Last week, the 25th annual V!VA Awards recognized five Muncie citizens for their volunteer work over the past year. Volunteers include: Patricia Brown of Back to School Teachers Store; Oneida Hatton of Lifestream Services; Debbie Norrick of Animal Rescue Fund; Carl Kizer Jr. of Delaware County’s Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Selection Committee and Big Brothers Big Sisters; and Jay Zimmerman of numerous local non-profit groups.
The V!VA Awards took place at the Horizon Convention Center on Tuesday, and was hosted by The Muncie Rotary Club, Muncie Sunrise Rotary Club and United Way of Delaware County.
This year’s V!VA Awards were unique in that two individuals were honored with lifetime achievement awards instead of the usual one. Thomas Smith, who has dedicated 25 years of community service, was honored, and J. Allan Rent, former Rotary Club member, who died in January was also honored.
According to Sarah Shade, a member of the V!VA Awards committee, the award winners all have generous lifestyles.
“Each individual that we honor today has embraced the rotary motto of service of service above self,” Shade said.
Shade has involved in the process of selecting the individuals that will be honored at the ceremony every year since 2006.
“The most difficult part is selecting the recipients. We get quite a few nominations, and it is a really difficult process to whittle that down to just five,” Shade said.
Shade said these volunteers often go unnoticed.
“Several of the individuals that we honored today don’t seek out of the spotlight at all. If we don’t shine that on them then people are not going to know the stories and the value of the work that they do locally,” Shade said.
Scott Smalstig, vice president of fund development for Meridian Health Services, nominated J. Allan Rent, and also spoke about his humility.
“He was so busy recognizing others for their gifts of time and talents, that he has not been recognized. Now is the perfect time to recognize Al Rent for the V!VA Lifetime Achievement Award…because he would not have allowed us to give it to him previously,” Smalstig said.
One of the yearly award winners Carl Kizer, a Ball State graduate, summarized his volunteer service experience as putting service above himself. Kizer said his parents have passed the torch to him and have their own name for volunteer service.
“Giving Jesus back some of your time, some of your talent, some of your treasure to help make our community a better place for all of us to live,” said Kizer.
“Jesus came to serve, my father being my Sunday school teacher, my mother being the head of the ushers of my church, they led by example. It’s something they always expected of me. It’s something that you always get back more than what you give,” Kizer said.
The award winners join a long list of accomplished Muncie volunteers. The V!VA committee has already started accepting nominees for next year’s event.
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