nominations:

	Steve Allen – Director of maintenance, St. Michael’s Independent School Although Steve is not a faculty member at St. Michael’s, he is in fact a teacher. He teaches the students that character counts in everything one does, from designing a deck to repairing a screen. He is a role model for children and adults.
	Rafael Almonte – Public assistance department, Martin Memorial Health Systems From the bedside to the final appointments, Rafael is the voice of patients and families who sometimes have none. His tireless effort and selfless commitment to these patients changes lives.
	Robert Deyo – Chief financial officer, Helping People Succeed (HPS) Bob is what every organization needs – a strong leader with a heart of gold – he knows that every dollar counts but he knows and appreciates what every dollar is for and achieves.
	Lolita Dupree – Disaster Response Team, American Red Cross Lolita demonstrates her true commitment, caring, and sense of responsibility by doing the really hard behind-the-scenes work that supports everything the Red Cross does – but that most people don’t ever see.
	Sgt. Ryan Grimsdale – Community Oriented Policing Unit, Martin County Sheriff’s Office He is currently assigned as the sergeant in the Community Oriented Policing Unit, and this area is truly his calling. In addition to working to solve quality-of-life issues in high-risk communities, he serves as a mentor and role model for the children living there.
	Elena Rish – Administrative assistant, Martin County School District Elena has worked for the school district for 30 years. She is always willing to assist the public and her fellow work colleagues with any situation or project and will go out of her way to do it correctly and without hesitancy.