Previous Recipients
December 2008
Michelle Brown
Western Historical Mansuscript Collection, Thomas Jefferson Library
“Michelle is an extra-ordinarily hard worker, prompt and thorough, and has added greatly to the Western Historical Manuscript Collection by processing collections and making them available to the public.
She's a self-starter and very skilled at helping patrons with the collections, in addition to her processing work. Having Michelle here has been a great, great pleasure.”
-Kenn Thomas, WHMC-St. Louis, TJ Library
November 2008
Angela Bingham
Creative Services
Angela helped the Creative Services department with a “huge job” which ended up taking a few days to complete. Murray Velasco commented, “Her initiative is impeccable. She is such a quick study, asks pertinent questions and executes instructions with all the detail that is needed. Angela knows what it takes to be a professional. The way she dresses and the way she directs clients, answers phones calls and walk-ins to the department all show that she is professionally savvy.” Creative Services is very appreciative of Angela’s volunteer work!
October 2008
Kierra Blunt
Transfer Services
In his nominating Kierra, Gary Clark of the Office of Transfer Services had this to say: "Kierra did an outstanding job while assisting in a mailing project for the Office of Transfer Services. She demonstrated ability to grasp the concept of the project immediately and was consistent and accurate in her work. She got the job done! Kierra arrived on schedule, was appropriately dressed and was very professional in her outlook towards our project. She was not afraid to ask questions, stayed busy, and was enthusiastic and a bright spot in our day. We would welcome her back at any time.
It is a pleasure to meet a young person of Kierra's caliber. She is a senior in high school with maturity and is looking at UMSL as a possible school in her future. We would be fortunate to have her. It is always a joy to see such a quality young person meet or exceed expectations and Kierra does this."
September 2008
Myra Sanders- Lyle
Gallery Visio
Sara Arnold of Gallery Visio has this to say about Myra: “Myra has been such a wonderful help at Gallery Visio this summer. For her summer break from Colorado University, she has volunteered her time and talent not only to us, but has helped other organizations in St. Louis as well. She is warm and pleasant, as well as extremely efficient and productive. She has helped in every aspect of assisting Gallery Visio, be it framing artwork, installing an exhibition, or writing a fantastic press release for an upcoming show. If only we could keep her for the school year!” UMSL will miss you Myra!
August 2008
Dan Mueller
Thomas Jefferson Library
Dan came to Volunteer Services as an elementary teacher on summer break. He began volunteering for Aziz Atai-Langroudi in the Thomas Jefferson Library. Here's what Aziz has to say about Dan: "I am nominating Dan Mueller as the Volunteer of the Month for his accurate, responsible, cooperative, and caring behavior in handling his tasks. I admire Dan for his ability in putting his wonderful human stamp on every single piece of duty assigned to him. I feel proud of having such a volunteer working side by side with me." Thanks for the great work, Dan!
July 2008
Sue Hinkel
Storytelling FestivalSue has served on the planning committee for the Storytelling Festival for many years and became volunteer coordinator in January 2007. In her position, Sue manage a slew of responsibilities, including assembling packets, mailings, delivering supplies, taxiing featured storytellers who arrive from out of town and managing the book and resource sale.
Sue has also organized the fundraising auction for the past 3 years. As an artist, she has donated several glass art pieces for fundraising efforts. Sue is also in charge of the "Children's Poster" display. As part of this endeavor, Sue visits a school art program, tells a story, discusses storytelling and asks the children to draw a poster that represents their interpretation of storytelling. The posters are then displayed at the St. Louis Arch. Sue always open to volunteer and donates a tremendous amount of time every year; her work for the Storytelling Festival is invaluable.
June 2008
Joan Schmid
Touhill Performing Arts CenterJoan is an inaugural member of the volunteer guild working with the Touhill Performing Arts Center since 2003. She has volunteered at over 100 events for a total of approximately 500 hours.
On 5/14/08 at the Clyde Miller Career Academy Commencement went above and beyond her normal responsibilities to help a graduate's grandparents connect with the rest of the family and see their granddaughter graduate. The grandparents were having difficulty locating the campus and building. The ceremony was about to start and they were on the cell phone with the mother of the graduate. Joan took over for the mom on the phone so she could be seated and spent 15 minutes on the phone with the grandparents giving them turn by turn directions to the campus, then to the building and into the theater. When they arrived she gave the mom's cell phone to grandma and directed them to their seats and mom and grandparents got see the young lady receive her diploma.
The proceeding is just one special incident that is reflective of Joan's willingness to go out of her way to be sure our patrons have a memorable experience.
May 2008
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Tish Preston-Stubbs
Human Resources DepartmentTish volunteered her skills to serve as a consultant for the Human Resources department. She devoted an extraordinary amount of time to this project. Tish is knowledgeable, creative, diplomatic, and energetic. The HR department is extremely grateful to have had her as a volunteer.
April 2008
Michael Wisely
Human Resources“Michael performed several tasks while in HR and did so with completeness and accuracy. He should be commended for a job well done! Michael did an excellent job in making many Faculty and Staff Benefit binders for our New Employee Orientations. He had a very positive attitude, followed directions very well, and needed little to no supervision. It was a pleasure having him to work with us. He had a much enthusiasm and initiative. Michael possesses the type of character that any employer would seek in an employee. He was pleasant, kind and considerate of others. He was only required to complete 25 hours of volunteer time for his high school honors course, but willingly worked overtime to finish the project. He gets two A's.... we appreciated his Attitude and Ability.”
March 2008
William & Jacqueline Dehmer
Touhill Performing Arts Center"Jacqueline and William have been volunteering with the Touhill since January 2005. They have volunteered for 39 and 42 performances respectively. This amounts to 200 plus hours for each of them. A Touhill patron submitted the following account of an experience with William and Jacqueline:
'On February 14th my daughter and I attended the Michael Feinstein concert. I am in a wheelchair and we needed directions to our seat and help with exiting when the show was over. Your ushers, Jacqueline and William went out of their way to assist us. Jacqueline took us to our seats and helped me get into my seat. She then took my wheelchair and brought it back to me when the show was over. William checked on me a few times to make sure I was comfortable. You are very fortunate to have such valuable volunteers. We had a very enjoyable evening and look forward to attending your venue in the future.'
The message was dated two weeks after the actual event took place. Jacqueline and William obviously made a significant impression on the writer. The above example is representative of their commitment, which is vital to a successful Touhill experience."
February 2008
Anna Brendel
Thomas Jefferson Library"Anna exemplifies accuracy and timeliness. She is motivated, hard working and cares about her job. She is thorough and when in doubt, seeks clarification. Anna has a great sense of responsibility and is able to carry out a high volume of work. Anna is an amazing human being. We are extremely thankful to have her."
January 2008
Yvonne Hill
Alumni Relations"Yvonne assisted with ticket sales for the Arianna String Quartet at the Sheldon Concert Hall. This position requires a higher level of responsibility because it handles money and tickets, both of which have to balance at the end of the evening. She has shown herself to be extremely responsible and punctual. Because of her professionalism and concern, she helped us ensure that concert sales went smoothly.
Yvonne's helpful and cheerful personality make her a natural for this position. She also managed to find joy in her work -- which flowed over to our patrons as well. She is a gem, and we are very lucky to have her working with us!"
