The winners of the 2017 Volunteer Appreciation Awards have now all received their plaques and certificates at ceremonies around that state and the list of their achievements in support of Florida’s parks is truly amazing.
The awards, sponsored by Friends of Florida State Parks, recognize the very best in volunteerism and choosing the winners in each of the categories is no easy task.
There are 85 CSO groups and more than 14,400 volunteers supporting our award-winning parks and trails by donating more than 1.2 million hours of service annually. In addition, they organize thousands of events every year and raise millions of dollars for special projects and to support the work of park managers and their staff.
While the volunteer appreciation awards celebrate the best of the best, every single volunteer deserves recognition and our thanks for the tremendous job they do, day in and day out, to help make our state parks the very best in the nation.
Later this year, nominations will open for the 2018 awards. If you know of someone or a group of people that deserve recognition, please bring it to the attention of a park manager. We want to honor all those who have provided extraordinary service and thank them in a tangible way for their time and commitment.
Congratulations to all our winners and for all our volunteers who do such incredible work in all our state parks – THANK YOU! To learn more about the award winners and their amazing achievements, please go to the Volunteer Appreciation webpage.
The 2017 Volunteer Appreciation Award winners are:
Director’s Special Volunteer Service Award
Jim Ellis, Hugh Taylor Birch State Park
Motorola Solutions Corporate Contributor of the Year
Dr. Von D. Mizell - Eula Johnson State Park
CSO Awards
Overall Citizen Support Organization of the Year
Friends of Fort Clinch
Citizen Support Organization (CSO) of the Year - Resource-based Recreation
Friends of Topsail Hill Preserve State Park
Volunteer of the Year - Administration
Nancy Olson - Bahia Honda State Park
Volunteer of the Year – Park Maintenance
Bill Lewis, Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway
Volunteer of the Year – Park Maintenance
Jean Fletcher, Hontoon Island State Park
Volunteer of the Year – Resource Management
Susan Kolterman, Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park
Volunteer of the Year - Resource Management
Robert ‘Bob’ Deyle, Edward Ball Wakulla Springs State Park
Volunteer of the Year – Visitor Service
Karen Cloud, Dade Battlefield Historic State Park
Volunteer of the Year – Visitor Service
Sam Carr, Dunns Creek State Park
Youth Volunteer of the Year - Maintenance
Matthew Thayer, Colt Creek State Park
Youth Volunteer of the Year – Visitor Service
Makenzie Shaw, Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs State Park
Team and Event Awards
Team of 2 of the Year – Maintenance
Darwin and JoAnne Matthews, Anastasia State Park and Ravine Gardens State Park
Team of 2 of the Year – Resource Management
Bob and Marteen Dillon, Bahia Honda State Park
Team of 2 of the Year – Visitor Service
Philip and Ann (Mickie) Anderson, Myakka River State Park
Team of 3+ of the Year – Maintenance
Freddie & Deb Morgan, Chris Graves and Mike Crane, Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park
Team of 3+ of the Year – Resource Management
Beach Cleanup Team, Gamble Rogers Memorial State Recreation Area at Flagler Beach
Team of 3+ of the Year – Protection
Bulkhead Reinforcement Team, Hontoon Island State Park
Special Cultural Event of the Year
Moon Over Maclay, Friends of Maclay Gardens Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park
Overall Special Event of the Year
Celebrate Cayo Costa, Friends of Cayo Costa Cayo Costa State Park
Team of 3+ of the Year – Visitor Service
Tom Adler, Earl Cross, Barry Blitvich, Shaun Suydam, Mike Anderson and Steve Lemonds, Myakka River State Park
Special Event of the Year - Historical
CCC Festival, Highlands Hammock State Park
Special Event of the Year – Resource Management
Get to Know Colt Creek, Friends of Colt Creek State Park
Special Event of the Year – Natural Resource Education
Earth Day Celebration, Dunns Creek State Park
Long-Term Project of the Year - Historical
CCC Statue #71, Friends of Ft. Clinch State Park
Short-Term Project of the Year – Cultural
Bird Peninsula Restoration, Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs State Park
Short-Term Project of the Year – Resource-based Recreation
Manatee Pavilion, Gamble Rogers Memorial State Recreation Area at Flagler Beach
Special Event of the Year – Resource-based Recreation
Earth Day Bio Blitz, Friends of Oscar Scherer State Park Oscar Scherer State Park
20+ Years of Volunteer Service
Lynn Cherry, Camp Helen State Park - 21 Years of Volunteer Service
Arthur Nersadian, Fort Cooper State Park - 30 Years of Volunteer Service
Agnes Eslava, Rainbow Springs State Park - 24 Years of Volunteer Service
Amilcar Eslava, Rainbow Springs State Park - 26 Years of Volunteer Service
Shirley Kuntz, Rainbow Springs State Park - 21 Years of Volunteer Service
Mary Lou Amirault, Rainbow Springs State Park - 20 Years of Volunteer Service
Linda Brown, Rainbow Springs State Park - 22 Years of Volunteer Service
Bob Sprenzel, Rainbow Springs State Park - 24 Years of Volunteer Service
Cathy Moore, Little Manatee River State Park - 32 Years of Volunteer Service
Myra Coggesshall, Highlands Hammock State Park - 20 Years of Volunteer Service
Bob Sendry, Oscar Scherer State Park - 21 Years of Volunteer Service
Janet Heaton, John D. MacArthur Beach State Park - 25 Years of Volunteer Service
Carol Herzog, Savannas Preserve State Park - 21 Years of Volunteer Service
Henry Maursey, Savannas Preserve State Park - 20 Years of Volunteer Service
