Congratulations to these local volunteers most recently recognized by ESL Federal Credit Union and News 10 NBC WHEC as ESL Jefferson Award Winners.
This year’s honorees are:
Logan Newman
A navy veteran and optician, Logan created and runs the “Vision Care Program” at East High School which gives students the opportunity to learn to make glasses for other students in the district. This program’s three-year vision care program trains high school students to graduate into jobs in the optical field, while helping a critically underserved community. This combination makes it the only such program in the country.
Dave Lippa
Dave’s goal is to shed light on suicide awareness and prevention. Each weekend, he travels the streets of our community in his truck, wrapped in messages like “Not all wounds are visible” and “Stop the 22 a day,” referencing the estimated number of people lost to suicide each day. While he focuses on reaching veterans, others have benefited from the messages he shares at various events, as well. Example — one woman stopped Dave to talk and told him that “today was to be her day and she had everything ready.” But after hearing Dave’s talk, she did not end her life.
Jermayne Myers
Jermayne helped found “Black Men Achieve Youth Mentorship, an organization that provides quality mentorship, guidance, support, and much needed male authority and input to black and brown males between 8-21. He coordinates experiences for youth to expose them to black-tie affairs, conversations with community leaders, volunteer experiences, educational enlightenment, to show them that elevation and success is possible. His motto — Be who you needed when you were younger.
Keila Pena
Keila founded Succor, a non-profit organization that works to assist local immigrant population by providing free immigration services like applying for asylum, family petitions, and employment authorizations.
Jacqueline Swinarski
Jackie has spent countless hours over the last 14 years volunteering and co-chairing a variety of fundraising activities for Batavia Crossroads House, including their massive, annual tent sale. Batavia Crossroads House is a comfort care home for those in the last weeks of life.
Visit the WHEC Jefferson Awards page to learn more about this year’s Jefferson Award Winners.
