Dear Friends, Here we are, nearing the start of summer and the halfway point through the year. 2022 has been a whirlwind so far, and I am excited about what the rest of the year will bring.
Later this week, AWARE’s board of directors and leadership team will be gathering in Billings for our annual retreat where we will review 2022 to date, but more importantly, we will look to and plan for the future of our organization. I welcome the opportunity that this retreat provides us to review and enhance our strategic plan each year. Equally as important, we will host AWARE’s Annual Awards Banquet while we are in Billings. Each year at this banquet, we celebrate AWARE’s Unconditional Care (UCC) Principles and recognize some very deserving employees, as nominated by their peers. As expected, the nominations we received for awards this year are inspiring. We have so many people on the team who are dedicated to the work we do. Reading the nominations is a great reminder of why we do what we do.
In addition to naming the 10 award winners for each of our UCC Principles, we also present the Independent Spirit Award to recognize a client who has excelled in different areas and stands out as an example for others by demonstrating great strength, commitment and resilience.
Each year we honor AWARE’s Employee of the Year who is a team member who embodies our UCC values by consistently performing at a high level, demonstrates a willingness to work with others, has a positive attitude, is dependable and creates a positive work environment and represents what AWARE stands for.
And finally, each year we award the George Groesbeck Award – an award bestowed upon a community partner that has made a difference in the lives of people living with a disability. The award recipient has the respect and admiration of stakeholders, staff and the people we serve. They earn this honor by serving as a role model with the best interests of service providers and the people they serve in mind. They treat all fairly; setting high expectations for our systems of care and are consistent with knowledge, commitment and inspiration. The individual bestowed with this award goes above and beyond with humor, wit, intelligence and “long-term” thinking – just like George himself.
This prestigious award is named in honor of George Groesbeck who was the director of AWARE’s human resources department as well as a Montana legislator, and a leader who championed the causes of people with disabilities. George sadly passed away in 2008, and he is sorely missed. We are honored to celebrate the impact he made by recognizing a deserving individual or organization each year.
I look forward to this event and celebrating alongside many people on the team and encourage you to tune into our Facebook page on June 9 to watch the awards ceremony live. Next month’s INK will have a full recap of this year’s award winners, so if you haven’t subscribed yet, be sure to do so now!
Whether you are an AWARE employee, donor, client, family or friend, THANK YOU for being a part of our team.
With sincere gratitude,
Matt Bugni - CEO