On Thursday, May 2, 2013, over 200 attendees gathered at Drumlins to honor volunteer mentors who participate in PEACE, Inc. Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) traditional and school-based programs.
Oscar Vergara, BBBS Youth Services Director, welcomed participants and introduced the evening’s Keynote Speaker, Dennis DuVal, former SU Basketball All-American and City of Syracuse Chief of Police from 2001 to 2004. Mr. DuVal is currently President of Hofmann Sausage, LLC.
The evening’s awardees were: Katelyn Leonard (Cicero-North Syracuse High School) and Tyler Mikels (Paul V. Moore High School), recipients of the Michael P. Yeomans Scholarship Award; Hannah Jones (Paul V. Moore High School), High School Big Sister of the Year; Ben Greenfield (Nottingham High School), High School Big Brother of the Year; and Tesia Kim (Syracuse University), Collegiate Big of the Year.
Traditional “Bigs” of the year honored were Jody Kearns, Big Sister of the Year, and Gregory Chapman, Big Brother of the Year.
For their outstanding service to the children in our community, GAP – Destiny USAreceived the Community For Kids’ Sake Award, and Syracuse Chiefs received the Corporate Partnership Award. “It is truly an honor to be recognized by Big Brothers Big Sisters,” said Chiefs General Manager John Simone. “As a franchise owned by local stockholders, we take great pride in partnering with an organization dedicated to improving our community.”