13 St. Luke’s volunteers awarded at 27th Annual Governor’s Volunteer Awards
13 St. Luke’s volunteers and the SHIPP(Senior Health Insurance Information Program) received a Governor’s Volunteer Award from Governor Chet Culver during a special recognition ceremony held July 22 in Cedar Rapids.
The Governor’s Volunteer Awards (GVA) program was created in 1982, with inaugural awards presented in 1983. The program has grown from a small program only available to state agencies to its present function of providing all Iowa nonprofit, charitable, and government organizations with an easy and effective way to honor their volunteers with a prestigious state-level recognition award.
Volunteers may be nominated for an award in one of several categories: Individual, Group, Length of Service, or Disaster Volunteer. Nearly 800 volunteers were selected for awards in 2010.
“The devotion of these volunteers has helped Iowa achieve the second highest state volunteer rate in the country,” said Governor Culver. “Lt. Governor Judge, the First Lady, and I are honored to have this opportunity to personally thank this year’s award recipients for donating their time, dedication, and talent to make a tremendous difference in our state.”
The most recent “Volunteering in America” study, released June 15, details the millions of hours that volunteers in Iowa collectively contribute. The estimated annual economic impact of that service is well over $1 billion. The entire report can be viewed at www.volunteeringinamerica.gov.
