Westfield Mayor Daniel Knapik, center, presented Don Podolski, left, Jeanne Chistolini with a citation after they were honored as Volunteers of the Year during a ceremony at Westfield City Hall last night. Podolski was nominated by the Friends of the Columbia Greenway and Chistolini was nominated by the Carson Center. The event was sponsored by The Non-Profit Volunteer Network of the Greater Westfield. (Photo by Frederick Gore)
WESTFIELD – Last night, Westfield Mayor Daniel M. Knapik recognized both Jeanne Chistolini of the Carson Center and Don Podolski of Friends of the Columbia Greenway Rail Trail (FOCGRT) with a ‘Volunteer of the Year Award’ in the City Council Chambers of the City Hall. The annual ceremony was coordinated by the Non-Profit Volunteer Network (NPVN).
The award was an acknowledgment of Chistolini and Podolski’s dedicated community service work in Westfield. They were picked out of a pool of ten candidates who had been nominated for the award by their respective organizations, all members of the NPVN.
Westfield Mayor Daniel Knapik, left, announces the winners at last night’s Annual Volunteer of the Year Award Ceremony sponsored by The Non-Profit Volunteer Network of Greater Westfield. (Photo by Frederick Gore)
The NPVN is a local group of collaborating, non-profit organizations that seeks to broaden awareness of, and participation in, community work. The NPVN has facilitated the Volunteer of the Year Award Ceremony for over five years.
“This is really all about these folks,” said Barbara Trant, one of the leaders of the NPVN. “Our purpose is to highlight the work that they do to support local non-profits, organizations that in turn serve the city.”
Chistolini is a Carson Center Ambassador. She was nominated for her “record of exceptional generosity and dependable commitment as a volunteer in the Greater Westfield Community,” and has been “the ‘go-to’ person for seeking to share resources and get things done,” noted the Center.
Podolski, is the Director of Education at FOCGRT, which works to create a pedestrian and bicycle friendly community. FOCGRT said upon nominating him; “Podolski has been an advocate for bicycling for decades, including being one of the earliest voices for the idea of the Columbia Greenway Rail Trail.” He also served as the first Chair of FOCGRT.
“These people were chosen based on how they served their communities,” said Trant. “We (the NPVN) are here to honor their service.”
